Resolutions 2010 - The 10 for '10

So it is that time of year when I place my New years resolutions on the blog and then test how I do. I'm thinking when 2055, comes around this is going to be a big list. . The thing I focused on this year was to be specific in my goals. I was at a career workshop in Honolulu, where one of the things that was brought up is to be specific as possible. So here goes, there are a few holdovers from last year

1) Volunteer: Once again I hope to do this so that the kids understand the importance of helping other people that may be less fortunate.

2) Pay down debt: This is a process that both J and I are working on. We are going to start a cash envelope system for basic expenses and some extras. Anything left over will be set aside for the holidays next year.

3) Read four books a month: I'm upping this from last year, so it relates to one book a week. This is one of the more fun aspects of the resolutions and I do love to read. It will be at time be challenging but should be fun.

4) Publish: At least something. OK one of the articles I wrote last year is going to be published and I plan to rework a couple more. This year we plan to focus on quality of the publication and let the rest come. Academia is always a learning process and one that that is often missed is how to formulate a paper for a particular audience or journal. In school, you are writing for one person but outside of that you are writing for an editor, reviewers, peers, etc. The one thing I do find is I'm becoming a stronger writer, which was the point of the exercise anyway.

5) Clean the Garage: We have some excess stuff that needs to be moved out of the garage. While this may only take a couple of months this will at least hold me accountable for getting it done.

6) Get Maintenance done on the cars: We need to be slightly better about taking care of the autos. The minivan needs a new tire and brake switch and an oil change. The XL-7 needs some tender loving care and some routing maintenance so it runs smoother.

7) Catch up on a boatload of TV shows, mostly beginning with B: The winter '10 Buffathon is on. We are though Season Three. We also have Big Love, Battlestar Gallactica, Angel, and True Blood on the list to get through. Thank god for Netflix. We are actually thinking of pulling the plug on the cable and getting some sort of device that can stream directly to the TV.

8) Do a 365 walk project: The idea behind this is to some form of walking exercise everyday for a entire year. This may require the resurection of that she-demon Leslie Sanson. The primary idea behind this is I'm testing the hypothesis that through exercise I can lower my total cholesterol levels. This goes up and down quite a bit, so far this year I've had a low of 192 in July to a high of 209 in December, with some intermediate numbers. The one thing I was doing this summer was walking every day, which I've gotten away from.

9) Learn to meditate: I've always wanted to try this as a relaxation technique and to regain a sense of focus. When you have a big family this can spiral out of control quickly.

10) No computer after 6 pm: I'm on the computer all day, there is no need for me to be on it at night, besides I have a ton of TV shows to catch up on.

I see you next month and let you know how this is going