Today is the day! It is February, 2nd, 2023 and it is time to start a new chapter for the new year’s resolutions.
Here is a quick list of things I want to do for the new year:
- Learn Spanish
- More meditation & yoga
- Organize the photo Archive as a database
- Minimalism/essentialism
- Quit smoking
- No alcohol
- Lower BP
- Lose 20 pounds
Learn Spanish
My goal of learning Spanish kicked off 35 days ago, on December 28, according to DuoLingo, my language app. 35-day streak is fairly impressive if you know me at all. I’ve had little opportunity in applying what I’ve learned in the real world but cannot wait to have conversations with the Spanish-speaking community this year.
Meditation and yoga almost daily.
I’ve prepped for these goals by investing in a few Apple software helpers such as Apple Fitness+ and Music for guided meditation and workouts. Subscribing to specific podcasts have been helpful too. A new padded floor mat has been added and I am looking forward to more fitness, flexibility and patience.
Photography Goals
Learning Adobe photography software tools should be easy for me after all these years but I’ve overlooked the fundamentals.
But this year I want to do a deep dive. I have all these tools but feel like I am scratching the surface and want to maximize the tools I have. I’ve put in a lot of work these past thirty years but there is a need for photo archive organization. The end result will be an organized archive system where I can easily find and use any one photo on demand.
Minimalism and essentialism
My brain toggles on/off when it relates to stuff. I need this or that until I get bored with it and then accumulate more stuff that I don’t use. Well this year, the toggle is in “OFF” mode. It’s time to purge down to the essentials and keep only the things I use and enjoy. Everything else is…just that.
Quit smoking
The tobacco pipe is in use as I write this on February 1 in anticipation of quitting by February 2. What tobacco remains now will be destroyed, the pipe cleaned and accessories put away in storage. I am over smoking and the removal of the tobacco pipe paraphernalia should help. This will help me lower my blood pressure and overall health.
No Alchohol
Alcohol consumption is not difficult for me, and I can refrain even while at a bar with friends. This is an easy one so I should see less weight and overall health as a result.
Lower Blood pressure
Priority one. Less, salt. Less sugar. Less eating out. Increase my cardio with more walking, yoga. More supplements and eventually the diuretic prescription again. All of this should help me lower my weight and eventually those readings will come down.
Lose 20 pounds
In the past few years, I maxed out at 217.4 pounds. That isn’t great for a 5’7″ frame. I am currently down to 204.4 pounds on February 1. My goals is to get down to 185 pounds. 175 is better, but let’s be realistic. The issue here is nutrition. The job has me out in the field for 8-10 hours daily and the temptation to eat out is strong. But the job is also a physical one so I should take advantage of all that lifting and walking.
In the past 10 years or so, I have attempted a variation of resolution themes in an attempt to hold myself accountable, and all of them have had limited success. The first few attempts were centered around my resolutions and a monthly check-in by way of accountability. For ten years I would focus on what I called Groundhog Day Resolutions. The kickoff would always start on February 2nd or 2/2. This was a little over a month after the western calendar of New Year’s Day on January 1st.
This year I want to do a variation of a monthly accountability check-in. I mentioned the “Groundhog Day Resolutions” and its limited success. While I believe the theory behind those initiatives were sound, the practice was not. So it’s time to have a re-think about the process.
In 2023, I am writing a book on it. This year I am thinking of each month of this year as its own chapter in a book. I’ll do a chapter review on the same date that corresponds with the month.
Example: The book will start on February 2 (2/2) and will go on until March 3rd or 3/3. On 3/3 I will conduct a review of the previous month, and so on and so forth. With the chapter review, I’ll throw in some highlights of the previous month in hope that by the end of the year (11/11), I’ll have written a book I can be proud of.
It’s time to get to writing that book and start a new chapter. See you on March 3rd for a review of Chapter 1.
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