Monday, January 7, 2013

New Year's Resolutions


First, my resolutions for last year:
1. Eat pie - Success!
2. Run 365 miles, including the Tough Mudder and the GORUCK challenge - I ran enough (I ended up with 443 miles) but I didn't do either the Tough Mudder or the GORUCK.  However, I'm signed up to do the GORUCK on May 18th in Charlottesville and I may do the Tough Mudder in April as practice.
3. Lose weight - I'm ~5 pounds lighter but also just in better overall shape from the running, so I'll count this as a mild success.
4. Climb more - Nope.  Pretty much none.
5. Do more photography - Nope.  I did some, but no more than the previous year.
6. Stay organized - I'm a bit more organized than I was, but not as much as I was hoping.
7. Write - Nope.  Pretty much none.
8. Draw - I drew more than I have in the past, but not as much as I could've.  I'll continue to work on this next year.
9. Get involved in some form of community service - Nope.  None at all.
10. Be a better person - No idea.

Now, for this upcoming year:
1. Eat 12 types of pie - Always a good thing to do.
2. Run 365 miles - I want to continue running, but if I work more different types of exercise into my schedule, running more than I have in the past isn't necessary.
3. Hike 100 miles - I really enjoy hiking, but I never do enough of it.  I'm going to try to do more this year, and although I won't have the big mountains of the west at my disposal anymore, I'll have the Appalachians.
4. Make 12 cool things - I've made some cool things this year (primarily the arduino gun turret and a bunch of knives), and I'd like to step this up in the coming year.  I'll have easier access to tools and I won't be limited by having to think about moving all my stuff cross-country, so I should be free to get a bit more creative and ambitious with what I make.  Expect some add-ons for my Forester (rooftop attachments and possibly interior improvements), probably a weapon or two (knives and maybe projectile launchers), some brewing gadgets (I'm already working on planning two of these), some brewed beverages made with those gadgets, and some interesting furniture for my new apartment (once I have a new apartment).
5. Have 4 "adventures" - Somewhat loosely-defined, I realize, but an overall good goal.  I'll probably count the GORUCK in May as one of these, and I expect two of the others will be camping trips and the last something more urban.

In order to perhaps actually remember them, I'm going to stick to just these five resolutions instead of the usual ten, and by making them all quantifiable, I'll hopefully have an easier time tracking them.  Expect occasional updates here about how I'm doing with them, especially the adventures and making cool things.