2009 Resolutions: Part April

You'll recall that at the beginning of March, I set some goals. What were those goals, you ask? These are them:

1) Go to the gym at least 3 times per week.
2) Meditate on compassion every day.

Now that I've reminded you what the goals were, you're probably super curious about whether or not I was successful. I don't know why you're so interested in the outcome when you couldn't even be bothered to remember what the goals were, but I will nevertheless graciously fill you in...

Goal 1: Going to the gym. I did a pretty good job with this one, I feel. I went to the gym / exercised (I ran outside a couple times) consistently all month. Definitely much more than I had in recent months. I didn't get to exercise three times every week because there was a week or so where things got really hectic and I couldn't find the time. (I accepted long ago that I will never be a 'Get Up Before Dawn and Head to the Gym' kind of person. I'm more of a 'Thank Goodness the Gym Is Open Til 10pm!' kind of person.) Toward the end of the month, when I realized I had already failed at the 3 times a week thing, I decided to just shoot for an average of 3 times a week (12 days of exercise total). Which I was able to accomplish!
Outcome: SUCCESS.

Goal 2: Meditate every day. Ha. I didn't keep track of how many days I actually managed to meditate, but I don't think it was very many, unfortunately. On the bright side, just declaring it as a goal did make me think more about it. I started re-reading the books that got me interested in meditation in the first place, which in turn got me more focused on paying attention to my mental and emotional well-being. It also served as a reminder that meditation is still an option whenever I start feeling particularly anxious or overwhelmed. It's always nice to have more healthy* coping mechanisms at your disposal. Even though this goal can't be classified as a definite success, I think that it nevertheless had a postive effect. You know what they say about shooting for the moon and landing among the stars, and all that.
Outcome: AMONG THE STARS.

*Examples of unhealthy (yet delicious) coping mechanisms: ice cream, alcohol, hitting, vandalism.

Since March's goals turned out so well (what with all the successfulness and the time spent among the stars), I've decided to go on and set some more for April. I'm like my own personal 12-step program! ("12 Steps to Being Irritatingly Positive!")

April Goals

Goal 1: Get up at 7:30 every weekday.
One reason I'm setting this goal is because I think I would have had more success with the daily meditation goal if I had had time set aside to do it. Perhaps if I get up earlier, I'll be able to meditate before I leave for work, rather than waiting until I get there. (The less said about the time I usually get up each morning, the better.) I actually went to sleep last night with this goal in mind, and um... didn't do so well this morning. But there's always tomorrow! I may be setting myself up for epic failure here, but you know: moon, stars, etc.

Goal 2: List 5 things for which I am grateful, every day.
The other day I was reading Miss Banshee's blog (it's good! check it out!) and she had a link to this post by a blogger named Schmutzie. Schmutzie's plan, which she is referring to as "Grace in Small Things" is to come up with 5 things for which she is grateful every day FOR A YEAR. I'm not going to commit to a year (because good gracious), but I'm pretty sure I can manage a month. It sounds like one of those rare things that could be fun and good for me all at the same time (edutainment!), so what the hell, let's do this.

If you're interested in my progress on these goals, I may go so far as to remember to update you over the course of the month. If you find reading about my goal-setting to be mind-numbingly boring, you probably didn't make it to the end of this post. BUT, if you did, leave me a comment and let me know. (So I can cry myself to sleep tonight.) If you think the Grace in Small Things Except Only For a Month thing sounds like fun, then by all means, join in here or on your own site and let me know about it. And finally, if you have any goals of your own (serious or silly, short-term or long-term) that you'd like to share with the world (and by the world I mean myself and 4 other people), then consider my comments section your forum.