Nifty, New '09

Happy New Year! Before I proclaimed my resolutions for the year, I figured it might be wise to look back at what I hoped to achieve in '08. You know, if we don't learn from the mistakes of history we are doomed to repeat them?

1. Sit up straight. Stand up straight. Eh, I kind of forgot about this one. I'll try again.
2. Drink more water. My resolve on this comes and goes. I'd give myself a C+.

3. Take vitamins. Fail.

4. Take the stairs. Fail.

5. Eat smaller portions. I did have great success this year when I started doing online calorie counting...until Lance Armstrong and his ego took over my favorite free site and emblazoned it with ads and his image all over the place. It made it impossible to get to what I needed to do. Lance Armstrong is now on my nemesis list. I recently signed up for My Net Diary instead.

6a. Getting to the gym once a week, on a weeknight. Sort of, for a while, until the Foot Surgery of '08.
6b. Buy the running shorts AndraSue advised me of, and see if running might be something I like. Success! I even did a 5k! And I plan to do it again this year. But I blame the foot surgery again for breaking the pattern, and the fact that once October arrives, 5k's in Chicago are a ridiculous idea.

7. Make business travel more fun. Travel more for fun. Consider adding a day onto business trips for a tourism visit or to see a friend. Take Jason with me. (The corollary resolution for the Husband is to make him get a passport!) Success for me, as you've seen I gallivanted to Scottish castles and got to see my grandma and friend's new baby. Jason, on the other hand, STILL does not have a passport! Urgh.

8. Floss. And maybe find a new dentist too. I found a new dentist, but the flossing has admittedly been hit or miss. Try again this year.

We had a goal of buying a house in 2008, which we did. And what with the Phillies winning the World Series and Obama winning the presidency, I think it's been a year of good achievements.

I'll roll over a few of the '08 resolutions - they are still good and noble ideals, but add some thought to making them more achievable in '09. Like keeping a water bottle at work to make it easier to use the water cooler. I will also add:

9a. Don't buy clothes that I am doubtful look good on me. Even if I love the style or the color, if it doesn't work for me, I should not buy it. Instead I should respect it and admire it like a piece of art on the wall of an art museum, but leave it on the wall.

9b. Become a patron to the Salvation Army. Get rid of stuff that I don't wear or use. Take the books I won't read again to Half Price Books to sell them, or give them to friends. In general, don't let the new big apartment mean that I just accumulate lots of nonsense stuff. Get rid of the storage unit.

Now I feel like I always did on the first day of classes at a new semester at college, overwhelmed with all the work that lay ahead of me. But I do have 12 months, right?

If you're looking for inspiration, this resolution site is a good place to start.