I make it a guideline in my life to get into something new at least once a year. I do this for a couple of reasons.

For one, I remember reading a few years ago about scientific studies into brain activity and the like. The gist of the studies was that the longer you're a creature of habit, the harder it actually becomes to think differently or adapt to new situations. Apparently, the oft-used synaptic patterns become paths of least resistance for thought patterns, much the way water in a stream eventually creates deeper grooves in the earth and makes it less likely that the stream's path will change. So I like to shake things up and keep myself intellectually nimble.

For another, learning new things helps me look at the world through different eyes. New perspectives help me come up with new approaches and solutions to problems.

For a third thing, occasionally I find something I really should have been doing for years, so exciting and interesting is it to me. It happened with rock climbing when my step-brother and friend finally invited me a few years back when we were in Hawaii.

But at any rate, the idea is to step outside my comfort zone and confront my frear, unease or misgivings and learn something new or do something nobody would think I'd ever do.

All of this is a very long way to get around to saying I've started painting with watercolors.

I have no experience or training in visual arts, except digital. I don't think I have the coordination or fine muscle control necessary to do even an adequate job. I don't feel like I have any business trying to create art of this type. It makes me very uncomfortable, especially when Mason looks with interest over my shoulder at my work.

I'm enjoying the hell out of it. And I'm looking forward to proving my preconceptions wrong, or maybe even proving them right, but in any event actually putting them to the test so I actually know where my boundaries lie.