Goals.

Or resolutions. Or whatever you want to call them.

I’m not trying to break the bank on myself here. As I think through how I want to do this, I realize I’m probably a bit ill-prepared to set my sights on any incredibly large targets. I don’t want to just throw commitments around without consideration. Also, the transition to a new year, while a good time to refresh your outlook on things, is very arbitrary. It’s significant only because we assign it significance. So this is how I’m gonna do it…

These are some practical, tangible goals for how I want to live my life this year. They’re simply things that I want to do. I have many reasons for choosing the things I have chosen. Some I’ll explain, some explain themselves. Anyway.

1. Drink more milkshakes. Milkshakes are delicious and deserve a more significant place in my life.
2. Read at least two books per month. That’s 24 books for the year. That should make me pretty smart. Maybe I’ll post some book reviews here, so people know just how smart I’m becoming.
3. Become a photographer. Surprised? Here’s the thing. Right now, photography is basically a hobby for me. I don’t necessarily see photography becoming a full time job this year… But I want to figure out how I can turn this into a career. I think my first step for this one will be getting fancy business cards.
4. Make sugar a more irregular occurrence in my diet. Sugar is terrible and deserves a less significant place in my life.

5. Travel to a new country. This is one I shoot for every year. Canada and Mexico both seem somewhat likely at this point, but… that’s kind of cheating. I’d like to go to Northern Europe or South America.

6. Wake up early, consistently.

7. Run.

8. Keep writing.

None of these are substitutes for waking up every morning and working hard at whatever I may have in front of me, but the hope is that these goals can help bring some much-needed focus to my efforts.

Rest in peace, 2015. The new year is here.