Looking back at my 2008 Resolutions
Here were my New Year's Resolutions for 2008, along with a quick note in BOLD if I achieved my resolution, or not:
My New Year's resolutions for 2008:
-Coach a youth sports team. No. Although I did start mentoring an 8-year old kid, which has so far been an incredible experience.
-Run 5-10 miles a week. Yes. I'm pretty certain I achieved this "feet", and I'm hoping to log 1,000 miles in 2009.
-Attend more live concerts. Not really. I did go to some pretty amazing concerts in 2008 -- Eddie Vedder in Berkeley; Outside Lands in Golden Gate Park; The Fratellis in San Francisco -- but I wished I had attended at least a half-dozen more shows.
-Write/'blog more (at least once a week). Almost. There were weeks I blogged nearly every day, and then months where I hardly wrote.
-Read more books (at least one a month). Yes! By my count, I read 19 books cover-to-cover in 2008 (and most of them weren't even picture-books).
-Take more pictures with my camera. No. Which reminds me -- has anyone seen my camera?
-Learn to play the guitar that's been sitting untouched in my room since 2001. No. I've never even played Guitar Hero.
-Travel somewhere outside the U.S. to a place I've never been. Yes. I traveled to Barbados for a little rest and relaxation, early in 2008. I look forward to exploring more of the world this year.
-Tell a girl "I love her" (and mean it). Yes.
-Throw out some of my 85 collared shirts. Yes. Although for every shirt I tossed, it seems I picked up another two. My closet resembles the Hugo Boss counter at Macy's.
-Figure out how to tie a Full Windsor knot. Yes.
-Camp. No.
-Vote. Yes. Won with Barack; lost on Prop 8.
-Volunteer. Yes. In addition to my mentoring work, I've been assisting with Jewish Family & Children Services during their holiday gift-bag delivery to elderly folks around SF.
-Stay caught up on my New Yorker subscription. No. Failed miserably with this one. I believe I made it into February, and then gave up. There are still issues of the New Yorker that have their original clear wrapping sitting on my desk.
-Answer my cell phone; return calls promptly. Kind of. There's room for improvement here.
-Eat less Chinese food takeout (starting tomorrow). No. Failed here, too. Damn you, heavenly Mongolian Beef...
-Take more chances. No. Eating Afghan food and riding public transportation do not count as taking chances.
-Create a web site. No. Blogging doesn't count.
-Work harder. Yes.
-Smile more. Umm... Unsure.
-Swear less. No. But I f---in' tried...
-Treat my mom to lunch(es). Yes. But should have done this more often.
-Make friends with someone in my building. Kind of. I befriended this nice guy, Peter, who lives down the hall. But I could have been more interactive with him and others.
-Move. No. Have you seen the rents recently in SF?
-Laugh more. No. Laughter should be part of your daily diet, and I need to do this more.
-Swim. No. Michael Phelps still has nothing to worry about in regards to my swimming ability.
Overall: I was quite ambitious with my New Year's Resolutions for 2008, and missed on a number of them. But I still felt my '08 was incredibly productive from both a professional and personal standpoint. As I enter 2009, along with my 29th year of life, I hope to place a "Yes" to many of the above points, as well as new ones that have yet to be created (stay tuned).
Overall: I was quite ambitious with my New Year's Resolutions for 2008, and missed on a number of them. But I still felt my '08 was incredibly productive from both a professional and personal standpoint. As I enter 2009, along with my 29th year of life, I hope to place a "Yes" to many of the above points, as well as new ones that have yet to be created (stay tuned).
