2012

New Year's Resolutions

I'm actually quite at sticking with these, probably because I choose resolutions that won't be too hard to accomplish. Last year's is laughable, watch more movies, but you'll understand the purpose once I explain. We have been delving into the world of film making (John more than me, but I do find it very interesting as an art form and love taking part when I can). We have our own little production company and have made various short films as well as a 45 minute documentary. We are now in the works for a feature length documentary that we are taking to the film festivals this summer! It's a very exciting project and I just love LOVE watching John work. So we have upped our intake of films this year. Everything from shorts to blockbusters, documentaries to indie dramas. It's interesting to watch a movie now with a little knowledge on what happens behind the scenes or what they had to do to get that shot.

My other resolution was to read more books (35 in fact) and I fell short at 25 I believe. I don't feel bad about this though. I took my time through each and every book and enjoyed trying out a few new authors. Here's the 2011 reading list -

Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein
Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - John Boyne
Watership Down - Richard Adams
Villa Incognito - Tom Robbins
Jitterbug Perfume - Tom Robbins
West With the Night - Beryl Markham
Work - Louisa May Alcott
Let's Take the Long Way Home: A Memoir of Friendship - Gail Caldwell
Autobiography of Red - Anne Carson
Letters of a Woman Homesteader - Elinore Pruitt Stewart
Teaching a Stone to Talk: Expeditions and Encounters - Annie Dillard
Holy the Firm - Annie Dillard
The Spectator Bird - Wallace Stegner
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay - Michale Chabon
The Daily Coyote - Shreve Stockton
Anthem - Ayn Rand
Bad Land: An American Romance - Jonathan Raban
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides
Voyager (Outlander #3) - Diana Gabaldon
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4) - Diana Gabaldon
The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5) - Diana Gabaldon
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6)- Diana Gabaldon
An Echo in the Bone (Outlander #7) - Diana Gabaldon

So what's in store for 2012? What is this year's resolution? I'm sticking with reading more books (keeping 35 as the ultimate goal) and watching more movies. Adding to that I have started working out more regularly. I know this is EVERYONE's resolution, but I've never been bad about getting fit if I have a goal (I'm quite a goal oriented person). Working out just to look and feel better isn't enough of a motivation for me apparently. I'm hoping that just paying for a gym membership will guilt me into going even when I don't feel like it (and so far it's worked). I'm also not doing it to lose weight. I just want to be healthier.

I would also like to do more big, hands on projects. I've started working with leather for the heck of it and discovered I really really like it. I've made a couple masks and plan on trying a few new things. So more of this to come. I also LOVE working with wood so I've been pulling apart old pallets to use for various things like a stereo cabinet, baseboards and photo transfers.

And lastly, I'd like to finish one (or two) major project on our house. We built our house ourselves and because of that it was never entirely finished. There are just a ton of little things that need finished (stereo cabinet, tile in the bathroom, baseboards etc.). There are also a few major things. Our entire deck needs re-stained, our house needs re-painted, we need to make a shade covering for our upper deck, I need to finish the brick/paver flooring for under our deck. I want to finish at least one of those this spring and another in the fall. This will probably be the hardest to accomplish because it doesn't just rely on me and it is also determined by how much cash is in the bank! I would actually settle for one of those big projects this year. Fingers crossed!

So that's it. I learned many things during 2011 and while it wasn't a bad year by any means, I'm not sorry to see it go.

Here's to 2012!!