My resolutions for 2020

A new year means new resolutions—or a new list of recycled resolutions.

1. Drop below 180 pounds ... and stay there.
Sure, I dropped below 180 in 2019, but I did not stay there. I want to drop below 180 and stay there in 2020. In order to do that, I need to eat less and move more.

2. Get stronger, slim down, and stay loose.
This is another recycled resolution. I want to build on the strength I gained in 2019 and continue to stay loose. I also want to continue to lose my stubborn spare tire.

3. Keep running.
I started running again in 2019 and ran my first race. What should I do next? A half marathon should be doable. That’s twice as far as I have ever run, so it will require training.

4. Keep cycling and get involved in the local cycling community.
This seems like my list of resolutions for 2019 ... but it’s not! I want to keep cycling in 2020 and get more involved in the local cycling community. RAGBRAI might be in the cards again, but we’ll see. (I am not a fan of how RAGBRAI training takes over my life.) As an avid walker, runner, and cyclist, I need to be more involved in the local community and advocacy for more and better/improved infrastructure. More of us need to be vocal, and I need to be among them.

5. Play cards more often and learn euchre.
Speaking of cards, I want to play cards more often. I love rummy and used to play it with my dad and grandma a lot. However, my dad and I have not played much since my grandma died in 2015. I love Polish poker, and it has become a Thanksgiving tradition for my family. Regardless of what I play, I want to play it more often. And I want to learn euchre. I have always watched euchre games with fascination and wanted learn to play, but nobody has had the patience to teach me.

6. Visit a state I’ve never visited.
The annual conference is in Washington, DC, this spring, so I assume I will knock Virginia and the “plus” off the list. But it would be nice to keep going. The low-hanging fruit looks like West Virginia. (It amazes me that West Virginia is closer than Wyoming. That says something about driving all the way across Nebraska.)

7. Watch more sunsets.
Though I watched some sunsets in 2019, I want to make them a bigger part of my life.

8. Write.
I’m a writer. I need to write. I resolve to polish my long essay and submit it somewhere, and start writing the book I want to read.

9. Continue my professional transition.
I have no clue where I’m going with this, but it’s the next step. I need to continue heading in that direction.

10. Say no.
I need to say no more often for my own sanity, especially for work; I take on way too much. I need to accommodate myself before accommodating others.

11. Continue getting the Led out.
I need to finish this. It’s not hard: I listen to Led Zeppelin. I stopped after Led Zeppelin III in both 2018 and 2019, so I plan to continue from there.

12. Continue to purge.
I still have too much stuff and plan to continue to do that in 2020.