Better late than never: The Resolution Edition
Tuesday morning. I never posted my goals for this year, partly because they weren't really ready in my mind on the first, and partly because I wanted to some extra time to let things bubble around in my brain. I think, however, that we've finally settled on some winners, so here they are:
1. I will buy no more than one latte a week. Fear not, I'm not saying that I'm giving them up (perish the thought!), but I have an espresso machine at home that makes perfectly good lattes and will be a lot less expensive than buying them at Starbucks or the espresso cart at work. This will save me, on an annual basis, more than $1,100 or $93 a month, which can go toward the car payment on the new car that I so desperately need.
2. I will watch no more than two hours of television each day. It's been nearly 48 hours since the TV has been turned on in my house and I'm not shaking or anything. As Marla mentioned in her wonderful piece on the same subject a few days ago, nothing good can come of watching as much TV as I have been for several years now. It encourages a sedentary lifestyle, it exposes you to all of that lovely fast food/junk food advertising, and it's passive entertainment (your brain doesn't have to do anything while watching). I'd love to get more into reading again and Lord knows that I have enough books I've bought and never read sitting around, so let's see how long I can really go without watching any!
3. I will go back to school and start on a Bachelor's Degree in Business Management. I have a lovely degree. In English and American Literature. A wonderful degree for someone who wants to teach, not-so-wonderful for a project manager at a high-tech company. I've already enrolled at University of Phoenix, with my first class starting on January 31 and lasting five weeks. Instead of following in the steps of my last attempt at doing this, which was strictly online, this time I'll be going to actual classes, and I think that will make all the difference. I'll be using VLSCI's nifty tuition reimbursement program, which has a cap of $5,000 per year, so, unless I kick in some of my own money for a couple of classes a year, it will take me 4-1/2 years to finish. Yes, I think I'll be ponying up $2,500 a year and finishing in three instead!
4. I will start incorporating flexibility into my fitness routines. I'm going to give a once-a-week yoga class a try. I've been having trouble with my shins lately, as well as soreness all over about an hour after my workouts. I'm hoping that increasing my flexibility will help with the soreness and might even help relieve stress.
5. The next thing on my list isn't truly a goal, it's just what's going to happen: I will finish the weight loss portion of my journey to better health, and will enter maintenance. It is, of course, impossible to predict weight loss, but, with 62 pounds left to lose in order to reach the "not overweight" category and 52 weeks in the year, I only need to average 1.2 pounds a week in order to lose the rest of it in 2005. This seems do-able, so we shall see.
My final items (there are two) are both related and, at this point, known only to one other person, who has sworn a blood oath never to reveal them to anyone. The code name for this endeavor is Operation Secret Squirrel and that is how I will refer to it until I'm ready to unveil it (if that day ever comes).
OK, so that's it. Not a terribly long list, but, if I can manage to follow through on all of these items - or even most - my life will be better on December 31, 2005 than it is right now, which is pretty darned good!
1. I will buy no more than one latte a week. Fear not, I'm not saying that I'm giving them up (perish the thought!), but I have an espresso machine at home that makes perfectly good lattes and will be a lot less expensive than buying them at Starbucks or the espresso cart at work. This will save me, on an annual basis, more than $1,100 or $93 a month, which can go toward the car payment on the new car that I so desperately need.
2. I will watch no more than two hours of television each day. It's been nearly 48 hours since the TV has been turned on in my house and I'm not shaking or anything. As Marla mentioned in her wonderful piece on the same subject a few days ago, nothing good can come of watching as much TV as I have been for several years now. It encourages a sedentary lifestyle, it exposes you to all of that lovely fast food/junk food advertising, and it's passive entertainment (your brain doesn't have to do anything while watching). I'd love to get more into reading again and Lord knows that I have enough books I've bought and never read sitting around, so let's see how long I can really go without watching any!
3. I will go back to school and start on a Bachelor's Degree in Business Management. I have a lovely degree. In English and American Literature. A wonderful degree for someone who wants to teach, not-so-wonderful for a project manager at a high-tech company. I've already enrolled at University of Phoenix, with my first class starting on January 31 and lasting five weeks. Instead of following in the steps of my last attempt at doing this, which was strictly online, this time I'll be going to actual classes, and I think that will make all the difference. I'll be using VLSCI's nifty tuition reimbursement program, which has a cap of $5,000 per year, so, unless I kick in some of my own money for a couple of classes a year, it will take me 4-1/2 years to finish. Yes, I think I'll be ponying up $2,500 a year and finishing in three instead!
4. I will start incorporating flexibility into my fitness routines. I'm going to give a once-a-week yoga class a try. I've been having trouble with my shins lately, as well as soreness all over about an hour after my workouts. I'm hoping that increasing my flexibility will help with the soreness and might even help relieve stress.
5. The next thing on my list isn't truly a goal, it's just what's going to happen: I will finish the weight loss portion of my journey to better health, and will enter maintenance. It is, of course, impossible to predict weight loss, but, with 62 pounds left to lose in order to reach the "not overweight" category and 52 weeks in the year, I only need to average 1.2 pounds a week in order to lose the rest of it in 2005. This seems do-able, so we shall see.
My final items (there are two) are both related and, at this point, known only to one other person, who has sworn a blood oath never to reveal them to anyone. The code name for this endeavor is Operation Secret Squirrel and that is how I will refer to it until I'm ready to unveil it (if that day ever comes).
OK, so that's it. Not a terribly long list, but, if I can manage to follow through on all of these items - or even most - my life will be better on December 31, 2005 than it is right now, which is pretty darned good!
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