12-Month Renaissance Man Ideas

Is sword-fighting in my future?

Got a great influx of ideas to start my 12 months to becoming a Renaissance Man. I have listed all of the ideas below. Please comment on the idea or ideas you like the best for me. Thanks!

1. Fly fishing
2. Changing oil and a tire
3. Making sushi
4. Learn the 'soft shoe'
5. Knot tying
6. Brew beer
7. Fold origami
8. Sew/ knit
9. Ballroom dance
10. Sword fighting
11. Personal trainer certified
12. Survivalist skills (make fire, trap animals, etc. be a true outdoorsman for 4 consecutive weekends. No eating unless you harvest/catch it.)
13. Directional/social skills -every weekend pick a place that is around 40 miles away and walk there, hitch-hike, borrow a bike, ride the rails hobo-style. You'll be amazed at the people you meet and the new places you'll explore - the insides of the on/off ramp clovers, frontage roads, etc. no maps and you can only walk or rely on strangers.
14. Learn how to build (a home?)
15. Become a wine or beer snob
16. Saber a bottle of champagne
17. Shoot a pistol, a rifle and bow and arrow
18. Astronomy
19. Read some of the classics
20. Tai Chi
21. Street performance magic
22. Sausage making
23. Luchador school/ training
24. Welding
25. Ghostbusting
26. Make the perfect chocolate soufflé
27. For one month, substitute standard cuts of meat (breast, thigh, ribs, etc.) for cuts that are less standard in the US (liver, heart, stomach,, or even soups made from bone broth), etc.. There are supposed health benefits. A true renaissance man knows his proteins!
28. Plan and execute a backpacking adventure for a weekend
29. The art of trading up - one red paper clip guy
30. Learn the waltz or ballet
31. Off-beat sport like cricket, polo, fox hunting, archery or sailing
32. Woodworking
33. Learn and master 2 foreign languages and be knowledgeable about the culture and history
34. Use the 27-page recipe from Tartine Bread to cultivate your own starter over several weeks, and then make your country sourdough...
35. Read the bible and Quran
36. Play the harmonica
37. Play the banjo
38. Skip tracing
39. Use a chainsaw, jigsaw, impact wrench, nail gun, and table saw
40. Rock climbing and rappelling the granite cliffs off yosemite
41. Birding - spend a month spotting and documenting all of the indigenous birds of the bay are
42. Learn how to fire dance
43. Learn the foxtrot
44. Glass blowing, stained glass and ceramics
45. Work through an entire cookbook
46. Origami (pastrami origami)
47. Learn Japanese
48. One style of yoga
49. Bow fishing
50. Gardening
51. Learn how to pick a lock

The Russell Challenge is Making a Comeback - With a Twist

After almost a full year hiatus, I am bringing back the Russell Challenge. Two and a half years, roughly 30 challenges completed since I initially came up with the concept. It began as an idea seeded by the notion of "I can do almost anything if it's just for 30 days." So, gave up coffee for a month, swearing, and sweets. I added daily meditations and 5 servings of fruits and vegetables.

Then, I turned it up a notch and had Jen participate with me. We went vegetarian for a month, found out how people perceived us, went a month without tv and I taught myself how to play the ukulele. A full recap of a year of our challenges can be found by clicking here.

Then we set out to do a year of health-related challenges. We half-heartedly did the first couple of months but to be honest, it felt a bit forced and to me, the whole concept did not feel authentic and fun like it once did. So we let it lie. The blog collected cobwebs because mostly I didn't have anything to say.

But, after wanting to resurrect the challenge and after an inspiring conversation with my friend Julie, I've got a new concept related to the challenge. Here it is: As much as I have enjoyed my personal challenges, I am ready to take it up a notch.

I am inviting you to share with me your own personal challenges. Something you have been wanting to give up, something you have always wanted to do or learn, a physical challenge, whatever. Something that can be accomplished in 30 days. Send your ideas and each month, I will pick one of them and I will take on that challenge with you.

You will have to agree to do some guest blogging. I will do both online blogging and video blogging.

Send your ideas and challenges in the comment section below or to my email address: joshuarussell25@gmail.com. I am ready. Kicking this off January 1, 2013. Bring it!
- Josh Russell

A Year of Health

Josh and I have talked and have decided that this year's challenges will all be centered around health. Each month we will pick a realistic goal (not necessarily a challenge) to add to our daily/weekly lives. Each month we will pick a new healthy choice but continue to do what we have done in the months past. Pretty good, huh?

