2010 Goals: January Progress

I set some pretty specific goals for 2010 so I wanted to check in with a monthly update to see progress.

1. I've read 9 books so far this year, which is right on target for the month. 100 books a year is 8.3 books a month and so far I am on the right track. In addition to the 9 books I read, I also started and didn't finish about 5 more. I didn't realize how many books I put back down.

2. I met with my awesome writing group in January and we are on track for another meeting at the end of February! It is great to connect with them and see where we all are. For our February meeting, we are assigned to read Stephen King's On Writing, which is one of my favorite writing books. I'm glad for the opportunity to revisit.

3. Submit... This I have not done yet.

4. Blog regularly — this I am doing. This is my 17th post of the month, right on target by happy coincidence. I'm always surprised when someone tells me they read my blog. An acquaintance made my fave roasted cauliflower and a colleague told me she liked the baby wipe idea.

5. I have not participated nor even signed up for any races as of yet. It's way too cold (it's snowing hard as I type!) to consider doing this now. I do get emails with information about local races and am considering several choices for spring.

6. I get an A+ for eating vegetarian 90% of the time in January. I did great on this! I definitely need to expand my cooking repertoire, I tend to make the same things over and over and am getting sick of them. I have some good cookbooks and am also considering a cooking class. On Sunday I made a clean eating tuna noodle casserole from scratch (was very impressed with myself) and it looked good. Too bad it tasted like glop! It was the second-worst thing I've ever made, though My Heart's Desire did bravely try it. I think he wanted to tell me it wasn't that bad, but really, it was.

7. Trying new things is harder for me than I thought it would be. I did go to a new restaurant with My Heart's Desire and some friends.

8. Seeing friends. This month I had coffee with a friend, brunch to celebrate my mentor, lunch with a friend, My Heart's Desire and I had dinner with couple friends, and we took friends out to dinner to celebrate their engagement. The crepes brunch was postponed due to horrible weather but I'm confident we'll see each other soon. I also took my honorary Jewish grandmother to the movies, which I love to do.

9. F-u-n was had with My Heart's Desire! I got us cheap tickets to see a comedian at a local dive, and it was fun. I haven't seen live comedy since I moved to DC, which might surprise you since I like laughing. We dinner with some couple friends (see #7 and #8) then laughed at the show. It was great to do something fun together.

10. Photo taken of My Heart's Desire and I? Not even close.

The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, & Generally Have More Fun

The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun by Gretchen Rubin. I really like The Happiness Project blog and I enjoyed the book as well. The blog is interesting and I get a kick out of it. The book provides more in-depth information and analysis/conclusions. It got me thinking about adding more happiness to my own life! 9/100

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The Lacuna

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver. I listened to this book and it’s as good as it is long — which is to say, very. Beautiful storytelling. 8/100

Today I had a nice chat with my sister, went to a brunch celebrating my mentor, hit the gym (even though I was trying to talk myself out of it all the way through the parking lot), went to the fabric store and found out they do not carry yarn (almost done with a scarf I am making), came home and did laundry, found out we were not babysitting for the cutest twins ever (everyone in that house is ill), watched birds feed from my home office window, colored my hair, used all the hot water, made a meal plan and grocery list (for some reason I have been in the mood for tuna noodle casserole), watched episodes of The Shield with My Heart's Desire, had dinner delivered, watched Role Models (guess who picked that movie?), and am going to read.

A Spot of Bother

A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon. I loved his book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, and was excited to get my hands on A Spot of Bother. Unfortunately, I found it to be tedious. 7/100

Today I am grateful for going to the gym this morning (I woke up ridiculously early), sunshine, not being as stubborn today as I was yesterday, working towards my 2010 goals, listening to Barbara Kingsolver's The Lacuna, and spa radio.

Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea

Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler. This book is good for laughing out loud when in a room alone (which caused My Heart’s Desire to call me a weirdo) and is mostly drinking tales. 5/100

The Scenic Route by Binnie Kirshenbaum. I couldn’t get into this post-divorce midlife crisis European road trip. 6/100

The Wednesday Sisters

The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton. I wanted to like this book - really, I did. I liked the idea of female friendship, 5 women supporting each other through changing times and their creation of an incredibly successful writing group. However, the writing was way too fluffy and the plot managed to skim only the surface. 4/100

Today I went to work, sent my BFF my bridal veil (if she wears it she will be the third lucky bride to wear it), hit the gym for cardio + lifting, came home and hung out with My Heart’s Desire, made pita/pesto/mozzarella/tomato melts (so good on the George Foreman) with veggies for dinner, watched Jersey Shore (is there a word for guilty pleasure?), and am calling it a night.

The Brightest Star In The Sky

The Brightest Star In The Sky by Marian Keyes.
Marian Keyes is one of my favorite writers and I love how she mixes serious topics with humor and real life. I pre-ordered this hardback (something this thrifty girl does maybe twice a year) and was not disappointed. I’ve liked everything Marian Keyes has written though my favorite so far is Rachel’s Holiday. 3/100

Thrifty Girl Report

Beauty
I really like using makeup removing cloths but found them to be on the pricey side, even for the store brand. I read in a magazine (can’t remember which one) that sensitive baby wipes can do the same job at a fraction of the price. It’s true, they work just as well. I can get around 300 sensitive baby wipes for around $8, while that much money wouldn’t buy me more than 30 makeup removing cloths.

