Sunday, December 26, 2010

New Years Goals 2009 Revisited

So, last year I made a list of long and short term goals.  I posted them on my web site not just for my benefit, but also in an effort to encourage my readers to make realistic long term goals. So, let's take a look and see how I did:
  • Seek out more bee people. Find the short fat awkward people who don't fit in and dance with them. I know they are out there.  Mission accomplished. I think I need to make this a goal every year.
  • Make a little birdhouse in my soul. Continue with this web site and blog. I'm not sure anyone is reading anymore (I haven't gotten much feedback to the blog) but if maybe someday, one person stumbles across it and finds some solace, some sanctuary here, then I'll consider this resolution a success. In fact, as long as I keep the blog up I will.  Mission accomplished. I haven't gained a lot of readers, but the ones I know about mean so much to me and make everything worth while.
  • Believe that life can change and I'm not stuck in vain! This is a tough one for me, especially as I get older and have to face my future with some sense of realism, but without a defeatist attitude. I need to remind myself that I'm too old to be a rock star, but still young enough to maybe play a song on YouTube or maybe even do a coffee house someday.  Mission accomplished. I haven't done anything with music this year, but I have made other changes in my life. Done 5ks, taken charge of other things in my life that were wrong. It's getting better all the time.
  • Make every day the best day ever! Make plans, and even though sometimes things don't always go as planned, remember to make the best of it either way.  I didn't always succeed on this one. Working on my attitude is still something that I need to do.
  • Continue making short term goals, and updating them as I cross things off. My current list is:
    • Make crabs for the ELC. Done
    • Make interactive map of how the FL land mass has changed for the ELC. Done
    • Toilet train the cats. Done (well, for Maggie, anyway, the rest are on their way)
    • Finish Timmy and start book. Not done. I need to make more time for creativity in 2011.
    • Get new tattoo. Not done. Not sure why I haven't done this yet, I really wanted to. I think this one relates to still not taking enough time for me.
    • Get promotional material (brochures and magnets) for David's business printed and distributed. Done. Not just printed material, we also have t-shirts for sale for his business now.
    • Learn a song on the banjo and post a video to YouTube. Not done. As with Timmy, the book, and my tattoo, I seem to have a harder time accomplishing the goals that are solely for my benefit. Got to work on this one in 2011.

  • Continue making long term goals and do all that I can to work towards them. Done.  I haven't crossed anything off this list, but I've worked really hard at the gym this year, which is a major step to being able to physically accomplish some of my more physical long term goals, so I am very proud of that achievement.
    My current long term goals are:
    • Appalachian Trail with Joy, Christmas 2010 (at least the part around north GA-North Carolina)
    • Summit Kearsage. It's kicked my butt twice so far, I need to show it who's boss.
    • See a cock-of-the-rock in its native habitat.
    • Sing karaoke. Unashamed, despite having been begged never to go near a microphone again ever (I mean that literally -- my ex posted an MP3 on the internet when we had a band, and someone clicked the link to listen to it and immediately called me, all the way from England, to beg me never to go near a microphone again, ever.)
    • Touch Marty Marquis' hair.
    • When I was a kid I saw a tv show about a museum in Japan that had a big animatronics collection. I'd really like to find and visit that museum.
    • Hike down the Grand Canyon.
    • Get the rest of the stamps for my National Park Passport.
    • Write a book.
    • Sell another photo or other piece of my own artwork (and go to the museum somewhere in Utah that has the first photo that I sold.)
    • See a Satanic Leaf Tailed Gecko in its natural habitat (Madagascar)
Next post: Goals for 2010