Resolving to Build My Resolve...Or Something Like That

Resolution. To me, that's kind of a dirty word. But lately I have come to the conclusion that it's time for me to RESOLVE to get some things accomplished - therefore it is time to light the proverbial fire underneath my butt. 

Eat better. Sounds simple, but for some reason this is difficult for me. It’s not like I’m trucking it to every fast food joint on a regular basis or whooping it up with ice cream every day. But I certainly do not eat enough fruits and vegetables. I always make sure the girls eat their fruits and vegetables. They also love yogurt and granola bars. I make sure to keep those foods in the fridge and pantry. However, I rarely partake of them myself. Breakfast for me is coffee (laced with peppermint mocha creamer), and during the winter I eat oatmeal. Brown sugar and maple flavored oatmeal. Now, I do give a nod to healthiness here because I get the kind with high fiber. Still, I think I could do better. Maybe I should try some fresh fruit for a mid-morning snack. Instead of Chef BoyarDee for lunch (a fave of the 5-year-old and something I do limit), I should be expanding my menu to include a salmon salad with spinach, or maybe a turkey sandwich. I know what’s healthy and what’s not. Yes, I know tater tots topped with shredded cheese and dipped in sour cream (as I hide from the children) is not a healthy meal, but to me, its comfort food. Our dinners our mostly healthy, but I’m sure I can find room for improvement. (Ditch the canned vegetables for fresh or frozen ones more often is the first thing that comes to mind.)

Exercise. Again, sounds simple. After all I have some workout DVD’s – including the infamous P90x (which I have managed to get about halfway through, thankyouverymuch). I also have a Yoga/Pilates DVD and a regular Yoga DVD that I love. I am aware of the benefits of regular exercise (increased energy, weight loss, enhanced mood). As I get older I know my body needs all the help it can get. Don’t get me wrong – at 5’2” and 108 lbs I’m not exactly a tub of lard. But lack of exercise leads to a soft body and weight gain. Not to mention depleted energy levels which leads to inertia which leads to….a tub of lard. So it’s time to get my booty off the couch and shake it like I used to in my younger days. Ok, so I know at age 37 that I’m not old, per se, but I think I feel old sometimes due to my lack of booty shaking. (or exercise, whatever you want to call it.)

Write more. Yes, I write for school on a regular basis and I freelance. Those assignments are (hopefully) strengthening my writing skills and my critical thinking skills (again, hopefully). But I am also working on a novel and have a few short stories in the works. I need to find time EVERYDAY to write for myself – not just to get paid or to complete coursework. That novel and those short stories aren’t going to finish themselves. By daily dedicating a set amount of time to my own personal writing I can hopefully finish the novel by spring time. Then I can let it sit for a month or two, get it out and dust it off for a rewrite before I take to the Writer’s Workshop that I’m doing during the summer. I also need to read more. And again, not just for school. I’ve read at least 3 or 4 novels since I’ve been on winter break since mid-December. I can’t keep that pace up while in school, but I can set aside a few minutes per day to read. It is one of my favorite activities - to be able to step outside my own world and into someone else’s creation is at once relaxing and exhilarating. And who doesn’t need more of those feelings? 

Get over it. And by “it”, I mean fear. I have two different blogs (one of which is linked to the FB so I can post links to it for my friends and family to read. But what I really need to do (and what really scares the shit outta me) is to try my hand at the e-publishing platform (via Lulu.com, maybe?) and get some of my short stories out there. After all, I can do it for free and set a super low price  (also free, maybe) so that anybody with an e-reader (or a computer) can download some of my stories and see how my twisted mind works. That’s scary to me, but how the hell am I going to make a living as a writer if I don’t get my work out there into the hands of readers? I am a big fan of facing fears. (Hey, if I could outsmart the guy that threw me into the trunk of a car and send his good-for-nothing-ass to jail for 6 years, I can sure as hell send my stories into cyberspace.) And I also learned how to drive a motorcycle. Surely that counts for something in the facing of the fears department. Now I need to turn that fearless focus toward writing. 

I’m sure there’s a bunch of things that I’m not listing that could use some improvement. (Notice how I’m not getting into personality traits such as practicing more patience or cutting down on my colorful language or making fun of others or any and all of the other things that I am sure I need to work on.) But I think the things I covered are a good start. What about you?