I don’t do New Year’s resolutions. I don’t even do New Year’s Eve. The last thing I remember about 2009 is dozing off in front of a Tivo’d episode of Top Gear. The first thing I remember about 2010 is waking up on the couch at about 1:30 in the morning. Damon looked over at me and said, “Yeah, I drank your champagne.”
This year, for the most part, I’m continuing my tradition of ignoring the self-improvement spirit of the season. What I am going to do is grant myself a little bit of freedom, which may, incidentally, make me a better person (or at least more palatable). It may not be apparent here, but I have a, shall we way, regimented way of doing things — little processes that evolved over time and calcified. They all came about via my attempts to be more complete in my actions, more organized, more consistent. But those rules can also work against me. An example: I generally (dire circumstances aside) do not allow myself to respond to an email until I’ve responded to all the older emails in my inbox. I start at the bottom, almost no exceptions. If you’ve ever noticed me replying to a comment long after you stopped caring about the conversation, now you know why. I’m going to lighten up on that. I already have. There are a few others, but they all amount to the same story about different things.
One other thing. I can’t believe I’m about to say this. I’m doing a lift list. Shut up! I know. I found myself so taken with Maggie’s Life List that I started to wonder what mine might look like. Next thing I knew I was hunched over an Excel document and having a ball. I’ll show it to you when it’s done. I’ve been evangelizing about how much I’m enjoying this process, but so far only Damon has taken the bait and joined me. I swear, he’s glad he did. And not just because I’m easier to live with that way.
jaysaint 