Oh.... They’re almost exactly the same as what I was
planning to put together for this year.
So of course, this forces some introspection. Thoughts about willpower. Musings on the past year. Here comes a stream of consciousness (it’s
basically a tiny novel, but, hey, you’re off work today and tomorrow right? :).
2013 was not
the wonderful, easy-breezy, idyllic year I had planned for me and Jeff after
our 2012 of scrimping and squinching to get our debt paid off, and the horror
that was his (now former) rental property.
Getting Bailey in mid-January was life changing, but at first it was not
an all around good life change. His
stomach was an absolute mess from January until the END OF APRIL. We struggled with different treats, different
foods, cooking him white rice and boiled chicken for dinner every night for
weeks, withholding wheat, etc. etc. and all seemingly to no avail. Add onto this the sudden major life changes
of having to get up early, walk kilometers and kilometers every day, mostly in
the dark dead of winter and blustery winds/snow of the longest winter in
history and I was basically a ball of stress between Jan – Apr. I can’t really remember a time in that window
when I felt relaxed. Even when I was out
with friends, I’d sometimes pop home to let him out/check on him to make sure
my side entrance wasn’t covered in ... anything… When I took my trip to Florida
at the end of March to visit Michelle and “get away from it all”, I thought about
Bailey, Jeff and home a lot (though it was a still a pretty ridiculously sweet trip). I remember having friends over from out of
town at the end of April, feeling like the dog’s stomach was finally getting it
together, then watching him be horribly sick in the corner of the backyard while
my stomach knotted up into a tight ball – it basically ruined my night at the
bar, and I nearly punched a bouncer in the face when he made me GO HOME TO GET
MY ID (I’m 30 and I’ve been going to Ebar since I was 22 – cut a girl a break,
asshole!). Finally, we found a food/diet
regimen that worked for Mr. B, I adjusted to those early mornings (made much
better when he wasn’t crated anymore and waking me up by eating his bed every
morning at 6:30 a.m.) and things seemed like they were gonna be
allllright.
Then shit hit the fan at
work in a pretty major way and I spent most of May and June way down in the
dumps. In the summer I gave a shoutout to my
amazing friends and family for talking me through a really tough situation and
being so supportive, but you can never say thank you enough, so thank you, all
of you. I learned a ton from the
situation – about myself, about several of my coworkers (who are major facets in day to day life at a place with 30 employees) and about how everything
in the world is not always going to work out nicely and be free of drama - but it’s
how you handle it and show resilience and bounce back that makes every crappy
situation an opportunity to learn and grow.
Unfortunately, what happened in May/June resulted in me having to take
on an additional 2 weeks of fieldwork per month in June, July, August,
September, October and November – leaving not much other time for the fieldwork
I’d originally planned on, along with my in office work (like.. securing
land? kind of an important part of my
new role!!!) or having any sort of work-life balance. I spent a large number of those months sleeping
away from home, working weekends, working 12 hour days, or driving hundreds of
kilometers in a day. I finally came
indoors on the evening of November 9, 2013 and have been living a basically
perfect, blissful life ever since. ;) I got caught up on house projects, time
with friends, time with family, in office work, and slid back into the routine
of my “usual” life which I’ve realized is so special because of its simplicity
and small joys. I even was so inspired by
all the free time that I decided to challenge myself to be a better person,
look into new volunteering opportunities and tackle Jeff’s and my “2013 To Do
List” which consists of a crazy number of tasks around the house that Jeff and
I ambitiously set for ourselves post-poop-stravaganza with the dog last
spring. It’s been a wonderful 2
months. But 2 months does not a year
make and here is a rather sad report back on my 2013 resolutions:
Juice:
I kept up juicing for most of January but because of the cost of one
small jug of juice (roughly $8) and the amount of raw material and fibre wasted, I
decided it wasn’t sustainable in the long term.
I picked it up again during this Christmas vacation, and really did miss
it. Such a hit of nutrients! I think I’ll be an “occasional juicer” but
won’t add it to my resolutions for 2014 because it’s just too pricey and wasteful
for me to rationalize doing more frequently than that.
Learn
French: I didn’t touch my French tutorials online again after we picked up
Bailey on January 16. The end of life as
I knew it ;) In late November 2013 I
asked bilingual Viv if she would consider teaching me French and she was super
into it. We’ve had 2 lessons, and I’ve
learned a lot so far. This one is
definitely back on the resolution list for 2014.
Stand Up
for Myself: Done, and done and done and done, in several places in my life. Success!
Not an easy one, but a muscle I WILL keep flexing for sure.
Floss:
Umm. I still don’t know why I can’t make
myself do this. BACK ON THE LIST! I need some sort of great inspiration – maybe
I’ll put a picture of a pair of gingivitis-y gums up on my bathroom
mirror. Or try to find a new method of
WILLPOWER – a system of rewards? First
thing in the morning, I just want to GO and last thing at night I just want to
SLEEP! Does this mean flossing at my desk is the only thing that’s going to work for me!? Must make it work! ON THE LIST!
 |
| I had to scale down the size of this picture because of how terrifying it is. |
Get Back
to My Wedding Weight: Well, a big thanks to Mr. Bailey for making sure I’m
taking my 10,000 steps every day. 1x –
2x daily walks around our neighbourhood have kept my weight at a reasonable
level – usually only about 5 lbs away from the wedding goal weight. Unfortunately, I’ve noticed my pants aren’t
fitting as well and think it’s because after a back injury last spring I
stopped lifting weights and doing strength training. So, instead of setting a number on the scale
goal, this year’s weight loss goal is about amount of body fat lost. And it’s 5 lbs by the end of February (I
really want to do it before Crazy Field Season Part II hits, because that 2
weeks of monthly fieldwork in one area PLUS all my other work remains a reality
until August 2014). So: 5 lbs of fat –
adios!
Two new
additions to the list are:
Read 5
Classic Novels - I read two in one month after I “came inside” in November,
so basically I’m pretty amazing ;) Almost done ALL the Brontes!
Be a
Better Listener – this one is as simple as it sounds – listen, rather than
waiting for my turn to speak. And I find
myself frequently relating similar tales/experiences to help a person
understand their situation better, but I think sometimes it’s better to just
focus on what the other person is saying (and what they’re NOT saying) and help
them try to resolve and work out what they’re thinking about.
So, after a
semi-disappointing 2013 (and I hope it doesn’t seem like a big string of “excuses”
– I’d rather call them “reasons” or “life”) I welcome 2014, a year of learning
French, flossing, losing (and maintaining the loss of) 5 lbs of fat, reading 5
classic novels, and being a better listener.
I know you
can’t control the madness life throws at you sometimes (and my madness, when
put in any sort of perspective was completely minor compared to the things that
can happen in this life) but you can control how you react to it, how you stay
on track with your goals in the face of it, and how you perceive it – so I will
definitely continue to work on all those things, and hopefully grow a little
more!
Happy New Year!!!
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