2013 coming soon
 

So, as 2012 comes to an end, I had to go back to our annual resolution/year in review thread to see how I did and where I hope to go.

Looking back I think I scored big on the hedonism goal, had many fun exploits in the desert, a trip to New York, and all around good times with the people I love. I seem to have avoided a lot of drama that seemed to accompany other years.

I didn't write as much as I would have liked, so that's something I will have to address again in 2013 and maybe try another approach to my time-management problems.

Looking forward to the new year I know I'll be faces challenges at work. The company I work for went into Bankruptcy this month and will likely emerge under new ownership. Depending on what that looks like, it may mean relocation, or finding a new job. I continue to enjoy the challenges but I'll have to prepare for a number of contingencies.

Other than that, the plan is the same - travel a bit, explore some hedonistic pleasures, write - or rather be creative in general. I think I'd like to see what I can do to share, contribute, and inspire the creative spirit among those I know.

That sounds lofty enough for a start.

Hmm, I've got no good black-humor to contribute this year.

As usual I make no promises or predictions for the coming year. This past one was pretty incredible. Somewhere around May I set myself a life changing goal. Little did I know just how much my life would eventually have changed by the time I accomplished that goal. The beginning of Q4 saw the confluence of some pretty epic events in my life and will stand as a seminal period in my memory for a long time.

It was hard not to lose a little steam after that high point, but it resulted in a new course to travel, with its own challenges and a whole new level of effort required. Still trying to get my feet under me, but also rather enjoying the seat-of-my-pants flailing I've had to do thus far.

The first half of January is shaping up to be a whirlwind. Hoping to come out of it energized and accomplished, offsetting the sheer exhaustion (physical and emotional) that's sure to be come as well. Then perhaps I'll take a breather and see what the rest of 2013 looks like.

I actually had some things in that last thread. Got three out of four of them.

1. Did not mock my mom for pushing homeopathy. Of course, this is easier now that she declared in early November that anybody who voted for Obama was dead to her and cut off all contact. For me that's not a huge deal; we'll reconnect or we won't. But it is much more significant to my the elder of my sisters who has kids and to my younger sister who has to live with her.

2. While there were a few slips I pretty much went the year without consuming anything inside of movie theaters other than water.

3. Easily covered enough ground to get to Disneyland (though I stopped tracking so can't say how much I did).

4. Did not disconnect from Facebook/Twitter for very long. But it is good for me to drop off for a month or so every once in a while.


Don't know that I have anything to throw out for 2013. Things are, as usual, pretty good at home and at work. My contentment keel remains deep. My satisfaction Weebles wobble but don't fall down. My self satisfaction Timex takes a licking and keeps on ticking. My self-amusement simile farts like a weasel on acid.

I don't make any New Year's resolutions, so I have no score to keep.

But with that said, 2012 was good and bad. My relationship with Beaumark continues to grow and prosper, with today (Dec. 28) being our two-year anniversary. That's a date that further packs my Holiday Season with eventfulness. We're headed up to San Francisco for the new year, which seems to be our go-to getaway for holidays - as we were there for Labor Day and last Christmas. That labor day getaway would have been my only travel for the year ...


... but for my fantastical vacation on Maui - 2012 thus seeing the fulfilment of a decades-long quest to make it to Hawaii.

That was in July for my birthday (and America's). Since then, my entire world has been consumed by my condo remodel, and health maintenance and friendship maintenance has gone by the wayside.

If you'd like to read about and SEE what my last half of 2012 was like, here's my just-published el jay on the subject.

SO, in response to that - what I'm looking forward to in 2013 is a return to all my good health habits, a return to cherishing and nurturing friendships, and living a bit on the frugal side so I can pay what remains owing on the big remodel within the 2013 calendar year.

Here's hoping for more fun and happiness, for me and certainly for all of YOU!!

:iSm:

Oh, here's something. I'll go through my Facebook friends list and boot anybody where I'm not 100% certain, without looking a friends in common, how I know them. A lot of people I'm no sure if they're LoT, MP, high school, or other spheres.

I did okay with this, lost nearly 100 lbs in 2012. I'm hoping for 50+ more in 2013. Going back to the gym is a priority which should help this along.

Feh, did not nurture my creative side much in 2012. I got caught up in being responsible/caregiver and ended up not taking care of this part of me. I am hoping to spend more time focusing on the creative parts of me, and this will also involve less time sucking spent on Facebook.
p
Snort, zilcho done on Dorothy except acquiring a few cool photos. FAIL.

