Belated resolutions for 2011

(posted here in order to make them real)

1) Travel more.

Last year was a banner year for me in this area (10 trips, 2 of those long-haul international ones), but I'm still not feeling like this is enough. Maybe there is a magic number that creates the perfect equilibrium between being home and being away, but so far, I haven't hit it. And actually, I kind of hope I never do. The day I am not up for a trip is the day I am not alive.

2) Speaking of home, change where that is.

I love L.A., but I think I'm done with it. I've been here for 12 years straight (this is alarming), and I'm bored and need a challenge. One of the things I learned from my Japan trip is how exhilarating (and sometimes, frustrating) it is to be in a place that you don't know so well, figuring it out as you go along and reinventing yourself in the process. In any event, I want that and I want it BAD. I've got some possible solutions in regards to this, and I'll reveal more as they become more concrete.

3) Strengthen my relationships with the people I care about.

The first two resolutions seem to counter this one, especially since most of you know how awful I am at staying in touch on a regular basis. (sorry) But, this is a perennial resolution because it's important. I tend to get caught up in my own head too often and really, it's the other people in my life who keep me balanced and happy. To be more specific, the people who matter to me know me well and somehow still manage to love me for who I am. They are positive forces in my life and will support me completely despite numerous missteps and errors, and I will give all my love to them in return. Full stop.

4) Think less and create more.

There was a time when I spent every waking moment in front of a typewriter (yes, that long ago), writing and editing stories and essays until every word and sentence and paragraph was perfect. A few years later, I dedicated all my energy and resources to learning how to photograph pictures as I saw them in my head. After that, I lost hours and days while my eyes were glued to a computer screen, figuring out how to make words and images come together in a meaningful graphic package. In each of those times, I was in a constant state of creative flow and spent the least amount of time thinking myself into a corner. And I was happy because I had a purpose in those moments. Here's to finding that again.

5) Get enough sleep, drink more water, and continue to eat meals that also qualify as food porn.

I joked that the first half of last year was like the foodie version of having only six months to live. This was in anticipation of the austerity measures that I thought were going to be necessary in the wake of graduate school. But, a funny thing happened--I didn't stop. Sure, I wasn't going to Providence every night, but I was finding ways to make meals memorable. Whether that just entailed a perfect drizzle of honey on a roasted fig at home or a multi-course splurge at an actual restaurant, I made it work and will continue to make it work into 2011.

Resolved, Year Two

My resolutions for 2009:

Resolved, that I will get enough sleep.
7-8 hours minimum per night, hopefully.

Resolved, that I will get to work on time.
Basically, anytime before 9 a.m.

Resolved, that I will not wait until the last minute to do my work and homework assignments.
While I have a sneaking suspicion that this will be a perennial resolution, I have hope that at the very least, I will get better and not procrastinate so much.

Resolved, that I cultivate a more active social life with an emphasis on my friends and family.
No doubt about it... It makes me happy to go out and do things. And I'm even happier when that includes the people I love. So, definitely more concerts, museums, galleries, restaurants, events, etc. in '09.

Resolved, that I will dance more.
Whether it means I get back into the swing scene a little, reacquaint myself with tango or just take more dance classes, this is a must. Two years away from something I love doing is ridiculous.

Resolved, that I will travel more this year.
I think this is the year of smaller domestic trips (especially now that I have the perfect car for roadtrips.) On my radar: SF (for the Cathedral of Christ the Light and the Academy of Sciences), Utah (for my sister), NYC (for friends and food), Minneapolis (architecture) and Atlanta (to swim with sharks). If I have any money left after paying off my debt and going to school, there is the possibility of Japan, but we'll see.

Resolved, that I will read more books.
In the past couple of years, I've definitely lagged on my book reading due to my crazy schedule. At the very least, I want to shoehorn in all of the books on my shelf that I haven't read yet. And that includes "The House of Leaves" and all of the other books that I think are going to scare the hell out of me.

Resolved, that I will make both my home and work offices more inviting.
For my home workspace, I need better organization and less clutter. For my office, I need color, better lighting and something fun on the walls. It's so drab right now.

Resolved, that I will eliminate my credit card debt.
I'm pretty determined about this one and if all goes according to plan, I should accomplish this within the the first half of the year.

Resolved, that I will contribute to my Roth this year.
This is the first year that I think my Roth is a better bet than the 401K that my work offers.

Resolved, that I will drink more water.
I'm borrowing this one from TB.

Resolved, Reckoned

Here's a recap of my 2008 resolutions:

Resolved, that I will do my best to exude positive energy.
For the most part, I think this is true. I've met a lot of cool people this year, and I don't think I could have done that with a closed, negative attitude. Let me know if you think I haven't been generally positive this year.

Resolved, that I will be in bed before midnight on worknights.
This is definitely one that will have to carry over into next year.

Resolved, that I will be on time to work, leave to take my lunch break and leave on time unless I take overtime.
Ditto.

Resolved, that I will not wait until the last minute to do my work and homework assignments.
Ugh... I'm still recovering from the allnighter I had pull for this quarter's final project. So, here's another one that I can file in the "better luck next year" pile.

