I really don’t like the term “resolutions”. For one, I don’t really know what it means and two, I don’t think we should limit ourselves to goals once a year. Life is short so we should constantly be trying to do better and meet new goals. That being said, the New Year is a good time to reflect and figure out what the future might hold. For me, there are nine things I’m really hoping to focus on the next 365 (give or take) days.
- Finish the Harry Potter books. This is number one because it’s been in the back of my mind for a long time. I didn’t read or watch the Harry Potter series until 2017 but I was hooked as soon as I did. I watched them all one weekend on Freeform or whatever the network was called at the time and never looked back (fun fact: I went to the coffee shop in Scotland where J.K. Rowling wrote the books and I went to Harry Potter world in Orlando with my dad in 2016 and am dying to go back). I started reading the books in September of 2017 and started book 5 somewhere around March of 2018. Since then, I haven’t finished book 5. I carry it around with me with the intention of reading it and I haven’t finished. My goal is to finish this and the next two by the end of the year. Fingers crossed on that one.
- Graduate grad school. I have two semesters left of grad school. One starts Monday and then I’ll finish up after summer semester this year. It hasn’t been easy and there have been a lot of technical issues that I never anticipated, but this is actually one of the things I’m most proud of. I studied for the GRE 4 years after graduating from college. I taught myself math that I never learned because fun fact: I only had to take one math class in college and it was just basic math. I step out of my comfort zone every time I have to do a presentation over Skype and going to school online definitely isn’t easy. I don’t really talk about grad school to many people other than my mom when I’m whining about how stressed I am. There have been times I questioned if it was worth it but ultimately I think it will be the best decision I ever made because it helped lead me to my passion and my dream job.
- Go to the dentist. I’m embarrassed to admit how long it’s been since I’ve been to the dentist. It’s one of those appointments that you rely on your parents to make for you and then once you’re an adult it falls by the wayside. This is weird for me because I have a huge thing with teeth. I am a compulsive teeth whitener and I still wear my retainer. If you have a recommendation please let me know.
- Focus on my health. Following up on the previous note about the dentist, I hate making doctor’s appointments. The irony is that I have a chronic condition that requires a lot of appointments. A lot of people don’t know this about me and it’s something I even forget sometimes. In the past 16 years or so I’ve had around 100 eye doctor appointments, close to 30(?) IV infusions, lots of shots and blood tests and a handful of other tests and appointments that I always deemed irrelevant and a nuisance. Now that I’m an adult who’s responsible for my own health, the responsibility of making sure I make (and go to) these appointments is my own and I kind of failed at it in 2018. This is something I want to stop procrastinating in 2019.
- Reel Charlotte in. I love Charlotte a lot. To me, she’s perfect. I don’t know how I got so lucky and she’s exactly what I needed. BUT. She’s a handful. She has A LOT of energy and wants to play all the time. I’m hoping to really hone in on her behavior this year.
- Travel somewhere new. This plan is already in motion so stay tuned.
- Learn how to make sushi and how to cook a steak. I love sushi. I’m really particular about sushi. I just want to be able to say I know how to make sushi. I like steak but don’t eat a ton of red meat. But this seems like something that everyone should know how to cook and right now I don’t.
- De-clutter. I hate clutter but am surrounded by it. Everything in life goes smoother and my mind is clearer when my space is clean and organized. Might watch that Netflix show everyone keeps talking about for inspiration.
- Be less judgy. Self-explanatory. We could all do this. If something someone does or says doesn’t affect you, don’t comment on it. Pretty simple.