New Year's resolutions

1. Continue movement towards healthier physical and mental lifestyle. This includes

• making the right food choices 7 out of 10 times and eating the right portions every time
• going to the gym 2-3 times a week and walking to work
• not obsessing about weight
• asking for help when I know I need it

2. Write more. With one story close to finished, (and others just needing some time and energy), this should be the year to get Zac and Aislinn's story done. Spend more time each day writing -story or blog- just as long as the words are flowing. This is a skill that can rust with disuse, and conversely become polished with practice.

3. Plan less. Things will happen as they are inteneded to happen. Getting wrapped around the axel about wanting things beyond my control gets me nowhere.

This is the fist entry for this blog. I read a good many blogs, and can't claim to offer anything bigger or better than those listed to the side- and there are more I didn't include because I was too lazy to go to Google reader and fetch the URL.

I'm not yet a parent (though I do have two four-footed furballs by the names of Loki and Thor), but you'll see I read many parenting blogs. This would be where number three from above comes in. These things can take time.

I love to bake and cook- though my college friends and my family will tell you that it took a while to produce consistently edible results. So I've included a few of my favorite kitchen-y blogs on my list. Number one on my above list plays into my love of food. I've been great at making the right choices most of the time, but my poriton control has slipped a little. Walking to work (2 miles) has been a "free" card to get extra snacks, and I think this is a trend that needs to stop.

I don't like to ask for help. When I was in the military, this was not a liability- often you had to figure stuff out on the fly with little assistance. But my civilian job requries me to venture into unknown parts of data anyalsis on a regular basis- I need to get comfortable asking for help (especially since they encourage it). I also need to get used to asking for help in my daily life. I had thought having my hip repaired and having to rely on others would help me learn to ask for help, but very little has changed; my mentality is still Do it Yourself. It will be healthier mentally for me to ask more often.

Welcome. May 2009 be a wonderful year.