This month we are eating 5 fruits and veggies every day. I must say that we do this most days and it seems like we eat more like 4 servings naturally. But there are days (ahem, weekends) that we could say, "oops, didn't have but one serving today." Do margaritas count? Haha!
Some ideas so far:
5 fruits and veggies
2 days of yoga per week
64 oz of water
daily vitamin regimen (again, done on some days but not all)

Cheers to a very healthy year!

Russell Challenge - 12 Months of Challenges

Well, a year of challenges went by pretty fast. Some were really fun and successful, some were duds. Here's a quick hit of all 12 challenges and links to the posts. I am ready to kick off another year but want some good suggestions. Please send them to joshuarussell25@gmail.com.

Month 1: Helping My Mom with her Art Business

Month 2: Nothin' But Veggies

Month 3: 40-Day Mantra

Month 4: The Power of Gratitude

Month 5: How Am I Perceived?

Month 6: Daily Energy

Month 7: Weight Loss Challenge

Month 8: All is Well

Month 9: Josh Learns the Ukulele

Month 10: No TV

Month 11: 10,000 Steps a Day

Month 12: A Month of "Firsts"

Month 12: A Month of Firsts

Month 12 represented an entire year of challenges. So, I wanted this one to be unique - I don't remember how the idea came up but I thought about focusing the month of July on going outside of my comfort zone - doing things I might not normally do. From physical activities, to ordering something different at a favorite restaurant. It made me focus on thinking differently and trying new things. Like June, I kept a running tab of all of the things I did. It was the perfect month to do it too with a few family vacations planned and platforms for experimentation.

July "firsts"
- first SaberCats game - LOVED it. Would go to a game every year. And, as you can see from the photo above, I definitely enjoyed myself.

- first time doing an on-field contest during a sabercats game - as Jen pointed out, I have done contests before but never during a SaberCats or football game. Definitely fun.

- first house cleansing - this was actually using my knowledge and skills of Reiki to cleanse a house of bad energy for our friend Courtney. It was very cool and I plan to do it again, as long as someone wants me to.

- first time ordering an iced caramel latte at peet's - it was good... but I wouldn't order it again. My friend the mocha was too jealous.

- first time leading a board retreat - great experience/learning opportunity. Nice to have one under my belt.

- first time eating a ????? (in the salad from el patio) - as you can tell, I ate something I've never eaten before and had no idea what it was. I can tell you that it was disgusting and I would never eat it again... on purpose at least.

- first time drinking Rockstar - Yowza... not sure my body is down for too many of these. Helps with staying up for a night on the town though

- Skouras Greek red wine - by the time I drank this, it really didn't matter where it came from. Tasted good from what my hazy memory could conjure up.

- Uzzo shots - I was peer pressured into this black licorice flavored shot. Would not have it again unless I was peer pressured again.

- First time at UC Santa Barbara campus - incredible campus. If I had visited there, would have been among my top choices. Or maybe number 2 after Arizona

- First "Family Vacation Center" vacation - Family vacation at the UCSB campus was really fun. 4 nights was a perfect blend of adult activities and family fun. Great time.

- Surfing for the first time - I summed up my first ever surfing experience in five words, "America's Funniest Home Videos Montage". Total disaster but I'm determined to get up next time.

- Kayaking - Jen and I went ocean kayaking for the first time. Great sport. Good exercise. Beautiful. I even toyed with buying a kayak until Jen reminded me how infrequently I would use it. I'm still not quite convinced.

- First time capsizing on a kayak - When coming back in, waves crashing all around us, they gave us the option of trying to ride the waves to shore or going the safe route and pulling back. We almost had it until the very end but I would ride the waves 10 times out of 10. Super fun.

- Eating kelp - This tasted EXACTLY how I thought it would taste. Would I eat it again... maybe for a dare or $$.

- Getting pantsed during a freshman orientation - I know I have been pantsed before but never by my 3-year old, never in the middle of the dining hall and never during freshman orientation. At least only the full back was viewable.

- First time ordering 3 side salads as my main meal (at Willow Street) - Our waitress told us that she has never seen anybody order 3 side salads for their dinner in her 6 years working as a waitress. Sweet!

- First time developing and facilitating a grants panel - This was a professional first for me and a great experience. I love the panel process and it was really fun to make up the rules. I think we ended up with a really good outcome as well.

- First time ordering a turkey/pastrami sandwich at freshly baked - I usually get turkey or cheese but given the challenge, I went with a sandwich I had never had before. Here's what I learned... you cannot go wrong. Every sandwich is off the hook. Would definitely order this one again though.

