2013: Bring it On!

It’s been a good year. No I didn’t meet the man of my dreams, get to my happy weight or win a million dollars, but It has been pretty sweet nonetheless.

Excuse me if this sounds a bit like a gratitude list, but I can’t help but feel thankful when I reflect back.

I got to spend more time with an amazing circle of friends that I feel closer to as the years pass. I’ve gotten to spend some great quality time with my family, namely a trip to the south of France with my Mom and sister where we sipped on Provence’s formidable wines and took long restorative walks by the ocean. I got to see my favourite bands live and have a few crazy dance parties, both in public and in my own private haven of an apartment, which has seen quite the moves let me tell you! I capped off my year with a three-week trip to Peru (which you can read about here Peru 2012) with a cool group of people from around the world.  And then I got to return back to my hood, which I am kind of in love with: cool restos, ravines, farmer’s markets, cute boutiques, 24-hour everything if I need it and a castle to boot!

I’m not saying that it was all “sunshine and buttercups”, but above all, I am here.  And I get a chance to do it all again. To make more mistakes, have more first kisses, dance to more top 40 hits and have some more great conversations. Given all of what is happening in the world out there, near and far, that’s saying a lot.

For the first time ever I am going to put my New Year’s Resolutions out for public viewing. I enjoyed reading my friend Natalie’s blog post on her resolutions and feel like it’s a pretty superb way to be accountable.

1. Shake things up

Having dinner with a friend the other night, I told her how I had turned down a date because I “thought” things should be going differently. She asked if the way I “thought” things should go had worked for me in the past, and the obvious answer is no. So I'm going to start doing things a little bit differently and break out of my regular routine.  And ultimately do things that make me happy. One of those things is singing, and I don’t get the chance to do enough of it (it’s relatively hard to find people wanting to join me in Karaoke). So I joined Toronto’s #1 rock choir, NewChoir. The next concert (complete with songs from Arcade Fire and Fun) is on May 11^th.  You can check them out here. See you there!

2. Find focus (namely for my writing but this also applies to my general career path) 

I am one of those people who has an impossible time narrowing things down. I focus on the things I am sacrificing as opposed to putting my energy into my chosen pursuits.  I am going to take a little time each week to think about where I want my writing to take me and what I need to do to get there. 

My first task: figure out what to do with the 700-page draft of creative non-fiction I have completed. I can’t truly move on until I’ve put some kind of closure to that, I would hope that the closure would be a draft that I would feel confident publishing. 

While I’m figuring out the focus, I want to commit to one blog post a month because it forces me to write and I sort of like the record of my thoughts as I make my way through the years.

3. Make a positive impact

This covers off a few things. I definitely do want to volunteer more. But beyond that I want to start to be a lot more kind, patient, and appreciative of everyone. From those friends and family in my immediate circle to those I interact with in any number of day-to-day settings. This won't be easy given that I’m a tad impatient by nature and have a bit of a sassy disposition in a lot of my interactions (especially with phone companies) but I’m going to take a deep breath and give it a try.

4. Curb my shopaholic tendencies

If you are a shopaholic and you have read the early Shopaholic books by Sophia Kinsella (before they got a bit un-relatable in their extravagance), you’ll know that the description of the actual thinking behind shopaholic-ism is frighteningly accurate. It's a true addiction, akin to overeating and other Anonymous-worthy addictions, and I have it in spades. I do realize that this impedes my other goals (travel, living abroad, buying property) so I need to get a grip, pay off some bills, and get saving.

5. Experiences not things.  

And while we’re on the topic of buying “things”, I want to focus less on them.  While my dream of dreams is to have a walk-in closet someday where I can see all my clothes in one place and a beautiful house to display all of my trinkets from over the years, I have currently run out of room.  Add to that the fact that (despite my shopaholic urges) I do realize that you can’t take it with you, I want to focus the money I do spend on experiences with people.

6. Travel somewhere

I was hoping this year would be India, but we’ll see.  Also, a trip with Yoshi’s Angels to Coachella would also be fabulous.

7. Open my heart up to possibilities

Take the tall walls down.  Nuff said.

8. Be mindful and physical

This is a recurring resolution that requires daily work: trying to stop my runaway mind and to be in the moment.  Add to this more reading/experiencing and less TV watching and my mind will get some good care.

On the physical side, I want to commit to getting to my happy weight and doing it through a good amount of exercise (which makes me feel good in so many ways).

9. Relax expectations

I’m going to try to relax my expectations of other people and instead focus on my own integrity.  Instead of being annoyed when people don’t call, I’m going to call them. Instead of worrying about other people not rsvp-ing right away, I’m going to make sure that I RSVP right away.

That being said, I also have a choice about who I spend time with and I will strive to surround myself with positive people who are constructive and nice.

Wish me luck.  Have a wonderful year as you aim to achieve all of your goals!