Hello again, my friends.

This might be the longest hiatus I’ve ever taken, but for good reason. For most of you who have been following me, you know that I took a break from my usual posts here to focus on my finance class. Long story short, I took finance twice in undergrad, failed both times, and had to take two finance classes for my MBA program. The one thing that kept me from getting a minor in business came back nearly a decade later to haunt me. With hard work, dedication, literal blood, sweat and tears (especially tears), I conquered both classes. With an A.

That’s right, I exorcised those demons with two A’s.

THE POWER OF SPREAD SHEETS

But I didn’t do it alone. I had help, and lots of it. I had a professor who cared more than any professor I’ve seen at this college. This man would literally give up his nights for us. Study group from 8-9pm? He kept going until we ran out of questions around 11:45. By study group, I mean online web chat. Think Skype, but with 10 kids who were blundering in the dark and a professor who shared his screen and walked us through the methods to the madness. Needed help via email? He was quick on the draw, none of this “wait 3 business days to reply back” nonsense. Had a problem? He worked with us tirelessly. Banging your head on a problem? Don’t worry, he’s banged his head on it, too. If you’re an MBA student at A&M WT and you need to take finance, look no further than Dr. Ammerman. I have unparalleled respect for this man. If you’re reading this, thank you for all your help.

After gaining about 15 pounds, drinking enough coffee to fuel the Colombian economy, alienating family and friends, and giving up most social time, I was ready for a break. Some serious sleep, Netflix, laundry, working out, and general mental health was needed.

How I felt entering December.

I gave some serious thought to my resolutions for 2018. Sure, I could do the “I’m gonna work out more” or another “I’m gonna write more for Brash Librarian“, but this year feels a little different. Between work, school, family and friends, I’ve decided to do more for myself and for those around me. With that in mind, I came up with some fairly simple but powerful resolutions to try.

Resolution 1: Consult with Mr. Spock

I recently stumbled upon an interesting way of using Star Trek to keep oneself calm, as described below:

A nifty tip for dealing with invasive irrational thoughts.

Pretend Spock is standing by your shoulder telling you it’s “illogical” or something.

Getting invasive thoughts that everyone you know secretly hates you? Spock is there to be all, “That is statistically improbable, Captain. Several of your friends have told you many times that they enjoy your company.”

Paranoid that you’re going to hit by a car every time you walk by a road? Spock is walking beside you, calmly explaining that, “You are most likely not going to be hit by a car. You’re walking on the sidewalk, and there are no cars in sight.”

Is someone not messaging you back right away, and part of you is terrified that they’re dead in a ditch somewhere? Spock is there to be all, “Captain, your friend is currently at work. They are probably helping a customer, not dead.”

Seriously, I spend a lot of time now pretending that Spock is blandly telling me why all of my irrational, invasive, and paranoid thoughts probably aren’t true.

“Spock, someone is watching me.”

“Captain, you are alone in your apartment, Everything is fine.”

I thought it felt a little silly at first mentally asking for Mr. Spock’s opinion, but taking a moment to analyze a situation has been very effective – along with making me feel like a Captain. After trying it for the first few weeks of 2018, I have to say it’s very helpful, calming, and dare I say…

How most of my self convos end now.

Resolution 2: Replace “I’m sorry” with “Thank you”

Being in Texas, so far away from most of my friends and family in Florida, I sometimes find myself apologizing. I’m sorry I don’t text more, I’m sorry I didn’t answer your call the other night, I’m sorry we haven’t Skyped this week, I’m sorry we haven’t played games or had a Netflix binge together lately, I’m sorry for many things. Then I came across this on my Facebook the other day:

I’ve seen this posting before, but it didn’t resonate with me at the time like it does now. To all those I’m sorry I haven’t talked to as much as I should have – Mom, Dad, Bill, Alex, Dylan, Ashley, Nigel, Caitlin, freaking everyone – thank you for being such loving and amazing people.

Resolution 3: More Fun Stuff

More polls, more guest stars, more stuff from fans and collaborators. I started this site with a “me, me, me” mentality, and I know I need to share and partner up more. While I don’t like playing second banana to anyone, it’s not so much fun if you’re the only banana.

That’s all for today, guys. Hopefully, this semester won’t be as difficult…

I suppose we’ll see! In the meantime, make sure to follow me on on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to catch all the exclusive stuff as it comes out!

Justin Brasher, Brash Librarian