- Bulgogi from Fuji sushi (marinated beef) - Went with my gut... super good. I have ordered it again since but it did not live up to the first time. Still, now it is part of my rotation.

- Seviche - Never had seviche before. Would eat it every day if I could. Incredible!

- Weaverville/ Trinity - Went to a part of California I had never been to before - Weaverville and Trinity. 75 miles east (I think) of Redding. Beautiful part of the world. Amazing that it's in California. Had a great time, would rather go to Tahoe.

- Bed and breakfast/ plantation - At the wedding in Weaverville, we stayed at a bed and breakfast that used to be a plantation. It was my first ever bed and breakfast. I loved it. Very comfortable. Great way to stay - much cozier than a hotel.

- Cake pop - Apparently this is a new trend. I tried one, it was so sweet I almost couldn't finish it.

- Goat meat - Never had goat meat before. It was better than I thought but I'm ok not to have it again. Craziest part was that our friend Mikey roasted a whole goat so there was a big pile of meat and a roasted goat head in front of it.

- Crab cake sandwich - Have had crab cakes but never a crab cake sandwich. Definitely my first and last crab cake sandwich.

- Blood orange iced tea at new place Santori Tea Garden - Walked into a new store in Downtown San Jose and chose a flavor of tea I had never had before from over 400 options. Funny thing is that the blood orange was the first one I smelled. It was pretty awesome!

- Alligator tail - Alligator tail at La Fondue = great idea, poor execution

- Elk rib eye - Eld Rib Eye at La Fondue = good idea, good execution

- Chocolate fondue milk choc w/ toffee - As you can tell, we tried some new things at La Fondue - one of our favorite restaurants. The chocolate fondue was incredible. New family favorite for sure.

Month 11: 10,000 Steps A Day

My sister told me that they were doing a 10,000 steps a day challenge at Adobe and I read up on it and loved the idea. I was looking to do something health related and focusing on walking was perfect. So, Jen and I bought pedometers and we were off.

I park about 3/4 of a mile from my office so I knew that I already had some good walking built in. But, I learned that on an average day, I was probably doing about 6,500 steps, which is good, but pretty far from 10,000. But bottom line, I still work in an office and sit a good chunk of the day so I had work to do.

This challenge forced me to walk everywhere - to take the stairs, to eat lunch farther away from my office, to walk around the block after dinner. It was a great focused reminder on how important it is to be mobile.

And, with a goal of 10,000 steps a day on average, I was focused. I tracked my steps every day and tallied them up at the very end. And, here comes the heartbreaking part... for the month of June, I averaged a total of... 9,994. ARE YOU KIDDING ME!! But, I am still proud of that number and for the entire month, took a total of 258,536 steps.

Here's the breakdown - steps per day:

June 1 - 9017
June 2 - 8655
June 3 - 8672
June 4 - 5755
June 5 - 3521
June 6 - 11,913
June 7 - 16,000
June 8 - 5950
June 9 - 7189
June 10 - 10,031
June 11 - 12,192
June 12 - 6418
June 13 - 8336
June 14 - 9730 (average = 8812)
June 15 - 9665
June 16 - 11835
June 17 - 13,338
June 18 - 19,187
June 19 - 6751
June 20 - 9547
June 21 - 8820
June 22 - 8144
June 23-26 = N/A
June 27 - 10,915 (9633)
June 28 - 9803
June 29 - 11,862
June 30 - 15,290

Month 10: No TV

No tv for one month - at first it felt like a punishment.

When we decided on no television for the entire month of May, the first thing I did was check the calendar to make sure I wasn't missing any major sporting events. Basketball... check; Football... check; Baseball... check. All clear.

Oops, forgot about the Sharks in the playoffs. Unfortunately and fortunately, I did miss the Sharks. But I think I am a saner person as a result.

But, Jen and I decided that we have gotten into a routine of putting the kids to bed, heading downstairs and turning on the TV and subsequently 'vegging out' for the night. This was a great opportunity to re-connect with each other, and try to be more productive.

I have to say this was another challenge that was easier than I thought. Thanks to DVR and the internet, I really didn't miss anything other than the Sharks. And, there were a couple of times we happened to be at dinner while a game was on so if my eyeballs strayed, I couldn't help it.

During the month, I did do some household chores that I had been stalling on, probably read more too. In addition, I got addicted to Words with Friends on my iPhone and used that to replace some TV time. The tough thing is that after a long day of work and spending time with the kids, we actually needed some time to veg out.

Long term, we are trying to institute at least one night a week where we do not turn the tv on. With the sports scene ramping up, it's a little bit harder, but of course I'll live!