I've said before that I'm not really a resolutions person or a goal person or someone who PLANS things. This isn't because I don't think it's worth doing, it's because I'm a little like a small child and I get easily distracted and even things I really WANT to do don't always get done because OTHER THINGS I WANT TO DO COME ALONG. But I'm trying to be a thoughtful and intentional person and THAT kind of person makes goals and has plans and writes things down.
My first rule here is that it's not going to be the end of the world if one of these things doesn't happen. I'm hoping that that doesn't become a trap for excuses since I just mean that if it turns out I HATE something and I don't have a single pro on the pro/con list I can stop and not beat myself up about it. In that spirit, I've tried to really distill these items down so that they can be easily accomplished while being both challenging AND manageable. SO. Here are my resolutions/goals/things I'm doing this year/list. In no particular oder.
Take 30 yoga classes.
I need to slow down and I need to think before I talk and I need to calm the heck down. 30 classes. Some point over the course of the year.
Make a career decision.
I'm at a little crossroads at work where I could decide that I love exactly what I'm doing and I want to do it for a long time. And I know that I love it, but it's the "long time with no other opportunities in neighboring tasks" part that potentially has me caught up. I'd like to decide this year so that I don't squander the very real options that I currently have.
Cook one new recipe a week.
I'm actually a really good cook. My problem is that I tend to make the same 5 things over and over with the same flavors and techniques because it's easy and I don't need to think about it. I'd love to expand that this year and one recipe a week is easy and exciting.
Run 3 miles in 27 minutes.
Ha. HAA. I know. That is REALLY FAST. I'm pretty sure my current pace is somewhere around 3 miles in 42 minutes. But I have run faster before and I've seen other people do it (and they ALSO thought it wasn't going to happen for them), so I want to give myself that chance. I CAN DO THAT.
Volunteer at least 12 times throughout the year.
I generally volunteer a few times a year with a variety of organizations. This year, I'd love to find a few that I can commit to on a more long-term basis.
(For various reasons, I was working through some goals with Kevin and so we ALSO have couple goals. I'm sharing these too because they are fun and I want to commit to these too. Here they are:)
Attend 6 music performances.
Did you know I was a band geek? BIG TIME. And I really, really love music. I used to go to a performance (of some kind) at least once a week, but people and time slots disappear easily and I rarely go at all. It is one of the things I miss most.
Eat at 4 Michelin Star rated restaurants.
Self-explanatory. Bring me all the food.
Take a vacation to Europe. Including France and/or Spain/Italy.
Kevin and I have been wanting to take this trip for years, but it's one of those things that easily slips away in favor of easier trips and more time at work, etc. Between crazy work schedules and available time off and simple planning (did you know it's now about $900 to fly to Spain? I DID NOT), we just haven't. We're planning for this to be the year.
Complete a 10k, an obstacle course and a half-marathon.
I've completed all these distances before, but Kevin hasn't. I will happily never again run a full marathon, but I don't mind a half distance and when I asked him if he had a race in mind (this is a REALLY funny question to ask a non-racer) he acted as though he didn't know there was a difference. (And um, there really is. Although I guess you wouldn't REALLY know that unless you'd looked into it before so he probably wasn't "acting". Courses vary by temperature and terrain and all SORTS of things.) But here's the good part: my favorite half course was in Hawaii and when I suggested it HE WAS SOLD. So, there's a REALLY good chance that I'll get to repeat my favorite course later this year: small race, gorgeous views, amazing people along the way and HAWAII afterwards*. SIGN ME THE EFF UP.
(* Also FOOD afterwards. Last time, I had my finisher dinner at this resturant where they served ox tail ravioli and I cannot think of a single thing that could be better after running 13.1 miles. MELT IN YOUR MOUTH OX TAIL RAVIOLI.)
Here are a few other things that aren't exactly resolutions, but they're in the works and I'm excited about them so:
* Visit Alyssa. (Did I mention she's in Tokyo?)
* Head to Charleston for The Blathering.
* De-fluffify myself.
And FINALLY. Here's a resolution that I'd LOVE some help on:
I am not a good keeper-in-toucher. I really want to be. I want to keep in touch with all my friends and make sure they know that I'm thinking about them and remembering them. I'd like to be able to make plans and see them when I can. I am TERRIBLE at this. As an example: I visited my best girlfriend from grad school in July in New York. We had a great time. After, I emailed her once. She texted me Happy New Year. That's a pretty unacceptable chain of communication and while that's certainly a two way thing, it's kind of a pattern FOR ME and I HATE it. I have about 13 emails in my inbox now that I've been trying to reply to for WEEKS. LITERALLY.
How do you do it? Facebook? Texts? Emails? I've thought about blocking out a half hour in the morning and just running down a list of people I want to stay in touch with and sending a quick email or text. But that seems so mechanical and as though there MUST BE A BETTER WAY.
Tell me your secrets?