I did not leap nor did I look. Being the primary income, well I chickened out in making a jump. I'm hoping the option of an LA office does materialize that will give me an easier opportunity to make different kind of leap.

Time will tell.

Etsy did not pan out for me, so far. The crafting thing remains complicated in my head. Am I doing it for creative expression, or to fund my creative expression, or to pass the time, or to prove something, or what? So far I am only able to get myself motivated when I have a very specific personal goal - Halloween costumes, or Theo's birthday party. I've got some fun projects for his party next month and as usual I'm hoping I can do more than that once that's done but motivation is such a bitchy nut to crack.

UGH. At best, I am exactly the same as I was. I have good days and bad days. I am not a patient person. I never know if I'm just beating myself up or if I'm not doing well enough or what. Maybe I know deep down that I can always do better but there's two sides to that....

Been better here. Many thanks to Unfvck Your Habitat for inspiring me to be better in ways that make sense to me.



For 2013....I still need to keep aware that everything I do rubs off on my little guy. That I can feel it when I'm unhappy due to my time-use choices and that I need to listen to myself. That I'm not perfect but that's no reason to not try my best.

More physical activity would be good, too.

So, again, a fail on the 110Kg goal, although I am closer to it than I was when I wrote that post. I have new technology / Brain management working on the problem, and think that my next goal might actually happen.

We did indeed move to Forster. Very successfully, and the seachange is treating us well. We could not want better than what we achieved. Maybe except for a caravan... but that's for the coming year or two yet.

2013 Resolutions:

1. Visit The Mediterranean. Pretty sure this will happen as it's booked and paid...
2. Go on our first Cruise. This is booked for August for our anniversary. Just a 4 night cruise to start to see how we like it.
3. Get the weight down to 100kg. I think I can go beyond this, but I will err on the side of caution, looking back at past attempts.

Lets how I go with those.

I lost quite a bit more weight and "fully" quit smoking as much as I probably ever will. Thanks to our personal Dr. Who I enjoyed a couple real Cloves and 5 or so actual cigarettes since Leap Day.

This is ongoing, had some good discussions with my manager about where I want to go, what I want to do and finally get acknowledgement he has no idea what I do most of the time and most of the other stuff I do isn't what he envisioned for my position but I should continue down that path since its been working out and support has improved. But if I don't get a raise this year to reflect all the responsibilities I have taken on I am G.O.N.E.

This has been my biggest challenge and I've failed miserably at it.


For 2013

I need to focus on me, my life. I want to meet someone that could go somewhere. I'm on eHarmony but it's really hit or miss. If anyone knows of anyone feel free to set me up.

Continue to progress in my career and if that means moving on then that's what it will be.

Continue to lose weight and take up running

I usually never make any resolutions. I'm not very goal oriented anyway but I do need to get my ass in gear so I'll make a few.

Go to the gym, loose weight. Something I'm only successful at in spurts.

Get a new job since I'll be losing mine the first part of February. Hoping the pay scale in San Diego has increased some since I last looked 13 years ago but I'm not super hopeful. This may mean even bigger changes depending on how long I'm out and what I can get.

Keep things picked up more. It does make me feel better when things are a bit tidier.

Try to get out more. Maybe now that hopefully I'll be working in a less isolated environment I'll get to meet some new people. I'm not very good at being outgoing. Working in the same office for the last 13 years with just two people hasn't been super social.

This is the closest to a resolution I have. I need to find a way to reignite my passion for biking.

The only negative about my new job situation has been the loss of an absolutely ideal scenario for exercise. My bike commute was perfect. It required almost zero extra time in my day, it was something I loved, and there was no benefit to skipping it. Skipping my ride simply meant I had to sit in my car for an hour a day instead. No thanks.

That's all gone. I have not found a way to fit biking in to my new lifestyle and it's starting to eat at me. I've only been on my bike twice since I started the job 4 months ago.

Maybe I need to commit to another century in the near future. Give me a specific goal to aim at.

That's what I have to do. If I don't already have another half marathon on the schedule when I do one, I simply stop running.

I'm looking to make a career change soon. Within 2013 would be nice.

2013 holds alot of promise here in the Bornieo camp. Wedding to plan, Walt Disney World, the search for another job. 2012 had alot going on too, with the climax being the loss of my Grandmother. I won't miss 2012 all that much but its one I won't forget too soon!

