1. Watch less television. We don't even have cable, and I still manage to watch hours of TV on some days. Now mind you, this isn't the sitting-around-staring-at-Judge Judy-doing-a-whole-lot-of-nothing kind of TV watching we're talking about here, but it's not much better. I think I've just become accustomed to the sound of voices in the house, especially when I'm home alone. The problem is, whether it's The Today Show, reruns of I Dream of Jeannie or the news, it can be distracting. Especially when your daily chores are things like laundry, dishes and vacuuming it's easy to procrastinate when Matt Lauer is talking about dog wardrobes for winter. So this year I'll be leaving the TV for movie nights and other such special occasions and, I hope, getting a whole lot more done.
2. Save more money. I hope that in the near future I will be able to quit barista-dom once and for all in the interest of focusing on writing, school and family. However, choosing to enter the world of the starving artist takes a little practice. Living off one salary will be a little bit tight, and if we want to continue saving for a house it will have to be even tighter. So with my new found time from watching less TV, I will plan our budget more carefully, clip coupons and hunt for bargains. Save more money now, worry less later.
3. Read more. For someone with a degree-and-a-half in English (yeah, that's right), my Goodreads list is pretty pathetic. To make matters works, Portland has pretty much the worlds best bookstore and I've had very little opportunity to take advantage of it. But, in the interest of resolution #2, I'll start by reading all the unread books I've collected over the past few years and go from there.
4. Write more. I want to be a writer, so I should probably be writing... right? Yeah, probably. I've been saying for a while now that the key to writing is to do it every day. Well, what better time than the new year to start sticking to it.
5. Be more conscious of what I eat. This isn't a weight-loss kind of thing, but rather a health kind of thing. When your second resolution is save more money, eating nothing but pasta and potatoes sounds like a pretty good idea. Fresh vegetables, lean chicken and fish, not so much. But there must be some kind of balance and I aim to find it.
6. Exercise more. When you pull a muscle reaching for something on the top shelf, you should probably be taking advantage of those yoga dvds you have lying around. Just saying.
7. Leave the house every day. I have this problem where I REALLY like being at home. Don't get me wrong, I think it's great to like to be at home; the home should be a sacred space. But leaving the house at least once encourages things like exercising and socializing... and putting on real clothes. I think these are good things to aspire to.
8. Learn more about design. I've always had an interest in design, but for some reason it has never occurred to me that I could do anything with it other than redecorate my bedroom. This year, I plan to make a full-blown hobby out of it and if it takes me nowhere else, at least I will have the most awesome house in town.
9. and 10. I don't want to jinx it. All I'm saying is, if I stick to these resolutions 2011 will be a very good year.
No comments:
Post a Comment