I had this really great idea when I was in Haiti over New Year's to come up with 10 goals for 2010 and then get started right when I got back. Then it was March 1.
In my own defense, an earthquake happened that totally changed the course of the last two months. But I'm through defending. So I am calling them March resolutions. And here they are (in no particular order)
1. Take more pictures. Last June, I got an SLR camera for graduation. It has been used well on vacations and in Haiti, and has taken some incredible photos, but I don't use it enough. I want learn to shoot manually. Good thing I have Caroline.
2. Blog more often. Pretty simple, just need to do it.
3. Run a 1/2 Marathon. I was recently challenged a lot when I read Don Miller's new book A Million Miles in a Thousand Years to quit daydreaming about doing things and just do them. I have always wished I liked running but I never have. In elementary school, my mom made me join the jogging club and she would drop me off at 6:45 am and we had to run laps around the backstops and collect popsicle sticks for each lap. My white Keds had morning dew and grass stains and I smelt like playground kid the rest of the day. I hated every minute of it. Deep rooted issues? Probably, but I am determined to change that. Starting with a new pair of running shoes, I will begin a training program in a few weeks when it finally warms up! Are you a runner? What motivates you?
4. Re-gain flexibility. I was a gymnast and a cheerleader for many years and have since lost most of my flexibility. I loved doing yoga in college so Christina and I are starting yoga again next week!
5. Send more snail mail. I LOVE to get snail mail. Who doesn't?
6. Stay in touch with old friends. I miss college a lot. And I miss having my friends close so I vow to be better at staying in touch with old friends. The goal above should help with that
7. Take the GRE. This is not really a fun goal. I want to go back to grad school in the next couple of years and in order to do that, I have to take the GRE. Studying is the one thing I have NOT missed about college, but I know it is in important discipline and in the long run will be so worth it.
8. Learn more Creole. This is a fun goal. Anybody have good resources for this? I found a couple things online, but would love to know what works for you? Hope to get some more real practice too :)
9. Respond to emails immediately. If you have ever emailed me, you are probably aware that I am in the horrible habit of reading emails and not responding for an embarrassingly long time. Therefore, I am going to try and respond to emails ASAP. Feel free to hold me accountable to this :)
10. Get to bed earlier. I have not adjusted to the fact that as an adult, it is not okay to stay up till the wee hours of the morning most nights. I am actually a morning person, and wish I could wake up at 5:30 everyday, spend some time in the Word with several cups of coffee, run 5 miles and look like a million bucks all by the time I have to be at work. But the problem is, I am also a night owl. And when I stay up too late, I am pretty useless from 2-5 in the afternoon, which is prime napping time. Until I live in Spain and get a siesta everyday, I have to change my habits.
I felt that if I put these in writing and if I told them to those of you who read this blog, I'd actually have to make a stab at this year's resolutions. I hope to check in every so often with how I am doing with each of these, so stay tuned!
In other news, I am officially over this winter and dreaming of the days when I get to head back to Zihuatanejo this June. Oh Zihua, I have missed you so...
4 comments:
Querido Carolina,
Your lime soup and shrimp quesadillas, along with your "essence of basil" are waiting for you at your palapa. You know the one. Te amo, Hector
Hi, Caroline!
I am a runner, and I just ran my second half-marathon in Austin on Valentine's Day! I listen to podcasts while I run...my favorite are Matt Chandler and Ben Stuart (and Matt Carter if I miss a church service at the Austin Stone). I also recently discovered howstuffworks.com has cool podcasts that help pass the time while running! I'm a nursing student (J2) at UT, and I love your blog!
You don't know me... I found your blog via RHFH's blog and have been following you since...
Beautiful Pictures!!! Thank you for sharing. Reminds me that there are some truly beautiful places.
Connie
So I'm confused. Are you a runner now, or you WANT to be a runner? If you're NOT, have you tried the Couch to 5 K program??? It's EXCELLENT! It's mean to turn a non-runner into a runner without over-doing it (and thus avoiding injuries.) I started it 2 years ago, then slipped on some March-in Minnesota-ice and shattered my wrist. Then I started it again last fall, only fall in Minnesota is NOT the time to start a running program. We have that thing called "winter" here. So I started it again last week, on the track at the Y. And there are MANY facebook groups for C25K too! There are podcasts to download in just about every music genre you can think of. They're metered so they tell you when to run and when to walk. Here's an example: Week 1, days 1, 2, and 3, you have a 5 minute brisk walk as your warm up, then you run for 60 seconds, and walk for 90 seconds. You do 8 reps of this, then a 5 minute cool down. Week two, the amount of time you run is bumped up to 90 seconds of running, 90 seconds of walking (or something like that.) So each week you're doing a little more running, and a little less walking. By the end of 9 weeks, you're running a 5 K! I used to run in high school, but it was EASY then. Now I'm a mom of 5, and turning 43, and I want to know what happened to "easy". I would like it back thank.you.very.much! What motivates me is I don't want to be the lazy mom with no energy. I want to be "that mom who can do whatever she sets her mind to!" (which is why I set "before I turn 40 goals and reached them, like getting a motorcycle, and am now working on "before I turn 45" goals. I'm just still trying to prioritize them, but they're in my head.)
College: 6 years ago, due to the health of one of my kids, I was forced to quit the job I loved. Shortly after the laws changed and in order for me to go back, realized I'd have to go back to school and get a bunch of certifications taken care of. I decided to be a stay at home mom instead. Suddenly it came time for me to figure out what I wanted to do when I grew up the second time! I just started back to school full time in September. (and it's not killing me yet!) In fact, I'm loving it. I'd forgotten how much I love learning, and writing papers. (except for the persuasive research paper that's due next week. GAH!) So, if I can go back to school at 43, raising a child with a disability, keeping track of weather or not my 4 adult boys are alive or not, while also doing in-home dog training for other people's problem dogs, AND finding time to ride my motorcycle, you can do it too!
Regaining flexibility? Sorry, can't help you there. I drive my step class instructor crazy with my inflexible hamstrings when we're stretching. LOL
Sending more snail mail? Reminds me I owe my sister a card.
Check your emails once at night and respond right then. I get a lot. Some of it is junk and some needs a response. If I don't respond right away, I forget.
Getting to bed earlier. Does this have something to do with college? Because I have a sleep disorder, and usually sleep 10-12 hours a night, but since I started back to school, I'm RARELY in bed before 2:00 a.m! What's up with that? And, I can't even say I'm studying because 1/2 the time I'm messing around, commenting on people's blogs that belong to people who don't even know I'm reading them.
And I love Zihuantenejo.
Post a Comment