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As I wrote yesterday, I plan to make resolutions for the year (and, as delaying procrastination is not one of them, I'm a couple of days late). I've always found that I perform best under a deadline--when I am to be held accountable--which is one reason I am putting my resolutions here, so that those who love me can come back here and point out what a failure I had been.
I have to set some ground rules for myself. First, my resolution must be one that must be attainable. I might decide that I want to fly a plane (I don't). Many things get into the way of that--lack of resources (both financial and geographical), bad vision, fear of flying, etc. So something like that is off the list. As such, my resolutions might seem small to some. To them, it is better to reach for the highest rung and fail, rather than reach for a middle rung and attain it. My counter-thought is that I reach the middle rung and slowly move up to the higher rung.
A second rule is that the resolution must be qualifiable, which is why I won't have a resolution like, "show my family more love". One, I should be doing that anyway; and two, if I were to qualify it (say "I love you" to my wife every day), it would change it from an expression of love to checking off a list. So I have to be able to say at the end of the year, "I said I would do this and I did it" or "I said I would do this 100 times and I did it 97", and so forth. I do not expect to meet all of these goals, but my effort will be there.
So, here are my resolutions. They are fairly simple, and probably ones that many other people make every year.
1. Write a blog daily. This is easily qualifiable and can be easily checked. The problem with this one is that there are going to be days when I will not be able to think of anything to post. There may be a time or two when I post "school sucked" or "parenting is hard" and be done with it, but I hope to post something with actual content (even if it is content that other people think sucks).
2. Bring weight down to 180. I would actually like to make it less, but then my wife starts to make comments about stick figures, which is ridiculous. However, I think this is a weight both she and I can live with. Right now I'm storing up weight in case we get stuck in a blizzard, in the aftermath of my post-retirement and holiday binge.
3. Write three short stories. My goal on this involves a first draft and a revision. I would like to make the number higher, but with everything else in my life and on this list, I don't think I would be able to make it.
4. Write one long-form fiction. I would like this to be a novel, but I don't think I can attain that within a year's time. I have something in my mind right now that would be long enough and that I think I can accomplish before the end of the year.
5. Read 150 books. I originally had this as shorter (100; then 125). 150 is a hard goal, but I think I can accomplish it. It breaks down to a little less than three books a week. I am counting audiobooks with this, which is why I feel fairly comfortable with 150. I am going to college full-time, and the University of Arkansas is about 45 minutes away, so I have 90 minutes five days a week to listen to books. These have to be actual books, although length does not matter. Short stories do not count, except as part of a book. Books I read to my daughter do not count.
6. Read to Tatiana every night. Sometimes I just let other things get in the way, so setting this goal just reinforces for me the need for effort. I will still count it if she is read to, even if it is not by me, but will have to consider it a failure if I have not done the majority of the reading.
7. Take a picture every day. I tend to be a binge photographer, taking pictures in high volume in concentrated time zones, so I just want to force myself to spread it out some.
So there you have it. Seven goals to meet. There are many other things I would have liked to added to this, but I don't want to set myself up for failure. We'll see in a year if and how many I was able to accomplish.
I have to set some ground rules for myself. First, my resolution must be one that must be attainable. I might decide that I want to fly a plane (I don't). Many things get into the way of that--lack of resources (both financial and geographical), bad vision, fear of flying, etc. So something like that is off the list. As such, my resolutions might seem small to some. To them, it is better to reach for the highest rung and fail, rather than reach for a middle rung and attain it. My counter-thought is that I reach the middle rung and slowly move up to the higher rung.
A second rule is that the resolution must be qualifiable, which is why I won't have a resolution like, "show my family more love". One, I should be doing that anyway; and two, if I were to qualify it (say "I love you" to my wife every day), it would change it from an expression of love to checking off a list. So I have to be able to say at the end of the year, "I said I would do this and I did it" or "I said I would do this 100 times and I did it 97", and so forth. I do not expect to meet all of these goals, but my effort will be there.
So, here are my resolutions. They are fairly simple, and probably ones that many other people make every year.
1. Write a blog daily. This is easily qualifiable and can be easily checked. The problem with this one is that there are going to be days when I will not be able to think of anything to post. There may be a time or two when I post "school sucked" or "parenting is hard" and be done with it, but I hope to post something with actual content (even if it is content that other people think sucks).
2. Bring weight down to 180. I would actually like to make it less, but then my wife starts to make comments about stick figures, which is ridiculous. However, I think this is a weight both she and I can live with. Right now I'm storing up weight in case we get stuck in a blizzard, in the aftermath of my post-retirement and holiday binge.
3. Write three short stories. My goal on this involves a first draft and a revision. I would like to make the number higher, but with everything else in my life and on this list, I don't think I would be able to make it.
4. Write one long-form fiction. I would like this to be a novel, but I don't think I can attain that within a year's time. I have something in my mind right now that would be long enough and that I think I can accomplish before the end of the year.
5. Read 150 books. I originally had this as shorter (100; then 125). 150 is a hard goal, but I think I can accomplish it. It breaks down to a little less than three books a week. I am counting audiobooks with this, which is why I feel fairly comfortable with 150. I am going to college full-time, and the University of Arkansas is about 45 minutes away, so I have 90 minutes five days a week to listen to books. These have to be actual books, although length does not matter. Short stories do not count, except as part of a book. Books I read to my daughter do not count.
6. Read to Tatiana every night. Sometimes I just let other things get in the way, so setting this goal just reinforces for me the need for effort. I will still count it if she is read to, even if it is not by me, but will have to consider it a failure if I have not done the majority of the reading.
7. Take a picture every day. I tend to be a binge photographer, taking pictures in high volume in concentrated time zones, so I just want to force myself to spread it out some.
So there you have it. Seven goals to meet. There are many other things I would have liked to added to this, but I don't want to set myself up for failure. We'll see in a year if and how many I was able to accomplish.
