Dear 2013,
I'm glad you got
here (yay for not dying in the Mayan apocalypse that was never going to happen
anyway!), but… Are resolutions really necessary? It just feels like a lot of
pressure. And I think I've had enough of feeling pressured to finish a certain
thing in a certain amount of time for quite awhile. (Grad school was more than
enough pressure for me, thanks!)
I mean, I've
already got some goals. My ultimate goal for a while now has been to finish 50
books in one year, but I've failed at that pretty spectacularly over the past
couple years thanks to being in school - so I'm being kind and just setting
myself a goal of 35 books for this year.
Okay, so that is
just one goal.
I do definitely
want to move into my own apartment. Aha! A resolution:
get own apartment! (Fingers crossed I can get that one checked off before the
end of January. I will be a goal-reaching machine! Or at least get to feel like
a total resolution champ.)
I think I'm pretty
okay fitness-wise. I work out regularly, and I've been doing really well at
that for the past several years. I don't see that situation changing for any
reason, so I can't do the "normal" resolution to be more active. I
refuse on principle to resolve to lose weight (because I think that puts the
focus on the wrong aspect of health) (and only in very small part because I
don't want to have to buy a new wardrobe if my clothes get too big). I suppose
I could resolve to "eat healthier" than I do… but I'm flat-out
unwilling to give up baked goods, I see no reason to give up gluten when I'm
not allergic to it (it's a pet-peeve of mine anyway that people who aren't even
sensitive to it suddenly think that gluten is the devil and they have to give
it up for no medical reason), and I love dairy and meat too much to really give
those up either (vegetarianism just wouldn't work well for me, and veganism is
right out). So those stereotypical resolutions don't really fit.
I would like to get
more crafting done. But again, I don't want to put more pressure on myself than
I feel is necessary, and achieving my one resolution should help in that
department anyway since it'll be easier for me to access all my supplies and
tools all the time.
I really, really
want a dog of my own. But I am responsible enough not to get one before I have
my own place (since my parents dog is the absolute sweetest with people but is
often fearful of (and thus aggressive toward) other dogs), and even after I have
my own place I'll need to take some time to establish what sort of routines
I'll have there and decide if I actually have the time and energy (not to
mention money!) to devote to a dog. So I'm not going to resolve to get a dog,
when that might turn out to be a bad idea for me and the absolute worst idea
for the dog. (How adult of me to know my limits!)
So my New Year's
resolution/goal list looks like this:
- RESOLUTION: get own apartment
- GOAL: read 35 books (although 50 would be supreme)
- GOAL: do more crafting (so unquantifiable! Which is exactly how they tell you NOT to set goals. Oh, well.)
I have thought of
two more possible goals: Visit friends in DC, and visit friends in Boston. Both
of these are things I would love to do this year, and I have tentative plans
forming already. But, as with the dog goal, life could have other opportunities
and obstacles that could preclude either or both of these visits. If the trips
happen, they'll be amazing. If I end up not being able to go, it will be
disappointing, but not the end of the world. (I feel so gosh-darned adult,
taking time to actually consider the implications of my goals and how I'll feel
about not reaching them!)
Do I fail at New
Year's if I've only got one real resolution? I hope not!
Oh.
Wait.
Brainwave.
(I'm awesome.)
I should resolve
that, at the beginning of every month, I will evaluate my current
resolutions/goals, as well as contemplating whether there are additional
resolutions/goals I could add to the list, either for the month or the rest of
the year. (Do I think I could make lunch plans with several old friends? Could
I try something to help manage my shyness? Should I do something really brave
every week?) Two resolutions ain't too shabby!
I guess, overall, I
can just be satisfied with the fact that 2012 was a pretty good year - certainly better than 2011 was for me - with
plenty of ups to offset the downs, and then do my best to make 2013 better!
Cheers to you,
2013! Let's make this a good one!
Yours with hope,
Katherine
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