Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful time last night, because I am living vicariously through everyone else’s fun! <rant>I hosted two work events, the second of which ended at midnight-oh-five. And crazypants stuff tends to go down at 11pm in an inner-city space. Also, Instagram is one of my favorite things in the world, but when you can see EVERYONE ELSE YOU KNOW HAVING FUN, while you are decidedly not? Ho-hum. Let’s just say that it wasn’t my favorite New Year’s Eve, and move on, shall we? </rant>
I’m embarking on a fairly major house project today: swapping two rooms around. If it goes well, I’ll give you the before-and-after results in a few days.
With that, ONWARD, 2012!!! Last year, I made eleven goals, and made headway on nine of them. That’s not a terrible record! But the one thing that I noticed is that, yet again, I accomplished the Giant Responsible Project goals, and didn’t make much headway on the goals that were just for fun. This is a consistent pattern in my lists of goals. Double-you tee eff, Self?! So, this year I’m giving myself a higher ratio of fun-slash-happy-to-responsible goals. I’m great at working hard, but the “playing hard” thing always winds up on the back burner. NOT ANYMORE!
1. Buy a bike, just for fun. No pressure about riding to work, riding for fitness, or anything serious. Do it because it would be a riot.
2. Take a trip to another country.
3. Strive for a healthier work/life balance. Send more letters, take more pictures, make more fun memories. Refuse to let work have a monopoly on my energy.
4. Create a lovely home office.
5. Take a trip to another country.
6. Save two months’ worth of living expenses as a starter emergency fund. (We’d eventually like to have six months’ worth of expenses saved, but let’s start with something Not Insane, right?)
7. Put curtains – pretty ones! – in all the living and dining room windows.
8. Give myself a break, already! Try for a little less self-improvement, and a little more self-acceptance. This is the most touchy-feely thing ever, I realize. I tend to beat myself up about everything: too poor, too financially comfortable, too frumpy, too frivolous… It’s annoying, and it needs to stop. This year, I want to just BE. I hope that my resolutions are reflecting that.
9. Wear more beautiful shoes. I own some good ones, and they tend to see the inside of the closet for years at a time.
10. Host dinner parties again. It’s been about two years since I did this, and I love having people over for dinner.
11. Develop a friendly relationship with a local market and its employees (the new Bi-Rite, in a perfect world). Do more grocery shopping there. Care not at all about the yuppie factor.
12. Take the plunge, and write a draft of a children’s book. I’ve joked about doing this forever, and there’s no reason not to try!
What great goals! I’ve always wanted to write a children’s book too, and never have. Maybe this is the year.
When you buy a bike make sure it has streamers on it. Everyone will smile at you when you ride and you’ll ride more just because everyone is so friendly. Streamers are the key.
Yes. This.
xox
This is an awesome list! Maybe the fun goals get pushed aside because “fun” and “goal” don’t always go together. But I think you’ve done it!
Yes to accepting and less to improvement. Why do you think I tattooed “be” on my wrist? A reminder of just that.
You’re great- embrace that!
Anyone invited to a dinner party at your place is one lucky person.
I love #9. Recently I looked in my closet and saw all the shoes that are dying for a day out. Why have I stopped wearing them? I love them so much more than the ones I wear daily. Something happened when I changed jobs three years ago. I stopped caring.
I haven’t owned a bike since college. I miss having a bike. Growing up I used to ride all the time for fun. I miss that.
at least your NYE wasnt spent in hysterics looking for a dumb cat. Cant wait to see the updated rooms, and note…i love dinner parties. expect some invites as soon as we are up for guests as well!
This is a great list. Really.