Hello 2017!

Happy 2017! But mostly, goodbye to 2016, which most people are glad to get shut of. I'm actually indifferent to last year - it certainly wasn't my best year (although please don't ask me which year is since I'll draw a blank on such short notice), but definitely not my worst. It falls somewhere in the middle, like most years. I'm not going to rehash the past year here - perhaps that could be another post - but instead I'm going to do the classic New Year's Day thing and come up with some goals/resolutions for 2017. (I got into a discussion last night about my use of the word "goals" versus "resolutions." It's really just semantics, in the same way I prefer "journal" over "diary.")

Obviously these are just guidelines. After all, how many people truly adhere to their resolutions through the entire 12 months of the year? Not to mention I always have one main one every year that I tend to slip in and out of: to be more disciplined. It's going to be a particularly important one for me this year since my work schedule is going to be entirely self directed and not beholden to the whims of a boss or the day-to-day minutiae of a 9-to-5 existence. It's a liberating, for sure, and it helps that I do have a deadline to complete the work I'm doing, but there's still a bit of a fear with finding the necessary discipline and properly motivating myself. Falling flat on my face is of course a strong motivating factor! So yes, let's again put that goal front and centre for 2017: to better discipline myself. It's an all-encompassing goal too since it embraces so many different facets of my life, from work to fitness to how I spend my free time. I like to think it's important to discipline the fun too (and I don't mean in an S&M way...), to make sure I leave myself the requisite time and energy to properly take advantage of the benefits (theatre! music! restaurants!) of living in a big city. In the end, it means not wasting too much time sitting on my ass and doing, well, nothing. I will report on this goal as the year progresses.

With that out of the way - and let's face it, that's the one that determines whether any other goals are met - let's perhaps set a few more goals for the year.

1. To write more often. That mostly means on this blog (even though I know it has few eyes, I remind myself this is more of a writing exercise for me), but I do have my large writing project I need to have completed for work by the end of the year. I'm going to initiate another blog as well for that project - stay tuned! Reading over my past blog entries, I realize that this is a good venue for me to keep up the writing chops, with the added benefit of chronicling "this place in time" of my life. I enjoyed revisiting my history, even though parts of it made me melancholic. (More on that in a future post.)

2. To read more. I know, another one that makes an appearance every year. But this one is important this year since, re-reading the blog, I realize I used to be a far-more voracious reader. It was partly because I was in a relationship with a woman for many years that didn't have a very good tv or cable package (!), and lived in a part of the city that wasn't open to hanging out at restaurants and pubs, so a big chunk of time we spent together was devoted to reading on her couch or in her backyard (since she was often busy running her own business that she had only-just initiated, or doing the gardening). I have my new reading chair set up in my study, and I've found in the short time I've had it that it's been conducive in reading more. (Environment is important, it's true!) The other key for me is to recognize that I'm not a "one book at one time" reader, that it helps when I have several books/articles on the go at once. It's just the way my brain works, so accept it and feed it thusly.

3. To take better care of my physical being. Yes, I'll admit, my running has truly lapsed of late, resulting in a bit of a weight gain. (Nothing to be overly concerned about, but I am carrying about 10 extra pounds that I truly do not need.) It hasn't helped that I've been dealing with a number of niggling injuries (the latest: a left ankle thing). But I've started running the stairs of the pedestrian overpass near my apartment (although I do take the long route to get there), which seems to be a good "quick hit" exercise. I'll add the long distance back into my running once I feel my various injuries aren't going to be a set back. The other part of the tending to my physical being is about ... well, I'll be coy for the time being. But tonight isn't the night to examine that. (Hey, I have a whole year to write on the blog - I need topics for the next 12 months, after all, so not everything needs to be explored this evening.)

4. "To thine own self be true." This is the big one for the year, even more important than the discipline goal. I will better explain this in a future post. It doesn't feel like a night to delve too deeply. Patience.

This is just a start. More to come!

Reading: Wolf Hall, the Sunday NYT, the Jan. 2 issue of the New Yorker
Listening: McCoy Tyner, Charles Mingus, some (mostly crappy) acoustical playlist on Spotify
Watching/Watched: Second season of Breaking Bad, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Rogue One, the Raptors west coast swing