I (kind of) epically failed in my original intent to come home, sit down with no distractions, and chug away on my still to be written research papers. And though that was a failure, I think the time home alone has been good for me. Being able to go to sleep whenever I want, wake up whenever I want, and do whatever I want (with virtually no obligations to anyone) is an opportunity that is hard to find. So maybe I wasn’t productive in the realm where I wanted to be productive, but I had the chance to catch up with some old friends that I rarely see anymore, do some much neglected reading, watch football to my heart’s content, take the time to cook, and, perhaps most importantly, indulge in one of my favorite pastimes, introspection. I had the chance to look back on 2012, and now looking ahead to 2013, I have some resolutions. But, to add a twist, I’m going to add some action items to these resolutions as well.

1) Blog consistently. This might be an odd one to put on the forefront. But despite my “maintenance” (I use that term lightly) of my website/blog, writing is not something I particularly enjoy. But, it is something that forces thought and introspection, both of which I enjoy thoroughly.

Action items:
Blog on this site once a week.
Blog for the Downtown Project once a month.
Blog for the Good Men Project once a month.

2) Get outdoors. Some of my happiest moments this year were when I was outside exploring new places. That needs to happen more regularly.

Action items:
Make it out to Red Rock/Mount Charleston/Somewhere at least once a month.
Harass my outdoorsy friends into inviting me to go with them.
Renew my Annual Membership for the National Park Service and get my money’s worth.

3) Continue to make my position evolve. I love working for the Downtown Project, and think that the work I do is necessary and valuable. But I still think there is more that I can be doing. We’ll see what happens next.

Action items:
This one’s tricky, because I’m not quite sure what I want it to evolve to. Maybe be more productive in a certain direction when I have free time.

4) Read more. For any of you that may be friends with my on Facebook or follow me on twitter, from the sheer number of articles I read/post, you know that I read a lot. Somehow I want to maintain that level, while also reading more books.

Action items:
Read for at least 30 minutes a night before going to bed.
Minimum goal: Read two books a month, one for VFA and one for fun.
Ideal goal: Read one book a week.

5) Stay in touch with people better. As much as I claim to be a hermit and self-sufficient, I truly value so many amazing relationships that I have in my life. A lot of those are from Chapel Hill, and overall, I’ve done a pretty terrible job of keeping in touch with people. I’d like to change that. I know the usual response is that it is okay to lose contact, because everyone is so busy, but personally I think that is bull crap. If you ever are too busy to find the 30 minutes you need for a good phone conversation with friends, you need to re-evaluate what exactly it is that you are busy with.

Action items:
Have a phone conversation with a friend at least once every two weeks, ideally every week.
Either visit a friend in another state or have a friend visit me in Vegas once a quarter.

6) Finish up my obligations in Chapel Hill. I love my research and the work I did my senior year, but trying to maintain a presence in two different places at the same time is exhausting. By the end of the  year I want my paper(s) to have been written, reviewed, and (ideally) published.

Action items:
Work on my research for a couple of hours every week. I’ve been telling myself that I’ve been too busy to do it, but if I keep telling myself that, it will never get done.

7) Run the half or full marathon in Las Vegas this December. I hate running for the sake of running, but I figure now is when I should do it. And as much as I hate running, it is the easiest way to stay in shape, because it can be done any time and doesn’t need other people.

Action items:
Start running 2-3 times a week.
Run a half marathon by the summer at the latest.

8) A mid-March edit – 7 hours or sleep a night.

Bonus resolutions:
These may or may not happen this year, but will help me achieve some of my life bucket list goals.
Visit a new state (6-7 left, since I can’t remember if I have been to Missouri)
Visit a new country (A lot left)
Visit a new continent (2 left)
Continue to do things that I have never done before