When I was a teenager and a college student, all my goals had to do with changing myself: talk less, be nicer, and so on. Those didn't work. They weren't quantifiable and they just made me feel bad about myself. As an adult, my goals are all about doing or learning quantifiable things that enrich myself, rather than cut parts of myself away.
Here we go! In 2012, I will...
- Improve my Spanish so that I'm able to answer someone quickly without having to search for the words in my brain. (This goal carries over from last year; I didn't take the time to practice, but I did work on listening. I understand written and spoken Spanish pretty well, but the responding to people does not go so well.)
- Finish the poetry book manuscript. The poems do not have to be in their final, fully revised form, but they need to exist. I believe I need about 30 more poems. (I have come to realize that I cannot write in my apartment because I will get up and sweep, do laundry, wash dishes, or do anything that I consider pressing, or more pressing than expressing myself. I do not understand why I do not prioritize expressing myself the way I used to. This is something I need to investigate. In the meantime, I will be visiting coffeehouses and park benches more.)
- Submit to more print journals. I've already started this. One day, jubilat will accept one of my pieces. One day!
- Dance more. As I've said before, dancing makes me happy.
- Finally figure out how to thread and use the damn sewing machine. I will do this, even if I need to pay for lessons.
I think that's a manageable number of goals. They will add to my personal satisfaction and some of them will help me in my career. There are other things I want, too, but I will not list them as actual goals, since I don't know if I can get them done.
List of Non-Goals/Actual Wishes
- Join a workshopping/writing group, or start one myself. I am so much more productive when I have accountability to anyone other than myself.
- Lose that last bit of weight. Since I'm limited in the exercise I can do right now and food tastes so good, I don't know if it'll happen this year, but I'll try.
- Travel more. I need to save money so I can leave this continent. I have a passport--I need to use it! I want to go to Turkey or Spain (even though I hear they're racist against black people in Spain), but anywhere is fine. Every country has something to offer (unless war or severe oppression of women is happening there, in which case I do not want to go to there). I am also partial to any Latin American country that is not currently experiencing political upheaval/slave trafficking/drug trafficking. This stupid economy is not helping me with this goal. In the meantime, I have books that are set in foreign countries.
What are your hopes and goals for the coming year?
6 comments:
I saw a Groupon not all that long ago for a place in the city that offered sewing lessons. So! A place exists! Which is good to know.
I will be googling it! Thanks. :)
It was called Sew Sew Darling! I was going to email you the link, but have misplaced your email. Oops? :)
Their website is so cute!
Oh! I wish I could come over to your apartment and show you how to thread your sewing machine. This was on my list LAST year and sewing is so much fun. You'll love it! And I too have given up on resolutions that involve impossible changes. It just doesn't work.
I need someone to show me how to thread the machine over and over again because it is just not sticking. A friend showed me and I'm afraid to ask her again because I don't want her to think I'm slow.
Post a Comment