2011: A Year in Review

It's New Year's Eve.

I have never been a huge fan of the holiday. It's not that I don't like it, but I don't understand the overwhelming need most people seem to have to spend the evening in the most perfect way possible. It never lives up to their expectations. I prefer a low key evening or if I'm going out, I just want to have a good time and don't feel the pressure to have so much fun that this night is distinguishable from all the rest.

I do, however, love the idea of a fresh start. I like to look back on the previous year and set goals for the year to come. Obviously, as evidenced by this blog, I love setting goals.

So, 2011. It wasn't a great year, but it wasn't a terrible one either. Here are some highlights:

1. I went to Boston/Salem for the first time.

2. We moved to Missouri.

3. I ran my first 5K!

And, there were some not so great things that happened this year. An old friend passed away entirely too young, when she and her daughter were murdered. I can't even type those words without crying. We didn't talk often since we had grown apart as we'd gotten older, but she was a large part of my youth and her loss is quite painful.

Joe's grandmother had to go into a nursing home, which was difficult for the family. But she is still with us, and we are grateful for each day we have with her.

I do have high hopes for 2012, as I suppose I do for every new year, but there are a few things in the works that will make 2012 pretty awesome.

1. I'm going to Italy!

2. I should (hopefully) earn my master's degree!

I plan to examine the list and choose a few items to really focus on accomplishing this year. There are quite a few that are easy to accomplish, I just need to remember to do them!

I'm baacccckkk!

It's been way too long since my last post. While life has been busy, I don't really have an excuse. I've done several things on my list since my last post, which include the following items:

• Run a 5k (Warrior Dash Missouri, 10-15-2011)
• Volunteer at a local non-profit (City Union Mission, Thanksgiving Day)
• Change my name on my passport
• Create a realistic budget
• Go to Chief's game
• Go to a Wizard's (Sporting KC) match
• Maintain at least a 3.75 GPA (I still have a 4.0!)

So, while I haven't been posting, I've still been working toward accomplishing all the items on my list. I did, however, remove an item from the list. I once had a strong desire to become a pescetarian. I felt it would lower my cholesterol and make me an overall healthier person. As I've done more and more research on healthy eating, I have come and believe that red meat is a part of a healthy diet. Therefore, I decided to remove the goal of eliminating read meat from the list. I am in the process of choosing a goal to fill its place. It will probably still be something health and fitness related, potentially revolving around lowering my carb intake.

But If I'm going to lower my carb intake, it won't be until tomorrow. That's because tonight, we are going to the Power and Light district for dinner with my cousin and his fiancee. We're going to the Flying Saucer, which is famous for having 225 different beers from around the world. Beers that aren't exactly low carb. :)

We also have tickets to the Trans Siberian Orchestra concert tonight. This will be our third year with tickets and we always have a good time. It doesn't hurt that I can cross going to the Power and Light district off my list!

I hope to update again over the holidays, but I'm not promising anything. I do hope to get some more items crossed off the list now that I'm on winter break!