2011 Goals

Goals Logo overlay by 2 Twisted Sisters

As the year winds down, and on the last day of the year, it’s surely wound down, I like to write down and even publish my goals and projects for the coming year as my personal affirmation, my promise to myself to work on them! Notice I called them goals and projects, not resolutions. Resolutions are somewhat cliché. People, myself in the past included, make bold resolutions at this time of year that are often the discarded ideas of last year by the end of January. That started bugging me back in my early 20s and I decided that I needed to change the language a bit if I wanted to take myself seriously.

Yes, I talk to myself often, especially when I’m making plans about me! I read on a Facebook status a fitting quote for that. It was something like, “It’s okay to talk to yourself and even to answer yourself, as long as you aren’t saying, ‘what??’” I don’t make myself incredulously angry often!


So, here is my plan for 2011:

Medical Project

Okay, the “project” here is just to get whatever needs done done so I can move about with at least some reasonable stability and pain maintenance. My physical therapist did some strength measuring and is a little befuddled by the fact that my right side just seems to be a little weaker all the way down. I’m right-handed, so it should be the other way around. I feel like my right hand is stronger since the doctor cracked out what he called “the mother lode” in my back in November, but we’ll see what he says next week. My PT sent him a note on it. I might end up with an MRI on my back before my knee. --sigh-- But, ya know, I’m not the doctor, right? I’ve been feeling better and like there has been some movement in the right direction, so for now at least, I’m beginning to trust those medical folks a bit more. My immediate physical therapy goal is to get back to pool therapy by the end of January.


Weight Loss & Exercise Goal

Well, on my anniversary day, December 23, I’d lost 40.4 pounds since the end of April. Okay, I’m probably back at 35 now, but I’m going back to my diet plan 100% on the 3rd, I’m on a way cut-down number of Holiday Treats from the three days of Christmas feasting which included UNO and the Fabulous Dessert Bar on Sunday. I’ll be back to control of intake, including a 12-glass a day minimum of water and I plan to add 10 minutes on my recumbent bike every day I don’t have therapy. I am very satisfied with my weight accomplishment from last year and I feel better, my knee is happier with me, without looking too bad. I’ve seen people who lose a lot really fast, I’ve had relatives that did that, and the face gets so drawn and sick-looking. My face is a little drawn. I look a little older. But, I’ve always been told I look younger than I am anyway and besides, if looks were that important to me, I never would have let myself become overweight, right? So, I’ll keep doing what I was doing in 2010. The people who love me for me won’t care if I look a few years older and we’ll all be happy that I’m healthier and feel better, right?


Scrapbook goals

2010 was a great year in getting my scrapbooking caught up! The goal was to have 2007 done by the end of the year and 2010 done by the end of January 2011. Well, the 2 books that are 2007 are sitting on my shelf and have been there for a while, all finished and printed! I still have an ambitious chunk of 2010 left, but I don’t think it’s an unreasonable thought that I’ll be done at the end of January. I still have 10 days before the semester starts too!

So, for 2011, I’m sticking with the formula that worked. I’ll have 2008 complete by then end of 2011 and 2011 will be done by the end of January 2012. I also have a gift project that I’m working on, but I have been working on that one since 2009, so it’s not an overwhelming amount of work to add.


House Uncluttered Project

This is the biggie for the year. We have 2 rooms that are essentially storage rooms right now and I want to claim them as rooms again!

One room is “The Train Room.” It used to be a bedroom. In fact, there’s still a bed in it behind and under boxes of model train stuff and old photos. My shelving unit with my scrapbooks is in there too. The other room, “The Office,” has piles and boxes of my files, paper scrapping supplies and some boxes I never put away from moving. (in 2007!) That room also has the two desks with our desktop computers on them. Both of the desktops are old. Mine is only used to read emails in the morning and occasionally to write during the night if I’m having trouble sleeping, writing helps me sleep. The other computer is really just not used. It’s older than my Mac and David and I both have much newer laptops.

What I’d really like to do is make a “man cave” and a “woman cave,” both with small desks and futons. That would give us both work/storage areas and two usable guest areas. Tori was skeptical, but pleased with that thought. The girls are both at the point of too tall for the loveseat for sleeping when they stay over now and there's only one couch!

I’m going to start with the office and sorting, throwing away or shredding all of my stuff that’s in there. That room will end up being the woman cave. My Mac and the photos to be scanned will live there with my scrapbook shelves and I’m going to get some organizers for the other craft and office supplies. The office supplies will be a central location for the whole house too. A futon in the corner where David’s desk and chair are now would be a nice place to read too!

The Train Room will be the man cave. We can put the organizer shelves in for David’s slides and train gear. If he wants to keep the old computer available we can put that on a desk and replace the old bed with another futon for optimizing space.

My biggest project on this is to be able to paint the picture well enough for David to share my vision. I’m really excited about having the space and two great rooms for our personal interests. I haven’t been able to bring him with me past the, “Oh my lord, so much cleaning,” part. No one enjoys cleaning, but the end is so worth it, in my mind anyway. I’m going to get started in the computer room with filling the bags to pitch, recycle or shred. Maybe some progress with make my vision believable!


Okay, now I am feeling a bit geeky about the coming year and seeing that slimmer and better moving me putting the 2008 scrapbooks on the shelf in my woman cave! Stephen Covey said, in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “Begin with the end in mind.” Visualize reaching the goal and understand what you are earning by doing the work to attain it. I have always loved that book!

So there is my game plan for 2011. As always, I add one line to the end of my goal planning: THIS OR SOMETHING BETTER.

I hope everyone has a fantastic New Years Eve, and may 2011 hold all you want it to – OR BETTER!