New Year's Resolutions

It's that time of year where we make our resolutions and try like hell to stick to them.

So, for what it's worth, here are mine. I prefer to call them "lifestyle changes" - perhaps a new title will help me stay on track:

1. Lose Weight/Eat Healthy. I actually started this one back in December, and all the packing and moving and home improvement and being busy as all get-out helped me to stay active and not eat Cheez-Its and watch bad TV all night. I actually lost a few pounds over the holidays, and I'm sticking to my "don't mindless eat crap at night" mantra.

Also, now that my kitchen is finished, I can go to the grocery store, buy real food and cook dinner, instead of relying on the drive thru and delivery guy. I'm going to also try new recipes and also look for old favorites that have been made healthier. If someone can send me a mac and cheese recipe that doesn't have a frillion calories and fat grams but does still remain tasty, please do.

2. Master the Met in Less Than 13:48. As some of my long-term readers might remember, last year I participated in Master the Met, a stairclimb of 42 floors at the Met Square building. My time last year, after about a month of training, was 13:48. This year I am starting my training two months out, and hope to beat last year's time. I will set my goal after my first full training session.

If you would like to support me in this worthy cause, please visit my page here. The event is sponsored by the American Lung Association. All donations are appreciated, and are tax-deductible.

3. Find Some Peace. I need to find my inner peace, my Chi, my happy place - whatever you want to call it. I feel overwhelmed and pressured by all that's going on around me and I want to find a way to quiet the voices in my head, if you get my drift. Writing helps sometimes, but that's not always possible in some situations. Like traffic. Or a 10-minute line at Wal-Mart.

4. Enjoy The Moment. I am by nature a planner. I live for lists. Sometimes I think I get too caught up in the planning and the execution (or frustrated at the lack of execution) that I forget to take a minute, step back, and admire that which I have accomplished. I tend to focus on the negative. Luckily I live with two people who remind me, daily, not to take myself so seriously.

5. Be Nice. I will try to smile and say hello to the cashier at Wal-Mart even after standing in line for 10 minutes while she looked up a price. It's not her fault the customer argued with her that it was on the clearance rack for $1.99. I will try to be patient with the co-worker who asks me the same question twice a week. I will try to not wish evil thoughts on the Bi-State bus driver who pulled out in front of my car and cut across three lanes of traffic to make a left-hand turn before the light changed.

So, there you have it. My personal goals for 2009.