Resolved, that I will reach out to friends and family when stressed and not withdraw inwards.
I've definitely done better with this one and have worked to strengthen/reconnect ties to most of the people I love. I will continue to work on this throughout 2009.

Resolved, that I will find a physical way to blow off steam.
In addition to the purchase of my exercise bike (which has gotten somewhat regular use, though not as often as I'd like), I've started to take Pilates Plus classes, which are definitely kicking my ass. I'm also planning to take some more dance classes, since I've definitely come to realize that dancing just makes me happy.

Resolved, that I will actually do the things I put on my calendar.
I've been pretty good with this one, considering I've had a lot of chances to flake with a very busy schedule consisting of numerous work, school and social events.

Resolved, that I will go abroad this year.
As you know, I went to Paris this year, and now, I want to either go back to Barcelona or crack Japan next fall. We'll see...

Resolved, that I will make my home an inviting and comfortable place.
I've been successful in creating a cozy and well-lit space in my main living area and have definitely focused on keeping things somewhat tidy. Over Thanksgiving weekend, I finally bought a mid-century vintage dresser after more than a year of searching Craigslist, and it definitely pulls everything together. Now, I just have to make my workspace more functional.

Resolved, that I will pay down at least 15% of my credit card debt.
As I mentioned in the midyear update, I had already reached this goal and had revised it 60%. Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, I won't be able to make that number. However, by the end of the year, I will have paid off 40% of my credit card debt, which isn't too bad. Next year, it should all be gone.

Resolved, that I will write in my blog more regularly.
I managed to post at least once a month, with the exception of November. I do want to continue to blog because I find it very therapeutic and fun. I think what I need to do is make my postings more casual, less composed and shorter in order to knock down any mental blogging barriers.

Overall, I think I did pretty well with my 2008 resolutions. It's actually helpful to post the resolutions because I don't want to let anyone (including myself) down at the end of year. For example, in the case of the dresser, I really put my search into overdrive when I realized I had only a month to find one. I'm working on my 2009 ones and now know what makes a good resolution: complete buy-in and measurability. So, you have to really want to make the change and you have to able to quantify any progress.

How did you do on your 2008 resolutions?

Resolved Revisited

A friend of mine recently asked how I was doing on the resolutions I posted here in January. I started to write him an e-mail on my progress, but then I thought that this would make a good blog post update. So here goes:

Resolved, I will do my best to exude positive energy
In general, I do feel positively about my life, even in spite of the crazy hours, tremendously stressful changes and upsetting personal setbacks. Everyday, I read some news feature about regular middle-class people who are struggling to get by, working overtime to pay for gas, torching their soon to be foreclosed homes, resorting to food stamps and taking "staycations." I am not rich, but I'm fairly comfortable, with any financial hiccups resulting from actions that are my own fault (i.e. Target, multi-course fancy dinners, general budget busting, etc.) Indeed, most of the stress I experience comes from choices that I have made and will continue to make (i.e. going to school, doing freelance work, and aggressively paying off my debt.) Regarding the energy I actually exude, K recently got an 8-week Doberman puppy, Django, and it has definitely made me more conscious of that. If I'm unsure or skittish, Django senses it right away and reacts appropriately. (More on Django later) Anyway, at my best, I am outwardly friendly and happy, but at my worst (late nights and negative procrastination), I am definitely a little bit more closed and don't have the energy to really put myself out there. I'm still working on getting enough sleep and not procrastinating. (see below)

Resolved, I will be in bed before midnight on work nights
Ha! I was good for a month or so on this one, but then I fell off the wagon sometime in March, in the midst of time-intensive drafting homework. Plus, I'm still getting used to the flow of the intersection of school, new job and freelance work, so I'm lucky if I get to bed before 1:30 a.m. (My dirty secret is that I'm usually just vegging out at that time, too burnt out to do anything except mindless life planning and organization.) I am getting better, plus I am taking the summer quarter of school off, so after next Tuesday, I'll only have two things to worry about.

Resolved, I will be on time to work, leave to take my lunch and leave on time unless I take overtime
This one has changed a bit since I'm now at a different company and as an exempt employee, don't get overtime. Still, despite the implied fluidity of my working hours, I always feel better when I come in when everyone else does and unfortunately, I struggle with getting to work at that time, most of which has to do with going to bed late and not being a morning person.

Resolved, I will not wait until the last minute to do my work and homework assignments.
Actually, for homework and work, I'm doing fairly well on this one. The freelance work does tend to get the shaft sometimes, but that will only improve after next week.

Resolved, I will reach out to friends and family when stressed and not withdraw inwards.
So far, I've definitely had more contact with friends and family than I have during other times, which is definitely a good thing. I still feel like I need to be more proactive in that respect, so I am very glad that I'll have more time to talk and hang out this summer.

Resolved, I will find a physical way to blow off steam.
UGH... Still nothing here. And I'm sure that is the reason for a lot of my time management ineffectiveness. I just don't have the energy and unfortunately, it's a cycle. I know I just have to do something and that it will improve everything.

