On The Eighth Day Of Christmas. . .

My true love gave to me eight maids a milking.

For my mom’s eighth gift I gave her hot chocolate.  Milk…milk chocolate…hot chocolate…it’s a stretch, but oh come on let me have it.  This is New Year’s Day.  It is the day of reflection, of resolutions, and of hangovers.  Today try a sport drink and lots of water to help with that last one, but take some time and think about what you want to accomplish this year.  My suggestion is that it is something concrete that you can actually measure.  For example if you want to lose weight that’s admirable, but perhaps think about how you are going to do that or what it means to you.  Perhaps it can be defined by activities for instance you could aim to walk a certain distance without stopping or walk up a flight of stairs without gasping or get a certain number of hours of sleep.  Also take your time when you make your resolution.  Take your time, and set a goal that will challenge you, but not so much that you give up after the first week.  It needs to be challenging, but not near impossible for you to be successful.  I have three goals this year – organizing my home, improving my fitness, and saving money and each one is broken into simpler tasks like clearing out my bedroom closet, being able to walk up two flights of stairs without huffing and puffing and taking my lunch to work.  All will take effort, but they are definitely doable.

– the Goddess

 

Random Thoughts On New Year’s Day, 2014

As 2013 comes to a close and we start 2014 I am reflecting on the highs and lows of this year.  For me there have been extreme highs and devastating lows, but even the worst of times remind us that we are alive and that we can muddle through until the pendulum swings the other way.  I chose not to go out tonight.  I have never been a big fan of New Year’s Eve, my father used to call it amateur night, and I’ve always felt that the entire evening revolves around the clock changing from 11:59 pm to 12:00 am and then nothing much happens.  The ball falls, people sing a song and then as if the air was let out of the balloon the evening is effectively over.  Sure the party can continue on, but unlike Christmas where all the anticipation is rewarded with presents, and dinner and time with family, New Year’s Eve is filled with anticipation and then nothing.  I always think there should be a party that starts at midnight or a performance piece or some event at and after midnight, but alas I’ve yet to see this happen.  Sure there are sometimes fireworks and when I was a kid we would run around and announce each new thing that we did for the first time in the new year like “this is the first pop I am drinking in the new year!” or “this is the first game or Monopoly I’ve played in the new year!”, but that hardly makes up for an evening of watching the clock.

• I reviewed my 2013 resolutions and other than the belly dancing I wasn’t that successful.  I wasn’t horrible, but I can hardly brag about my successes.

• I am not making a resolution for 2014.  I have my challenges to complete by or before March 12 and quite frankly I am starting to panic a bit about whether or not I will be able to finish all of them before my deadline.  It’s a self imposed deadline and it was pointed out to me today that the world will not end if I need an extension and that my challenges are an example of how I continually overestimate my ability to get things done in the time allotted, however I am not about to admit defeat when I have approximately ten weeks left

• A close friend is pushing me to write a book.  While I think he may overestimate my ability to write a best seller it is nice to have someone who believes in you.

• My date with “the friend zone” guy was rescheduled because of the recent ice storm, which was a disappointment, but it will definitely be a highlight of 2014.

• 2014 is shaping up to be a year of deeper introspection as I consider some of my major life goals and how I plan to accomplish them.  I’ll have more to say about this as the year progresses, but one of the things I am going to work on is making time for myself and sticking to that like any other appointment in my calendar.  All too often I sacrifice my health by cutting into exercise time or sleep time to accommodate the schedules of others and while I don’t wish to become completely inflexible, I am going to being saying no more often and I am going to attempt to do that without feeling guilty as I am making necessary time for my well being.

– the Goddess