I am not a big fan of New Year Resolutions. Not because I am a make 'em and break 'em kind of girl, but rather because I find it more helpful to set goals for myself as they seem appropriate. Also because as I've seen a few times, where I am at the beginning of the year could be completely different than where I am in February, much less the end of those 12 months.
Of course I have long-term goals - getting a doctorate, having kids - but those aren't necessarily helped by New Year Resolution kind of thinking. I prefer to make my goals as I encounter natural changes in the flow of life, or as I realize that there is something I want to accomplish. For example, when we moved to CO we decided that we'd do a few things to be more productive and feel more satisfied with our lives. To that end we have been exercising at least a couple times a week (optimally with one or more of those being outdoors), we only have 'basic' cable to help avoid the temptation to channel surf, and we bought a house so we could have our own space that really fits our lifestyle. We also decided to get back into some activities that we each love - juggling, singing, video gaming, hiking, biking.. writing in my blog.
Since I was a small girl I always considered myself 'a writer.' I used to keep extensive diaries and would mark on the front cover for every day that I missed. I kept notebooks filled with poetry and short stories. I was very proud of them, though would probably have been mortified if anyone had read them. In college I started this blog - it actually just turned 10 years old! I put my musings here (many of them much more melodramatic than what I'd post now. and no, you can't see them). But as college got more intense I rather lost track of the creative side of my writing habits and in the last couple years I've realized that I miss the firing of those particular synapses.
In the spirit of making resolutions that will make me more satisfied with how my life is going and in the spirit of helping my friends do the same, yesterday I challenged a friend to a duel. Not a duel in the traditional sense wherein one or both of us ends up dead (hopefully!) but a duel of wits. Of creativity. Of encouraging one other to write creatively EVERY DAY. So starting on Saturday and going through February 14th, we will have our "Blogging for Soup" challenge. One can't be brilliant or interesting every day, so I won't be posting every word here but I am hoping to have an increase in regularity of my posts. Our punishments for missing a day involve a bit of public humiliation, so you might get to see that too.
Here's to resolutions! Whether you make them at the New Year or when you sense a need for change, whether you keep them close to your chest or shout them from the rooftops, I hope you are successful with your endeavors this year.
