I sucked to the ninth power at sticking to my 2018 new year’s resolutions.
Did I reacquaint myself with the Russian language? Nyet. Did I perform 365 days of yoga? Namaste no. Did I read less and write more? Bahahahahahahah! That’s rich, considering I read 136 books last year compared to 119 the previous year.
At least I semi-mastered the art of not spacing twice after a period. I’ll take that as a minor success in the face of failing my previous year’s resolutions.
Here are my 2019 New Year’s resolutions. (P.S. I always wait to start my new year’s resolutions until after my birthday, which is January 7th, hence the delay.)
- Lose my foot injury weight. Remember all my foot issues from last February? I JUST got released from physical therapy last month, and at this point, I’m unsure if my foot will ever be 100 percent again. And listen, I’m used to being chronically ill, but foot injuries are a whole other pain animal. And because I spent 2017 hobbled, I packed on 15 pounds due to decreased mobility. Let me throw it at you like this: in 2017, I had about 4.2 million steps. Last year, I only had around 3 million. That’s the equivalent of not moving at all for three months last year as compared to the previous year. I walked . . . wait for it . . . 500 miles less last year than I did the previous year. Seriously. 500 miles less. Since my pain is now managed, I need to suck it up buttercup and lose the extra pounds. If anyone has any exercise suggestions for me, I’ll take them. Yoga’s off the table. My feet simply can’t handle it. I can’t run, plank, or lunge. No jumping jacks. The elliptical machine is a no go either. I might just have to briskly walk in my orthopedic, old lady footwear for cardio and then do modified pilates. Or suck it up and fork out the money for a personal trainer.
- Read more diverse authors. I thought I was doing a decent job, but when I look at what I read last year, it’s not nearly as representative as it should be. Another book loving friend of mine shared a kick-ass premade reading log spreadsheet (find it here on Bookriot.com) with me that tracks all kinds of reading stats, including an option to help me keep tabs on author diversity. This spreadsheet is my new best friend.
- Write the damn mini book reviews immediately upon finishing a book. This. Will. Happen. I’m four for four already this year. Go me! I’ve promised myself I can’t start a new book until I’ve written a review for the recently finished one. I’ve added a tab on my reading spreadsheet to keep them all in one place for easy fluffing up prior to publishing.
- Get “Baby Shark” off repeat in my head. Send help!
- Stop being a chicken and try to get a literary agent. I finished writing a children’s book last year. Have I done anything to try to get in published? Uhhhhhhhhhhhh, does half-heartedly researching literary agents and sending it off to some friends for feedback count? I could have been using my foot injury downtime to make serious headway, but I’m terrified it’s not good enough and hid behind reading books instead. Putting it in writing here leaves me panic-stricken but holds me accountable. I’ll need all the happy thoughts I can get because I know rejection lurks around the corner. Rejection sucks, but it’s part of the process and will make me a better writer in the long run even if I never get published.
Happy New Year to you and yours, and I apologize profusely for getting “Baby Shark” stuck in your head again. (You know you sang it to yourself at least once since I mentioned it.) I thought it would be a diversionary tactic to get it to ooze out of my head permanently.
Sorry shark? Doo doo doo doo doo doo . . .
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