My resolutions for 2017
A new year brings another list of resolutions and goals. Some are new, some are recycled from last year (or the last two years), but all are worth fulfilling.
1. Drop below 180 pounds.
I’m tired of my weight being stuck in the 190s. I should and want to weigh less.
Last year I wanted to drop below 175, but I’ve chosen 180 this year because it’s a nice, round number that has been a healthy weight for me in the past. I think the ideal weight for a man of my height is somewhere in the 160s, but that seems way too low for me. I would have to suffer to drop into the 160s.
2. Become stronger.
This is something I should do, as well. I don’t think I’m as strong as I should be. I don’t want to get jacked, but do want to become leaner.
3. Get a passport.
Will 2017 be the year I finally do this? I hope. Zee German is talking more and more about giving me a tour of Germany, so perhaps I will have a need to get a passport. Regardless of whether or not a trip to Europe happens in 2017, I will need a passport to attend the annual conference in 2018, which takes place in Toronto (that is, if I’m still working for that journal). Getting a passport this year just to get it done may be a good idea.
4. Visit a state I have yet to visit.
This will happen. Whether it will be a short trip to South Dakota (the Iowa men’s basketball team will play in Sioux Fall later this year), or a grand road trip (see resolution #7), it will happen.
5. Make a career move.
I want to get a new job, or maybe multiple jobs. Twenty-seventeen marks my 10th year with both journals, and I can’t keep doing the same things much longer. Freelancing seems to be the way to go, so I need to get the ball rolling.
6. Watch more sunsets.
Providing beauty and much appreciated calm, balance, and thoughtful tranquility, sunsets are special for me. I need to watch more than one this year.
7. Road trip.
Along the lines of resolution #4, I want to take a road trip. I have something in mind for the spring and summer. If all goes well, I will add a number of states to the list of those I have visited.
8. Continue running and maybe run a 10k race.
After resolving my painful pelvic issue, I began running again in August, slowly working my way through and eventually completing a 13-week run-walk program. Despite the fact I seem prone to overuse injuries, I love running. (Right now I am taking a few weeks off to deal with an IT band issue.) I want to continue running and maybe run an organized 10k.
9. Read and write more.
This may be necessary to accomplish resolution #5, but I also want to do a lot more reading and writing for pleasure. (Writing for pleasure? As much of a funk as I have been in recently, it’s a contradiction.) Blogging more often is also something I want to do.
10. Say “no.”
This is a recycled version of my resolution to stop being a “yes” man. I need to say “no” more often when confronted with favors and requests. If I don’t want to do something, I should say no. I did end 2016 by saying no to someone, so I need to keep the ball rolling.
11. Do less and enjoy it more.
I always seem to have 100 things going on, always seem to have 100 things I need to do. That is probably a result of too many responsibilities at work, so it may be more of a perception than fact. Still, though, I feel overcommitted and stressed. I need to do less and enjoy it more.
12. Continue learning German.
Despite the previous resolution, I should continue learning German.
13. Stand up.
I have a bad habit of letting people use me as a doormat, of letting snide comments go unanswered, and letting people make me feel inferior. I should put an end to that.
14. Purge.
My mom gave me an acoustic guitar for Christmas a while ago. Do I play it? No. Do I know how to play it? No. Do I want to play it? No. Did I ever want to play it? Not really. I’ll admit that it would be cool to know how to play an instrument, but is it something I really want to do? No.
Should I sell my guitar? Hell yes! It’s a waste of space! However, I haven’t. Why? Because it was a gift, and because there are two or three brain cells that hold on to the idea of me learning how to play guitar.
Needless to say, my guitar is symbolic of many things I have: I don’t want or need it, would be better off getting rid of it, but keep it for some dumb reason. I want to get rid of many of those things in 2017.
1. Drop below 180 pounds.
I’m tired of my weight being stuck in the 190s. I should and want to weigh less.
Last year I wanted to drop below 175, but I’ve chosen 180 this year because it’s a nice, round number that has been a healthy weight for me in the past. I think the ideal weight for a man of my height is somewhere in the 160s, but that seems way too low for me. I would have to suffer to drop into the 160s.
2. Become stronger.
This is something I should do, as well. I don’t think I’m as strong as I should be. I don’t want to get jacked, but do want to become leaner.
3. Get a passport.
Will 2017 be the year I finally do this? I hope. Zee German is talking more and more about giving me a tour of Germany, so perhaps I will have a need to get a passport. Regardless of whether or not a trip to Europe happens in 2017, I will need a passport to attend the annual conference in 2018, which takes place in Toronto (that is, if I’m still working for that journal). Getting a passport this year just to get it done may be a good idea.
4. Visit a state I have yet to visit.
This will happen. Whether it will be a short trip to South Dakota (the Iowa men’s basketball team will play in Sioux Fall later this year), or a grand road trip (see resolution #7), it will happen.
5. Make a career move.
I want to get a new job, or maybe multiple jobs. Twenty-seventeen marks my 10th year with both journals, and I can’t keep doing the same things much longer. Freelancing seems to be the way to go, so I need to get the ball rolling.
6. Watch more sunsets.
Providing beauty and much appreciated calm, balance, and thoughtful tranquility, sunsets are special for me. I need to watch more than one this year.
7. Road trip.
Along the lines of resolution #4, I want to take a road trip. I have something in mind for the spring and summer. If all goes well, I will add a number of states to the list of those I have visited.
8. Continue running and maybe run a 10k race.
After resolving my painful pelvic issue, I began running again in August, slowly working my way through and eventually completing a 13-week run-walk program. Despite the fact I seem prone to overuse injuries, I love running. (Right now I am taking a few weeks off to deal with an IT band issue.) I want to continue running and maybe run an organized 10k.
9. Read and write more.
This may be necessary to accomplish resolution #5, but I also want to do a lot more reading and writing for pleasure. (Writing for pleasure? As much of a funk as I have been in recently, it’s a contradiction.) Blogging more often is also something I want to do.
10. Say “no.”
This is a recycled version of my resolution to stop being a “yes” man. I need to say “no” more often when confronted with favors and requests. If I don’t want to do something, I should say no. I did end 2016 by saying no to someone, so I need to keep the ball rolling.
11. Do less and enjoy it more.
I always seem to have 100 things going on, always seem to have 100 things I need to do. That is probably a result of too many responsibilities at work, so it may be more of a perception than fact. Still, though, I feel overcommitted and stressed. I need to do less and enjoy it more.
12. Continue learning German.
Despite the previous resolution, I should continue learning German.
13. Stand up.
I have a bad habit of letting people use me as a doormat, of letting snide comments go unanswered, and letting people make me feel inferior. I should put an end to that.
14. Purge.
My mom gave me an acoustic guitar for Christmas a while ago. Do I play it? No. Do I know how to play it? No. Do I want to play it? No. Did I ever want to play it? Not really. I’ll admit that it would be cool to know how to play an instrument, but is it something I really want to do? No.
Should I sell my guitar? Hell yes! It’s a waste of space! However, I haven’t. Why? Because it was a gift, and because there are two or three brain cells that hold on to the idea of me learning how to play guitar.
Needless to say, my guitar is symbolic of many things I have: I don’t want or need it, would be better off getting rid of it, but keep it for some dumb reason. I want to get rid of many of those things in 2017.
