Windows 2000 was officially retired this week. Long my favorite version of Windows for its down-to-business, no-nonsense GUI and its modest hardware requirements, I’m sad to see it go.

XP was basically a gussied-up version of Windows 2000, and shared most of the same code base. But where XP tried to be prettier and fancier for mainstream computer users, plain-jane 2000 was content to just get the job done.

Windows 2000 lost any additional feature upgrades starting in the summer of 2005, and was only getting security updates since that time. But on July 13th, 2010, Microsoft stopped issuing those as well.

While I generally prefer living in the linux world these days (PCLinuxOS, to be exact), I do still have some ties to Redmond. I’m running Windows 7 on my media center PC to take advantage of the integrated Netflix streaming in Windows Media Center. And I have found Windows 7 to be pretty solid as an operating system.

So I raise a toast to Windows 2000. It served me well for many years.

Riffing off of Leo Babauta, whose “6 Changes” idea proposes a method for developing beneficial habits, I’m going to embark on a similar attempt. Leo’s idea, slightly adapted, is this:

1. Pick 7 habits for 2010.
2. Pick 1 of the 7 habits to start with.
3. Commit as publicly as possible to creating this new habit in 6 weeks.
4. Break the habit into 6 baby steps, starting with a ridiculously easy step. Example: if you want to floss, the first step is just to get out a piece of floss at the same time each night – don’t worry in step 1 about actually using it.
5. Choose a trigger for your habit – something already in your routine that will immediately precede the habit. Examples: eating breakfast, brushing your teeth, showering, waking up, arriving at the office, leaving the office, getting home in the evening.
6. Do the 1st, really easy baby step for one week, right after the trigger. Post your progress publicly.
7. Each week, move on to a slightly harder step. You’ll want to progress faster, but don’t. You’re building a new habit. Add an incremental step each week until you’ve done 6 weeks.
8. You now have a new habit! During Week 6, spend some time breaking Habit #2 into 6 smaller steps. Then, repeat the process.

Using this approach, there’s an imposed limit of no more than two habits attempted in any one quarter of the year. The idea is not to try to change too many things at once, but be focused until something actually becomes a habit.

I’ve brainstormed a list of habits I’d like to cultivate. So far:

Eating mindfully.
Regular/continual decluttering.
Inbox zero (for personal AND work email).
Improved prayer life.
Improved fitness.
Cultivation of meaningful relationships.
Stopping impulse spending.
More reading.
Being better organized.

So I figure Easter Sunday is a good time to start, with April beginning a new quarter in the year (plus the whole theme of hope and resurrection). I haven’t yet decided which online platform(s) I’ll use to post my experiences/successes/failures, but at the very least I plan to post them on this blog.

Wish me luck…and keep me accountable if you feel so inclined.

I adopted Annie from the humane society in the Fall of 2003. A shepherd-husky mix with a tiny bit of pit bull. A little goofy at times, but pretty well behaved. She’s been a great companion – eagerly greeting me whenever I walked in the door.

I noticed when I first got her that her legs went kind of sideways when she sat on her haunches, but it never seemed to affect her in any other way. Then in the summer of 2009 she started limping slightly, and walking as though her back legs were stiff. But after she’d be up and around, she seemed to loosen up. (The classic symptoms of hip dysplasia). I started her on glucosamine, and it seemed to help. Then a few months later she started getting worse, so before starting her on rimadyl, which over the long term can cause liver damage, I tried a natural medicine called Yucca Intensive. It seemed to help as well. Then after a few more months she got worse again, so I also started her on rimadyl, which definitely helped.

But in the past few days Annie’s condition worsened dramatically, to the point where she had great difficulty standing or walking. She could no longer get up to greet me, even though I could tell she wanted to. I had to carry her out to the yard and back in order for her to do her thing.

So I made the difficult decision to release her from her disease. At around 12:50 today, Annie left this world. Like Gordy, who went before her 11 years ago, I like to think that she’s energetically romping around Narnia now, and that there’s a chance we’ll meet again.

Bye Annie-fannie. I’ll miss you.