It’s January 2016, and all I can think is “Where the hell did 2007 go?” Mind like a steel trap, I know–prone to rusting in damp weather.

But that rusty state of mind is precisely why I feel compelled to jump on the New Year’s resolution bandwagon: If I don’t write down a few goals in a fashion that makes me nominally accountable for achieving them, by the time December 2016 rolls around, I will forget what the hell it was I meant to do this year.

So, my list, in no particular order:

1. Meet my 2016 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 50 books this year. Think that’s funny? Last year, I pledged to read 100. Yeah, that didn’t happen, mostly because of Resolution 2:
2. Finish reading Ulysses. It’s been on my list for two years running now; I figure if I actually do that this year, that counts for at least 20 normal books.
3. Mayyyybe…just maybe, I might be the tiniest bit interested in trying a half marathon. This one might be more along the lines of a fantasy, rather than a resolution, but I’m listing it anyway because as we all know, NYR’s are all about optimism (and laughter; lots of laughter).
4. Walk my dog more often–we’re both suffering from post-holiday bingeing (but at least my doctor didn’t tell me I’m starting to look like a coffee table).
5. Postpone going all Silver Fox for my hair color another year. Sorry, just can’t do it.
6. Apply the 1-Hour Rule more often. This is my new rule for time management: I will split my day up into 1-hour segments, allowing an hour for each activity on my to-do list. This should allow me to be more efficient, so I should be able to finish everything on my list by 2019, give or take a year.
7. Switch back to writing my to-do list on paper instead of my white board, first, so I feel a greater sense of accomplishment, and second, once I erase it, I can’t remember what I did.
8. Start keeping a journal. This blog is, i suppose, a journal of sorts, but I’m pretty restrictive on the more personal details of my life online–after all, we wouldn’t want anyone to post pirated video of me
   

   Photo credit: http://thatswhatlisathinks.com/2013/10/

   and my chubby Weimaraner waddling off our New Year’s Resolution wagon, now would we?

9. Blog more regularly. Well, here I am, so I can check that one off the list. Wait–I have to do this again?
10. Be more present in the moment–deeper conversations, better listening, longer hugs, and much more gratitude. Life is short; drink it in.

Well, there you have it. I could probably go on, but since I’m already four minutes late to write in my journal and seventeen minutes late to walk my coffee table, I’ve gotta run. Happy New Year!