New Year's Goals (Late, As Usual)

It's been a crazy, crazy time this week, so I haven't had time to update. I've been using the time to catch up with friends I haven't seen in ages, make sure people are still alive, and ponder the opportunities of the coming year. Now that I have negotiated the choppy seas of the Holidays, I finally have time to take a breath and look around me.

The year looks promising, to be honest. I plan to be graduated with my BA in December, after which I hope to start graduate school at Pacific University. In order to achieve these goals, I have to keep up with my homework and apply for grad school as soon as possible. I know that the application process is fairly involved, with lots of bits to put together and present, so I figure I should get on that. Janet (my ultra-spiffy English teacher friend who let me volunteer in her classroom Spring Term of last year) asked me to come back and give my punctuation lecture again. I did that yesterday, to two classes of rambunctious ninth graders. Every time I get up and lecture, it reminds me that this is truly what I want to do with my life. I need to bring water next time, though. My throat got a little dry from talking over the kids and reminding them that they needed to pay attention to me. In any case, they settled down eventually, and I think they even had fun. Unfortunately, I didn't know this group of kids very well. Janet remarked that I needed to come and spend more time in her classroom. That was convenient, as I was going to ask her if I could do just that. When I asked her, she said that she would love to have me.

The point of this is that working in Janet's classroom as a volunteer will give me valuable experience that will not only help me in my future teaching career, but will also look really good on my graduate school application. Janet has asked me to start in February so that I can see the whole term from the beginning. I'm rather excited. I'll be working with kids of all skill levels, and I get to help with the Mythology class. Squee!

So, my first New Year's Goal (I think that's better than Resolutions this year) is to finish school and get into grad school.

My second New Year's Goal is to get a complete novel written and send it off to a publisher. I have made this resolution before, but it never comes to fruition because I always work on several ideas at once, plus I have a life that needs attending to and includes things like school. This year, I have a more specific aim in mind: Get Cassandra's Codex written and send it off to a publisher. I may not finish by the end of the year, but if I at least work on it, progress will be made.

My third New Year's Goal is to develop healthier eating and exercise habits. This means that I will eat no dessert (except on holidays and birthdays) and avoid snacking. I will go back to drinking sugar-free lattes and tea when I need a sweet snack. I will also keep a weight record in order to track my progress in that department. I don't need to lose much weight, if any, but I need to build up my muscle mass. This means finding a form of exercise that I can enjoy and (preferably) do with Alex.

My fourth New Year's Goal is to get my office cleaned and organized. We need to find a different receptacle for recyclable cardboard that does not involve my office floor. After we do that, we can bring in the Filing Cabinet of Doom, and I can unpack the unsightly bankers' boxes that currently sit in accusing stacks in the corners of the room.

I think that's enough to be going on with. I may have other goals for this year, but I think that these are the main ones. I also hope to be a better wife, sister, daughter, and friend, but that's my goal every year.

I know that some of my friends are already having a tough time this year. I hope that things get much better soon.

Here's hoping for a happy and productive 2006.