Coupons
I get the Sunday paper, which I usually read most sections of, until I get to the coupons. I’m still cutting and using coupons. I even have that little coupon wallet that goes on the shopping cart. That’s right. The last time I went to the market I saved $14 just with coupons.

Cooking at Home
While I do like wearing aprons, I’m no Julia Child. I’m more Sandra Lee (she of semi-homemade fame). I’ve been cooking more at home, making meals and snack bags so I have meals at home when I’m tired, hungry, and grouchy. I recently bought another set of Pyrex so I can make two casseroles at a time (enchiladas and baked ziti with spinach are my faves) and freeze one.

Fun on the Cheap
I'm really liking services that send me weekly emails with what events are going on around town with discounted prices, like Goldstar. Cultural Tourism DC also sends me a weekly email with cultural activities, many of which are free.

Consignment Shop
I now have two favorites, which are both hit or miss. But when I hit, it’s great. I’ve purchased a large jewelry box for $15, just like the one pictured — but pink — that sells for $199 at Pottery Barn.

Look Me In The Eye

Look Me In The Eye by John Robison. Got it from the library and read it in one sitting. 2/100

2010 Goals

Read/Write/Blog
1. Read 100 books this year. I’ve never counted how many books I read in any given year but think this is doable, including the books I listen to on CD. Throw in books read during travel time and on vacation and I bet it can be done!

2. Meet with my awesome writing group more regularly. My goal is four times this year, and if we can't do in-person then we can continue electronically.

3. Submit, submit, submit. That's right — to do three submissions mailings. I need to get my writing on the door and get the rejections flowing in. I've found that I average nearly 75 rejections per acceptance. So all of the rejections just bring me that much closer to an acceptance.

4. Blog regularly. To be more specific (and to have a measurable goal), I'm aiming for 200 blog posts this year.

Healthy
5. Participate in 2 races. For one of them, raise money for a worthy cause (I’m thinking breast cancer). For the other one, go outside my comfort zone. 5Ks used to be really challenging to me, now I go that far at least once a week. Perhaps an 8K is next on the agenda. Just got new workout shoes so now I can go faster!

6. Eat vegetarian food 90% of the time. Reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, In Defense of Food, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and Eating Animals, as well as seeing Food Inc. have made me aware of what the food choices I make mean. I have found a hippie store that sells grain-fed meat raised on pasture without drugs that I can feel better about eating that factory farmed meat. I tried to go vegetarian last summer but a few months later I went back to my flexitarian ways. This year I haven’t eaten much meat — one meal contained it, was a side dish.

Fun & Friends
7. Try 10 new things. I tend to do the things I know I like – go to restaurants I like, see the same people at the same places. I want to break out of my rut and try new things, even if they are small.

8. Show that friendship is important. Between work and working out and other commitments, sometimes seeing friends gets pushed to the back burner. So I need to schedule seeing friends at least once a week. I've learned that making plans in advance works well for me since I can almost never do anything at the last minute. (Am I a planner? Guilty as charged.) I'm already on the books for crepes with a friend I love but rarely see.

9. Have fun with My Heart’s Desire at least once a month. We spend a lot of time together and do some fun stuff (go to movies, etc) but we also do chores a lot too. It would be good if we could focus on having fun together and enjoy life, rather than just doing chores.

10. Get a decent photo taken with My Heart’s Desire. Seriously, we haven’t had a good one taken since our wedding. He hates getting his picture taken so this will take some doing.

Wish me luck! What are your 2010 goals or resolutions?

Today I slept until I woke up (isn't that the best feeling?), made an egg white/salsa scramble, exchanged a pair of running shoes, went to the gym, picked up my Rx at CVS (love drugstores but don't like CVS or Rite Aid - don't get my started on their diagonal aisles), came home and had PB&J and apple slices with My Heart's Desire, took my honorary, Jewish Grandma to the movie she wanted to see -- Precious, had my heart broken by the film, sipped green tea at Starbucks and chatted with her, came home and wanted pizza for dinner, decided to make something else and was very unsatisfied, watched a movie with My Heart's Desire, and now am going to read Body + Soul.

A Christmas Memory

A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote. A holiday gift from a colleague. Loved the book - such good writing. 1/100

2009 Commandments

My 9 2009 Commandments were helpful to me and kept me focused. While they were good things to keep in mind, it’s hard to measure the success of them. Was I kind enough? Did I prepare enough? I know I didn’t write three times a week on average. I did take to heart that everything counts and was able to apply that to many different areas of my life.

I am working on 2010 Goals. Any suggestions? Post in comments.

Today I went to work, threw out the not-so-live plant that has been on my desk, tried to get back into the swing of things, made 2 pans of baked ziti (pasta + sauce + spinach + 3 kinds of cheese), cooked one and froze one, packed my bags for tomorrow, watched The Hangover extras with My Heart's Desire, and now am going to read.