Last year's resolutions were as follows:

1. Blog more than twice a month on my personal blog.  My posts have gotten way too long and I need to break them up.
2. Save more.  I don’t put much money into savings, and when I do, I need to make sure I don’t touch it.  That is a big goal for this year
3. Pay off all non-federal and non-debt consolidation debt.  That includes furniture and my non-government loan.  Less monthly bills = a happy Jess
4. Take a vacation somewhere that’s not a staycation.  I haven’t gone anywhere on a trip for years.  I need to get away.
5. Get into better shape.  I sit all day at work and sit when I get home.  I need to take up a sport or something that’ll get me into shape regularly.
6. Go on more dates – let’s face it…I’m not very active in the love arena.  I never have been.  It’s time I do something about that.
7. Dedicate time weekly to doing research / writing for genderverse.org. I want to give back to my community more.  I’ve been lazy, and it’s time I get back to the real reason I’m on this planet.
8. Learn how to do something with my hair. I suck at doing hair.  I can dry my  hair, brush it, put it up, and that’s it.  I want to learn more than that.
9. Continue working on  my faults. I know this one isn’t exactly measurable, but it’s definitely a good thing for me.  I’ve come a long way in the last year, and I want to continue with that personal growth.
10. Explore my own spirituality. I haven’t touched my spiritual side in a long time.  I feel a longing to be connected again, and I really should spend time with it.  This is another not as measurable one, but I think it’s also an important one.

Just like last year, let's go through them one by one and see how we did.

Number 1 was a total failure.  I wrote a grand total of 7 posts last year.  Not incredibly impressive, huh?  I managed to get more busy than your mom in an ugly sweater store this past year.  My personal and professional life really took over, and my free time was absorbed with sleep, food, and the occasional TV show.  Hopefully this year will be less stressful.

Number 2 was another fail.  I literally ended the year with a negative balance and no savings account.  On the plus side, I have gotten incredibly frugal and really don't spend money on things unless I absolutely have to.  Things just keep coming up and soaking up all my extra money.

With number 3, I can report some success.  My furniture is completely paid off and was back towards the beginning of last year.  The non-federal debt will probably be a while, but it's not a huge amount.  So, it's not as much of a stressor.

Finally, a success! In fact number 4 just happened.  I took a vacation over Christmas and traveled down to Arkansas to spend it with my girlfriend and her family.  It was a wonderful time (aside from driving to the airport).

Number 5 is a success.  I started regularly going to fencing again.  In fact, fencing got so popular that it moved to twice a week.  So for 2 to 3 hours, twice a week, I got a full body workout.  I really enjoyed it and hope to continue.

I have easily made number 6 a success too.  In fact, my lovely girlfriend is sitting next to me on the couch as a write this.  Not only have I gone on more dates this year, but I've gone on quite long dates.  My first date with Jess was over a week long.  Right now, we're on a 4 week long date.  I hope they get to the point of being so long that the date just never ends. (Jess justs read that and said "Awwwwwwww").  We're so cute that people are overwhelmed and feel like they might vomit from the cuteness.  "NO!!! It's too much cute!!! Hghgmghghg!!"

I think we can easily say number 7 was a huge fail. I'll just leave it at that.

Number 8 wasn't much of a success.  I am just too lazy. I'd like to do more with my hair, but why don't I focus on the talents I already have...like avoiding blogging.

Now we come to one that's interesting.  I've come a long way with working on my faults.  In fact, I actually came to realize this year that I've been pretty hard on myself.  After talking with some close friends and family, I got a bit of perspective that made me feel a lot better about who I am.  I can easily say I'm more aware of who I am and how I act around others.  I know that I will treat people with respect.  I'm not as critical of others as I may have thought I was.  So I guess I can call number 9 a success.

Lastly, number 10 was not really something I put a lot of time into.  I don't think it matters to me all that much anymore.  I'm ok with that.  I think if I feel the need for a more spiritual side in the future, I will follow that push then.  For right now, I'll go with the flow.

2011 New Years Resolutions

This year I think I'll aim for measurable and reachable goals.

1. Write more than 7 blog posts. Since I managed a whole 7 last year, I should be able to at least hit 8 this year.
2. Spend more time on personal projects. I've been interested in everything from new web projects to metal working.  I haven't spent a lick of time on any of it.  Time to stop talking and start doing.
3. Reduce my stress level.  I take on too much.  I need to learn to say no to things.  I need to cut back on stuff that I volunteer to do and enjoy my personal time more.  Right now I'm so stressed that I am starting to stress that I don't relax well enough.  That's bad.
4. Create a viable secondary income. I'm a talented girl.  I have a ton of ideas, and one of them should at least be able to make me some money on the side.  Time to make it happen.
5. Open and have some money in a savings account by year end. I don't care if it's 5 dollars, I want money in a savings account.
6. Buy some new clothes. I know I just wrote about saving money, but I could really use a wardrobe refresh.
7. Have less unexpected and expensive emergencies. I know this is out of my control, but I truly hope that there are no more urinary obstructions with my cat, glasses breaking unexpectedly, and so on.
8. Do something with my photography. I take a lot of photos and they go nowhere.  I have a spacious Picasa account, and its time I use it.
9. Create a short film. I've been meaning to do some creative video work for a long time, and it's high time I actually follow through.
10. Be Happy. I am happy now.  So, this one should be easy.  I just think it's important to stay happy.

We'll see how things go this year!  Stay tuned in about 8 posts for the follow up. ;)

Happy 2011 everyone!