Happy new year LoT!! :cheers:

You know, I'm not one for resolutions either, but I love this thread every year to hear everyone's reflections on their past year as well as their hopes and aspirations for the next. They always surprise me.

This time it's Katiesue's " I need to get out more" - I'm always amazed by the number of activities and events she drags herself up to, the miles she puts on her car just to hang out with the likes of us. I think we need to appreciate your presence more, or at least better show it.

Google has a page to look back at 2012 and share your resolution.

Done :)

Actually, when I wrote that I could not have imagined how satisfying a job it would be, or how proud I would be of the job I've done thus far. I give Amelia much of the credit for making it easy, and I rarely toot my own horn on this front, but if I'm honest, I am proud of the role I've played in her development. There, I said it.

That being said, there are areas I can work on, both as a parent and a person, so I'm going to break from tradition this year and actually state some specific goals:

1. I need to give her more opportunities for physical development. I started working on this a couple months ago, when I realized that, while my taking her out and around town was wonderful for her mental and social stimulation, I was keeping her in the carseat/stroller/shopping cart too much and she wasn't getting enough time to work on entertaining herself or work on her crawling and walking. So I'm spending a bit more time at home for her to run around and play, as well as making a concerted effort when out (especially at DL) to pull her out of the stroller and set her down more often to encourage walking and exploration.

2. There are things that need to go to storage and things that just plain need to go. I'm going to make that happen. Which leads to:

3. Toy rotation. There are too many toys in my living room. Some of them need to go up to Amelia's room and get periodically rotated in. Not just to keep things interesting for Amelia, but because there are grownups who live in this house too, and you'd never know it looking at my living room floor.

4. I'm going to eat more apples this year. I know, oddly specific. I've sort of recently rediscovered liking them, and I figured it was easier to make a specific trackable goal like that instead of a generic commitment to health. I hardly eat any fruit, and that's been the case most of my life, and an area I could really afford to improve. So my plan is to always have a fresh apple available in the house, and if I don't get to it before it gets bad, to replace it, so I always have the option of replacing an unhealthy snack with a healthy one. My ambition is 50 apples. That's essentially an apple a week. I doubt I'll make it, but I'm going to try.

Some of the new varieties of apples are phenomenal. I love honeycrisp and pink lady, specifically and when they go on sale at Henry's I stock up. They last a loooong time too, in the refrigerator.

Aww thank you. :blush: I do love driving. Honest my mother says I was born with wheels.

I didn't post anything about a resolution last year but one personal goal was to clean up and organize my spare room which had become a chaos of craft supplies and I don't know what else. I'm going to give that another try this year and I'm determined something will be accomplished.

Otherwise, in 2012 I discovered I can dance in heels. That felt like an accomplishment to me.

You know Dr. Who personally? Very cool!

;)

BTD: found 2-lb bags of honeycrisp at TJ's for $3.50/ea, so I grabbed a couple. They pair nicely with the Delice de Bourgogne cheese they also sell.

That's cool. I'm personally not willing to pay more than 99c/lb for apples though so I'll just have to wait for Sprouts to put them on sale again.

There are a lot of apple types I know I"m not nuts about (including the ones I was raised on, which explains why I'm only recently getting into them), so for me, its worth the investment in what I know to be one of the best ones. But yeah, expensive.

If an apple isn't green on the outside it isn't worth putting on the inside. Just my (objectively correct) opinion anyway.

Honeycrisp got really expensive these last six months or so.

Me, last year.
Wow, did I ever f'n fail that one!

I had a lot of ups and downs... many of which I didn't share publicly. At the sum of the year, it seemed that much is up in my world.

This year has gotten off to a very good start, and I hope to continue in this direction. Some goals:

Run a 5K: This happens next Friday, at Epcot. Huzzah!

Run a half-marathon: This is tentatively slated for the half at Disneyland in September. That said, I am giving serious consideration to half in July here... so perhaps it won't be my first half-marathon.

Get out of this apartment and into a house.

Other than that, be happy, be happier, stay happy, that sort of thing.

I don't really like resolutions, in fact I wrote a blog about it several years ago the main point of which was:

However, in the hope that I am always adapting and growing, I resolve to clear at least SOME clutter from my life. I don't much care whether it is the physical or emotional (both would be nice) but some WILL be gone by this time next year. Really.

I wouldn't call is a resolution as such, but I do plan to stop looking at things and asking myself "Do I need that?" and instead think about what I need and then look for that.

Starting with all that CES stuff.

You don't want the device that monitors your plants via Bluetooth?

Probably because they are out of season.