Happy Friday, everyone. The day began very well with our longest client asking us to prepare a contract for a two-year project. She was also providing us for information on a presentation we just had accepted at a major conference (major for my niche industry) on the comfort and appropriateness of using AI in patient-reported outcomes research from the perspective of experts from pharmaceutical companies, major consultancies, and AI experts (who, interestingly, are the most hesitant). I will be presenting this research in Vienna in November. Today is also a good day in that it is my first official wear outside (after my 24 hours of break in) for my Yearn oxblood Balmoral boots! I am loving them. Unfortunately, the outfit I have on reveals that the slacks and jacket need alterations, and the slacks were already altered! I think I may have grown taller... Charcoal, blue and oxblood for a polished Friday video-conference look Friday rotation check: The Friday rule was met at the time of selection: DS-051, NT-065, and DSo-095 each had zero prior recorded wears and therefore fell within the 35 least-worn items. Today’s entry raised each to one wear; additional low-use pieces included DSh-022 (the new boots! I did count a wear inside my house one day as it was all I wore during a weekend day) and DOJ-008, while overall harmony took priority over forcing more zero-wear items into the outfit. • Jacket — DOJ-008 (Hart Schaffner & Marx): A charcoal-gray wool odd jacket with restrained light-brown detailing, notch lapels and a fully lined construction. The charcoal contrasts deliberately with the light-brown trousers, while its brown accent connects naturally to the oxblood leather. • Trousers — SL-019 (Ralph Lauren Green Label): Light-brown basket-weave wool trousers with dark-brown and cream details, cut in a classic 34W × 27L fit. Their subtle sheen and warm coloring bridge the charcoal jacket and oxblood boots without resembling an attempted matched suit.

Two different looks. 1st Class A uniform. Sgt board promotion interviews. 2nd Twillory dress shirt over tan Vertx pants. Vincero Karios II dress watch for uniform. Invicta Dive watch the rest of the day. Xerjoff 1861 Naxos. New purchase for me. Loved it after trying it from @Darren Poesel

I have lost, at this moment, almost 38% of my starting body weight in a year. I might get to 40% by the time the year is up 8 weeks or so from now. This means an average of two and a half to 3 lb of weight loss, but mostly fat, per week, for a year. The general recommended guideline is one to two pounds per week. This means that I have reliably almost doubled that for a year. Well, almost a year. October 3rd will be the year. It was so much easier with you all supporting me. Whether it was @Alex Kilpatrick, @Allan Chiang, or @Darren Poesel cheering me on, or @Brian McGuire trying to talk me into pleats, you all make a difference. Whatever it is you're trying to do, you can do it! Ask not that the boulder be light. Demand that your legs remember who's in charge. Grab life by the neck and say "kneel or be knelt". You're incredible people. Celebrate yourselves. You deserve it.

It’s Friday!! And while I certainly enjoy the feeling of reaching the end of another work week, I don’t look at Friday as a day to simply coast toward the weekend. For me, intentionality means finishing the week the same way I try to begin it — with purpose. Today is a more casual office Friday, and with a cooler August day here in NY, I went with light grey trousers, a checked shirt, brown shoes and a coordinating belt. Relaxed? Absolutely. But still intentional. I think there is something important about finishing things well. Whether it is the work week, a meeting, a project, or simply the commitments I made to myself on Monday, I want to arrive at the finish line knowing I gave the week my attention all the way through. And then comes the weekend. I try to be just as intentional about that time. Time with family. Time to slow down. Time to enjoy some of the things I love. Time to reflect. And time to reset so that when Monday arrives, I’m ready and excited to begin again. The older I get, the more aware I become that none of these days are promised. Every day really is a blessing. Happiness is also a choice. I choose to be happy. I choose to be thankful. And I choose to be grateful — not just when everything goes perfectly, but every single day I’m fortunate enough to wake up and have another opportunity to live, work, learn and spend time with the people I love. So today I’ll finish the work week strong… …and then very intentionally enjoy the weekend. 😎 Be grateful. Choose happiness. Finish strong.