My resolutions for 2019
A new year means new resolutions—or a new list of recycled resolutions.
1. Drop below 180 pounds.
My weight is trending in the wrong direction. It’s not that I make bad food choices, it’s because I eat too much and move too little. I need to change that to meet this goal—one I’ve set every year since I started posting my resolutions in 2015 (yikes!)
2. Get stronger and stay loose.
I want to build on the strength I gained in 2018. I don’t want to get jacked, but some muscle tone would be nice. I’d love to get rid of the spare tire around my midsection, though I think my first resolution will help the most with that.
I stretch every morning, and that is not going to change, but it’s imperative that I stay loose to remain healthy and avoid another episode of SI joint dysfunction. I think experimenting with yoga would be worthwhile physically and mentally. I did yoga with Wii Fit years ago but should try personal instruction. Stretching is very relaxing and meditative.
3. Run. Run well.
I’m going to start running again at some point this year. When I do, I want to do it well to avoid overuse injuries. (I’m starting to believe the culprit responsible for my bouts of SI joint dysfunction is my Schwinn Exerciser indoor bike. Not only is it ancient and not easily adjustable, I learned recently that I’ve set the saddle way too low for all these years. D’oh! I should invest in a better and newer indoor trainer this year.)
4. Keep cycling.
I did not ride my road bike much after fracturing my arm in September. When the temperatures become warmer, I want to hit the local trails again. I should also get more involved in the local cycling community and advocacy for infrastructure.
5. Visit a state I’ve never visited.
My annual conference is in LA this spring, and I plan to drive there so I can take a very long way home, visiting five new states in the process.
6. Watch more sunsets.
This is not hard. I sit on my butt and watch the sun drop below the horizon. I can do that, as I have many times before—just not in the last few years.
7. Write more.
I don’t care what it is—email, short story, nonfiction, journal entry—I want to do more personal writing.
8. Prepare to take the next step professionally.
I think 2020 is when I will leave the journals, so I want to transition to something else in 2019. A transition to what? Maybe many things. I call myself a millennial Renaissance man in my Twitter profile, so I will likely do many different things to make a living. I want to test the freelancing water, paint more, and upload my resume to Indeed to see what happens. Getting a certificate in graphic design is on my list of things to do, so perhaps I can work on that.
9. Say no.
I need to do it for my own sanity. I need to accommodate myself before accommodating others.
10. Continue getting the Led out.
I want to listen to the rest of Led Zeppelin’s discography in 2019. One album per month will allow me to do that.
11. Promote myself.
I plan to take a page out of Bobblehead’s book and promote my blog posts on Twitter. Why? It will hopefully expose my blog to new readers and lead to other writing opportunities.
It will feel unnatural at first. I’m a humble wallflower who hates attention, so we’ll see how it goes.
12. Continue to purge.
I still have too much unwanted and unneeded stuff despite two years of purging, so I need to continue purging in 2019. My dead iMac is a target for recycling for sure, and I want to start using eBay to get rid of odds and ends and anything that’s potentially valuable.
