Wednesday, January 04, 2012

2012, let's do this

(Isn't it interesting that "twenty-twelve" flows so smoothly off the tongue, while "twenty-eleven" feels so unwieldy?)

The theme for my goals this year all seem to fit in the category of "Get Off My Ass/Get My Shit Together." With that in mind, here goes (organized roughly by topic):

  • Drink at least 16oz of water a day (so far 4 for 4!)
  • Eat at least one piece of fruit a day (totally ridiculous, but there you go)
  • Snack smarter
  • Work out at least twice a week
  • Bike a total of 100 miles
  • Go for a walk (as a habit, not as a single event)
  • Aim for 8 hours of sleep a night (so far 1 for 4, but I am going to bed a little earlier)
  • Donate blood
  • Donate clothes/goods at least twice
  • Volunteer at least twice
  • Knit a vest (since I already crocheted one, and a sweater is scary--sleeves!)
  • Do more writing, as opposed to listing (oops)
  • Fully fund a year's contribution of Roth IRA (has yet to happen since 2003)
  • Do five ideas from my photography idea list
  • Read 4 "classics" (clearly numbers are not a problem for me, so I'm aiming for more Real Literature)
  • Organize/declutter my "hotspots"
  • Visit my Grandma
  • Go somewhere new in the US
  • Go to Europe
  • MOVE
  • Be more present and appreciative
  • Get all the business stuff together (which is a whole separate list, as I mentioned)

Our couple goals, which are very similar to 2011, and obviously there's some overlap to my list:

  • Eat at one new restaurant per month
  • 6 live culture events
  • Go to a Yankees game (we went to a Mets game a couple years ago)
  • Go to at least one UCB show
  • Visit 5 new museums (we have 5 in mind already)
  • Cook together once a month
  • Date night twice a month (can be going to a restaurant or cooking at home, but at a real table)
  • Do household laundry the first weekend of every month 
  • Frame the things that need to be framed, and put them up
  • Paint the shoe shelf thing (we got the paint the same time we got the shelf...it's sitting on another shelf)
  • Replace our mattress
  • Clean every week (which we've been doing since the fall)
  • Continue our monthly couple portrait

2 comments:

Schoolgal said...

Happy New Year.

You were pretty spot on last year.
But there are things you and Mr. M. can do as a "treat" to yourselves. I am sure you are on Groupons and can take advantage of "new" and favorite restaurants, etc. But why can't you treat yourself to some of the housekeeping offers when the "heavy" work needs completion like windows, the frig, etc. and something I try to do at least once a year--move the big pieces of furniture and clean behind them as well as clear out all the kitchen cabinets and clean them and the stuff in them (believe me they need it) as well as other cabinets in the apartment. I also clean all the closet floors because the dust builds up there too. It's a very big job and probably why I don't get to it 2x a year except at Christmas when I have to move stuff out of my big closet to get to my decorations. My mother called it "Spring Cleaning". Of course I don't do it alone and am lucky enough to have a cleaning lady help me.

One of the things I also did for myself last year was hire an organizer. I got rid of so much stuff and now my paperwork is manageable. That was an "investment" but I found that teaching all day long and keeping my classroom organized did not translate at home. (And watching a few episodes of "Hoarders" on Netflix really got me motivated.) I got my friend to try her too and she was pleased with the results. Of course you can look for Groupon offers on those too. Go on FB and look up "Cut the Clutter".

As for Netflix Instant--I also found a few gems: Friday Night Lights was really excellent. "Miracle on 34th Street--the original. Pinky, Upstairs/Downstairs and of course I had to order the rest of the seasons. (I saw it when it first came out but it was fun watching it again.) My favorite western of all time--Have Gun Will Travel, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, and Veronica Mars are a few more favorites. Shows I have seen that are now on Netflix--Sons of Anarchy, White Collar, Mad Men, and Burn Notice. I also saw this on Masterpiece Theater, but if you missed it-- Downtown Abby and Inspector Lewis. Hopefully if these are new for you, it might help on days when you don't have DVDs on hand.

I try not to make any new resolutions. I did throw myself a big birthday party that included a cocktail hour and DJ. And I stick to the ones you made years ago and I follow--wash dishes before you go to bed and save money.

I do have one quirky resolution--just before New Year's Day I make sure my apartment is clean and tidy. In my mind if I start the New Year off with my apt looking nice (and organized) I can keep it like that the rest of the year.

Good luck with your career move!! Leaving teaching was a wise decision since being effective is judged solely on test scores. I know very few teachers that are happy or love the job the way they used to.

Nacho Lover said...

Thanks!

We actually did a movie night from groupon last night--it even included popcorn and soda!

Oh goodness, the cabinet and closet cleaning is an important one...I think I've done the cabinets twice total, and they need to be done again. The closets really need a good cleaning too. Oh dear. :/ Guess I'll put that on my list...

An organizer sounds like a great thing! I don't *think* I'm at the point where I feel like I need one...I hope. :)

Love that you had a huge party for your birthday! And your New Year's tradition too--starting out clean and new is a great idea.