Resolved, I will do the things I put on my calendar.
I'm not 100% successful on this, and there have definitely been a couple of things that I've skipped, but those are mainly impersonal events and not time scheduled with family and friends (which is miles more important.) What I have found is that I'm definitely more discriminating about what will actually make it onto the calendar.

Resolved, I will go abroad this year.
Forget Mexico and Canada... I'm going to Paris in September! YAY!!!!! (More on my trip later)

Resolved, I will make my home an inviting and comfortable place.
The good news here is that I have created a functional workspace out of my dining nook and I've done a lot organization and purging. I still have a lot to do and I hope I will be able to concentrate more on this one during the summer when I have more time and the dust has settled on all the changes in my life. I have already been planning it all in my head and know what projects I would like to take on. It's definitely going to be fun and great practice for my future career. By the way, I'm still looking for the mid-century modern long dresser and have added a white leather Eames (or Eames-like) lounge chair and ottoman to the wishlist (though, it may just be too prohibitively expensive, real or fake). It's funny because now I remember that my parents actually had a fake one when I was growing up and I never thought that our tastes would ever intersect.

Resolved, I will pay down at least 15% of my credit card debt.
I've actually hit this goal already, and I'm definitely going to exceed it. (My revised goal is to pay off 60% of my credit card debt.) In regards to my general finances, the one major thing that I've got planned in the next month or so is the purchase of a car. (Again more on this later)

Resolved, that I will write in my blog more regularly.
Well, it's definitely better than last year. And I do have faith that I will post more once I have more things to write about besides being busy or eating food that's bad for me.

Resolved

According to Franklin Covey, one of the things you have to do to help make your New Year's resolutions stick is to go public with them. So here goes:

Resolved, that I will do my best to exude positive energy.
K & I like to watch the Dog Whisperer. (Actually, for several years, K has been preparing himself for getting a dog by studiously reading every dog training and psychology book under the sun) After watching several shows, it's easy to get the gist of what Caesar Millan preaches. One of the basic tenets of his philosophy is that dogs read the energy you put out there and adjust their energy accordingly. For example, a neurotic owner often can lead to a neurotic pet, whereas a calm owner instills calmness in her pet. I thought about this principle and realized that many of my social problems stem from either my negativity or lack of action. I automatically assume people don't want to talk to me and hence don't talk to them and it all becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. The people I get along with are those that are sunny and very secure with themselves, making me open up and be just as sunny and secure. My goal is to be one of those people, so that my smile gets matched with another smile instead of my indifference being matched with equal indifference.

Resolved, that I will be in bed before midnight on worknights.
This gives me around 8 hours of sleep a night, which will help me to function normally during the day.

Resolved, that I will be on time to work, leave to take my lunch break and leave on time unless I take overtime.
I've struggled with this in the past and I do believe that not doing these three things adds more stress than necessary to my day. I am hoping that getting enough sleep will help me to get to work on time and that stepping out for a breather in the middle of the day will help me to keep my perspective. Leaving on time seems like it would be easy, but I can get caught up in work, especially design work, around quitting time, which usually coincides with my peak performance time. Also, if I get to work late, I usually try to make up for it in spades by working much later.

Resolved, that I will not wait until the last minute to do my work and homework assignments.
I always underestimate the time it will take to complete a project. The final project for my Elements of Design I class last quarter took at least 2-3 days of work and I naively thought I could knock it out in less than a day. The point is that I have to be realistic with my goals and recognize that a little time padding helps when the expected unexpected occurs.

Resolved, that I will reach out to friends and family when stressed and not withdraw inwards.
If you take a look at my cell phone records, you'll notice that K accounts for 95% of all my calls. Since we're on the same network (Verizon), that means that I'm not using the actual anytime minutes that I'm paying lots of money for. So, there is no reason I shouldn't be calling and chatting up the people I care for, right?

Resolved, that I will find a physical way to blow off steam.
Since I stopped dancing (for various personal reasons), it's been difficult to find something physical that I like to do with regularity. Lately, I've been really missing dancing and have been considering starting up again with tango and perhaps learning ballet. Other physical activities I've been thinking about involve forcing myself to go to the gym or walking to work in the morning.

Resolved, that I will actually do the things I put on my calendar.
Unless I'm sick, I am not going to flake out on the events that I thought were cool and important enough to actually put on my calendar.

Resolved, that I will go abroad this year.
Even if it's just to Canada or Mexico, I am itching to leave the country for a week at least.

Resolved, that I will make my home an inviting and comfortable place.
This involves redecorating my apartment to create a good work/project space, improving the lighting and purchasing a vintage (art deco or mid-century modern) hardwood dresser. On the maintenance side, this also means that I need to clear out the clutter and keep everything clean and tidy.

Resolved, that I will pay down at least 15% of my credit card debt.
I've already created my plan for doing this, which absolutely takes into account the fact that I am paying for school out of my own unlined pocket and that I want to go on a trip this year.

Resolved, that I will write in my blog more regularly.
So far, so good.

These are my resolutions... what about yours?