We're coming up on the new year again, and you know what that means! At least...wait...do you know what that means? You do? No? Yes? This is a one way system, you say? Ok well, it means it's time for my annual goals post! Here goes!

Last Year's Goals

Oh yeah, last year I did this whole goal category thing. I remember now...

Wellbeing Goals

1. Cut back on social media / YouTube / couch time or at least manage it better - Fail

I need to be kind to myself and just admit that this was a hard year. There was still a lot of isolation and we're still in a pandemic. I would say I got out more often than 2020, because we had vaccines this year. I got to go do things like go to Las Vegas for the first time and see family after 1.5 years. I also got to do a number of social things that were great, but when I was home, I was often still potatoing the couch, because it's hard when you live alone during a pandemic.

2. Continue: crush my physical fitness / health with an emphasis on body positivity - Sigh, fail

This was a tough year. I discovered I had a persistent ankle injury that required a lot of healing time. That's now better, but because of it, fitness was difficult. Plus, I'll be honest. It's been hard to get motivated this year. I would really like to change that, because being fit for me is actually super helpful for mood regulation. At least I've stopped weighing myself though. So...small wins.

3. Run in an actual 5k race - Again, fail

It's hard to run when you have tendonitis in your ankle. It took about 6 months to recover and I can only now safely run again. So, this was a fail, but there wasn't much I could have done to change it other than what I did.

Creativity Goals

4. Take a ton of photos and share my photography - Success

I took a lot of photos this year and it was great. Replacing my camera equipment for up-to-date, professional gear was a huge factor in making this fun for me again. I still have a ton of photos to go through that I've taken over the year, and I hope to get to that soon. I'm quite proud of what I've taken this year though. I expect this to continue.

5. YouTube Channel - Make 10 videos over the year - Hard Fail

Lots of ideas, but little energy. I did get to help produce two videos for work, which did allow me to express my video interests a bit. However, it's just tough to find the energy to work on heavy projects like this when I already have a demanding full time job. So we'll see. Maybe this coming year.

Challenge Goals

6. Be bold with makeup, clothing, activities - Fail

I would love to say that I did a lot with this, but COVID has really limited activities still. So makeup has not been frequent. There's been no real need for fun clothing except on rare occasion. I've gotten to do a few fun activities, like friend parties, the redwoods, some hikes, and I visited Boston. But not on the regular.

7. Continue: Pare down stuff including clothing - Fail

I didn't do much of this at all. I haven't grown too much in my collection of stuff aside from what I needed to acquire when I moved. I still don't collect trinkets, but I haven't put direct effort into paring down much. I really would like to go through my closet though. So maybe soon.

8. Throw out less food - Mixed

I'll be honest here. My behavior hasn't changed much. I would say I've gotten a bit smarter about what I buy, food wise. So I'm throwing out less in that regard, but I still waste a lot. Not much else to say.

Ambitious Goals

9. Get going with the Amazons...after COVID - Mixed

COVID is still going. So I've held off. However, I can say the business entity exists and is fully tax exempt now. So that's a success. Otherwise...things haven't really gone anywhere.

10. Write Book One - Fail

I didn't.

Impossible Goals

11. Fall in love again - Fail

I'm trying, but I'm not in love yet. I've dated / am dating. In truth I've actually put a lot of effort into this, but I'm not yet in a place where I can call this a success.

Final Verdict on 2021 Goals

It's been a tough year. There's not much more I can say about it, really.

2022 Goals

This year I'm creating different categories to have goals fall under.

The Year of the Build

1. Lots of R2-D2 Progress

I've been working very very slowly on R2 since 2015. The past few years have seen marginal progress, and I made the decision recently that by the end of 2022, I want a mostly functional droid. So to that end, I've already started buying more parts. I have a plan to pick up a bunch of what's remaining in January. So I see a lot of progress ahead.

2. Two complex cosplays

I enjoy cosplay a lot, and I haven't really put enough effort into it lately. So my plan is to build out two new cosplays this year that are more on the complicated side. I'm hoping to do a Samus Aran cosplay and a Mass Effect N7 armor cosplay, but really as long as I get some cosplay done this year, I'll be satisfied.

3. Build that Tricorder

I bought a Tricoder prop replica kit that arrived early in 2021. I didn't touch it most of the year. However, I'm excited to make it happen. So I want this project to be finished by next New Year goals post.

The Year of the Long Term Plan

4. Have an answer to where I'll live long term

I live in California right now, and it's very expensive. I really want to own a house again, but I just cannot afford it here. I have a lot of ideas of potential moves, but I really don't have a solid plan. I would like to know this answer by the end of 2022.

5. What are my long term goals and desires?

I had this seemingly unachievable, aspirational goal of getting to work at Google. That was a background goal for me, and I viewed it as impossible, but something to work towards. Well...now I work there and it's left me with...well...what's next for me to work towards? What do I want for my next 10 years? I have had a hard time trying to figure this one out and I'd like some answers also by the end of 2022. It may even inform the previous question.

6. How do I get from there to here?

This goal is breaking a bit of a rule since I normally don't like dependent goals, but this section is about long term plans. So with that in mind, when I have the answers to the prior two goals, this goal is to lay out what my plan is to get there. That seems a reasonable ask. I'll accept even the start / framework of a plan for this one.

The Year of Mental Health

7. Focus on my overall mental health and wellbeing

I'm not going to lie. This has been my worst mental health year in recent memory. Particularly over the last half of the year, my mental health took a dive. It's been fluctuating a lot between ok and really not ok. So I want to find good ways to solve that. I would love to learn to be kinder to myself.

8. Take PTO and Vacations

I've been really bad about doing this throughout my entire professional career. I'm starting to get to the point where I have enough PTO to take real vacations, and as long as COVID does not prevent me, I'm going to take trips this year. I plan to travel every month, as long as it's safe to do so. I've already got January booked, and I'm going to start looking at Birthday trips for February. So we'll see what happens.

9. See family and friends

This goes along with the prior goal, but I've been feeling so isolated. I need to feel connection regularly again. I want to visit family and friends regularly this year. So I'll be including that in my travel plans. Another trip to Boston is in order. I want to visit my friends in the Twin Cities, too. Hopefully it's safe to do so.

10. Be kind to myself

Regular readers of this blog will know how mean I am to myself. It's been an ongoing struggle to change my mental narrative about myself. I see a therapist regularly and I do my best, but gosh, it's hard. I don't know how other people do it. I will do my very best towards this goal.

Closing thoughts

It's been a long road getting from there to here. I hope by the end of 2022 I'm no longer mentioning COVID in my goals. I hope things improve. I hope I improve. See you all soon. <3