My List for the Year!

So, as promised last week, here’s my list of goals for the coming year. It’s a bit overwhelming when I look at it all written out like this. However, as I also said last week this is like a strategic plan in that it doesn’t all have to be done this month or even in the first quarter. Much of this list is usual for me and for others, but some of it is related to my changing status. I have both the opportunity to think about my days differently but also, I need to think about how I’m using my days and weeks and I know it will change over time.

So here’s the list for the year.

Personal fitness

1. Lose 20 pounds. 

I’m not sharing my starting or goal weight but I will say that I have two reasons for this goal. Yes, vanity is part of it, I’d like my clothes to fit differently both in looks and comfort. But the main reason is my health. I’m right on the edge of not good in a variety of health indicators.  Plus, as many of you know I have scary good genes for longevity in my family and if I’m going to join my mom, both grandmothers in reaching my nineties and even a great-grandmother who passed 100, I want to be as healthy as possible.

2. Move 30 minutes every day.

I’ve done this a variety of ways over the years: 10,000 steps, walking, running, dancing. What I’ve decided to try is a more generic general goal. I think I have a better chance of reaching it. For example, I’m traveling this week so each day will need something a bit different but I can find a way to make it work. So my movement options are walking, dancing, or yoga. Any version counts and each will benefit me in different ways. (Oh and this is about health, not weight loss. I will probably need to do more to help with the first goal.)

Writing Goals

3. Complete the first draft of the memoir I’m working on in the first quarter.

Once I complete this, I’ll set a next goal for the next step.

4. Develop a plan for a book based on this newsletter.

(I’ve been encouraged to consider such a book by a couple of readers – thank you!)  I’m not quite sure how to do organize such. book, so this will take some thought over the coming months.

5. Write 48 newsletters over this year.

This allows for a 4 holiday weeks and should be doable because I’ve been doing that regularly even though I did take the summer off.

6. Make a decision by April 1 about the home for this newsletter.

The number of people subscribed to this newsletter has been steady for the past couple of years and I would like to broaden my reach. One of the ways to do that, possibly, is to change to a different platform, like Substack, that allows for both free newsletters and, if I can come up with new content, something for subscribers, (If you have opinions about this, I’d love to hear them!)

Projects 

7. Play piano 3x a week

I took piano lessons for three years before I turned thirteen and can read music, but I’m very, very rusty. Last year I bought a digital piano and I need to be more regular in playing if I want to improve. So it’s on the list.

8. Memorize 6 songs on the piano. 

As a kid, I performed in recitals and in some sort of completion and to do that, I had to memorize songs. I want to get that ability back.

9. Memorize 6 poems.

This one comes from Matthew Dick’s list, but I’m stealing it because I like the idea. I’d like to have poems memorized and it’s good for my brain.

10. Read 25 minutes daily.

This is a new one. I’ve had fifty-two books a year on my list, but I read an article recently about that short-changing long books. I’ve always read a lot, but I haven’t done as well lately with dense books. I have plenty of dense reads in my To Be Read pile – okay actually piles, and I now have (hope to have) more time to read more deeply. I wonder if this kind of goal will give me that encouragement.

11. Art weekly

And here I’m violating the idea of specificity, but I have a list of crafts I enjoy that I want to explore more deeply. Knitting of course, but also a paper craft called quilling, painting, playing with paper, collaging, drawing and working with beads. I have lots of ideas and one of the things I want to do is play more and all of these things are ways I can be playful.

12. Get out and about every month.

Peter and I are both homebodies and we both have things we enjoy doing that we can do around the house so I want us to be intentional about doing something fun and new to get out and about. This past Sunday we drove to San Antonio for lunch and then spent a gorgeous sunny afternoon at the Japanese Tea Garden/Sunken Garden. I have lived in or near San Antonio for most of my life and when I worked at Trinity we lived close enough to hear concerts from the Sunken Garden Theater and I have never been there. So as I move into retirement, I want to go out and about.

So, nowhere near the length of Matthew Dicks’ list but I think it’s a place to start. Like Mr. Dicks, I’ll share what I do, and don’t do each month. Plus, I’ll write about any adventures that come along as I try to achieve these goals. I have found his lists intriguing over the past year or more, I hope you will find something of interest or inspirational here as well. If you’ve come up with a new way to inspire yourself, I’d love to hear it. I think this is a bit of a transition year and wonder what next year’s list might look like, but for now, this is my start.

Best wishes as we move into the New Year!

Take care,

Gage