We had very few options with regard to New Year’s Eve entertainment this year. With our closest friends catching an early morning flight to Texas, our usual haunts being closed and given the fact that we were still recovering from our last minute and harried Christmas preparations, my husband of some thirty four years and myself opted to ring in 2013 at home. As much as I hate to admit it, we were in lounge-wear at 8:00 p.m. and dined on pathetic, although delectable tacos. Don’t get me wrong, I am not whining although there was wine involved. While waiting for the ball to drop or the eyelids to droop, whichever occurred first, Monday evening seemed the perfect time to take stock of the past year and pen that inevitable list of resolutions that accompany each New Year. While the list could easily fill a small novel complete with prologue and footnotes, I opted to keep the suggestions to a minimum and concentrate on the top five things I need to do to be happier and healthier as I begin anew.
In David Letterman style, I began by working from the least to the greatest and hope that my sharing these with others might inspire them to make positive changes as well.
#5 – Get Organized. I think that conventional wisdom would dictate that when you can’t see the top of your desk or the bottom of your closet that it is time for action. I have been fortunate to work at the resort for more than seventeen years and if you look closely, there are still files from 1995 residing in the recesses of my filing cabinet or the bottom drawer of my desk. Four unique positions, five different offices and the recent news that we are moving from our current location, have given me cause to begin the purging process. Although I consider my countless legal pads and manual tee sheets treasured archives, there is rarely the need to determine who played Mystic Rock at 2:32 p.m. on July 6th, 1997. I wish that I could report that my home surroundings were pristine and free from clutter but considering the fact that I still have my plaid uniform jumper from the first grade and nearly every birthday card I’ve ever received…I am fifty-six…you can pretty much determine that my hoarding tendencies spillover into my personal life as well. I’ve tried binders, folders, filing boxes and more but until now, have resigned myself to the fact that my life is simply too full to categorize it into some organized fashion. I will be more efficient in 2013.
#4 – Start Moving. An admitted treadmill junkie, I have always hopped on this hideous piece of equipment that sits like the elephant in the room to walk a mile or more five days a week. That was until an injury prevented me from exercising and even halted my new endeavor into the world of yoga. At about the same time that my swollen foot had shrunk to near its normal size, I even ventured into a Zumba class that seemed like fun provided I could procure a new set of lungs. As soon as I felt comfortable exercising again, it was crunch time for holiday shopping, decorating and baking so I abstained from class, folded up the treadmill and dug my “fat” pants out of the dresser. Beginning today, that needs to change. I will be more active in this New Year.
#3– Seek Wisdom. After I graduated from college and endured semester after semester of deep and insightful authors, I vowed never to read anything of substance again and some thirty five years later, I have kept my promise much to the chagrin of my addling brain. When my children were younger, I did keep up with the latest in fiction for a much needed escape and over the past twenty years, I have relied on magazines to keep me informed and entertained but it is time to pick up a book without a long haired hunk on the cover and venture into the world of non-fiction. There are volumes of informative books that would certainly enhance my professional and personal development and there are dissertations on cultures and countries that didn’t even exist when I was handed my long-yellowed diploma. This year, I will purchase and read a book that doesn’t mention romance, desire or Grey in the title.
#2– Be Productive. I don’t know anyone who works as hard as I do to accomplish absolutely nothing. Files full of half-finished projects, an inbox total that has nearly as many digits as the national debt and journals tucked in every corner of my home have yielded nothing but years of frustration and the realization that I could never write anything longer than this blog because I can’t stay focused for more than five hours at a time. Crafts supplies long past their prime, needlework stashed under the bed and scarves that reach a block from my home are indications that I am more than capable of beginning endeavors but never quite able to complete them. If you see me with a slightly dusty and very long blue scarf, you will know that I have accomplished this goal
#1 – Have Fun. Please disregard numbers five through two…as you well know, there are only so many hours in a day.
May 2013 bring you health, happiness and everything you hope for.
What are your New Year's Resolutions? We would love for you to share with us!
Zelma Kassimer
Director of Marketing
Nemacolin Woodlands Resort
