I had fun with friends as we played the Star Trek Scene It! game, then watched the ball drop at midnight last night! That’s always a nice way to greet the new year!
So, we have another 365 days to accomplish what we didn’t get done in 2010. I have some goals in mind:
1. Get back to a level playing field financially. Last year was a really difficult one for me when it came to money. I had my brother staying with me while he was recovering from his auto accident, and he had no income of funds during that time. I had to buy everything for both of us, which was more than I could afford. I found myself in a deep hole, a place I’ve been working to get back out of. I’ve made great strides at it, but I still have some more accomplishments to go. I have truly appreciated those who have helped me in 2010, and I look to paying back many of the folks who loaned me money when I desperately needed it.
2. Losing weight. This is the most commonly made resolution, and I hope to get back to exercising daily and eating better. Since I’ve been low on money, I’ve ended up eating less healthy foods because they’re cheaper. I used to buy food from a service called Diet-To-Go, and I enjoyed the variety as well as the way their meals kept my waistine down. I’ll know when I’m back in business financially when I return to buying their food. I’m looking forward to that. I’m also going to get back on the exercise machines at work. I used to spend an hour on them every day, but I fell out of that habit.
3. My own podcast about comics and comics-related items. I hope it won’t be long into this year that I’ll be doing my own weekly 30-minute podcast about comics. I’ll still be doing the SciFiPulse podcast (renamed to SFP-Now) with Ian Cullen on a weekly basis, but it will be pre-recorded instead of live. I love learning new things, and I’ve always wanted to be on the radio, so this will give me a chance to expand my horizons in an area of interest.
4. Help others become more self-sufficient. I like to be of service to others and to help them accomplish their goals, but I’ve noticed something recently. When I do more to help others, it seems like they come to expect more and appreciate what is done for them less. Perhaps it is the bad economy, but “Wayne’ll do it” seems to be the clarion cry more and more of the time. I’m learning to say “No” and mean it. I’m happy to “help,” but if that means “take over so I don’t have anything to do,” then I’m going to seek others to participate as well.
5. Get an iPad! When things are better, I’ll get me one of those things! Others who have them have been kind enough to let me try their iPads out, and they are definitely something I’d find helpful. My big, stubby fingers don’t type well on my iPhone, so an iPad would be a huge advantage when I need to look something up on the Web during the Writers’ Group meetings I go to on a semi-regular basis.
I hope you’ll have a great 2011 as well!
Now, let’s listen to ABBA sing “Happy New Year:”