Checking in on 2012 Resolutions

Considering it's a few days until I start to compile my new list of resolutions I thought it was be nice to see how I did on this years resolutions. Let's take a look at the list:

2012 Resolutions:
Resolutions
1. Join a library/read more: This was perhaps the easiest "resolution" to accomplish. Honestly it was more like a To-Do list item than a life change resolution but it was was easier to hold myself accountable for that then some vague "live life to the fullest" bullshit. I have definitely discovered some amazing (and not so amazing) books and authors out there. I think I might to a best of 2012 list or something just so I can have a whole post dedicated to nerding out on amazing literature.

2. Lose weight: Sort of? I've definitely hit a plateau weight wise (stuck at 141-143) but my body looks much better. I started mixing in more weight training to my usually cardio and my legs look amazing! Being a pear shaped person I never thought I could have a thigh gap and now at certain stances I do and it's wonderful. I have a lot of fitness goals for next year that I'm really excited about incorporating into my life.

3. Run more/run 10k in less than an hour: Yes and no. In the last month the weather has been absolutely divine and running has been a breeze (winters in Texas=mid 70s to 80s and sunny). I've worked myself up to around 4 or 5 miles which is just shy of a 10k but I have big plans to sign up for the Capital 10k next year and I'm very excited!

4. Pay off debt: So getting there. I got a new job that pays SO much more than my old job (as in, $10,000 more a year more) and I have a totally doable plan to save at least $1000 a month and make large chunk payments each year. No matter what my $89,000 debt is going to take YEARS to pay off but if I can scrimp and save now and pay off some of that God awful interest then each of my monthly payments will go towards more than they currently do. Sometime soon I'll make an update post about my finances.

5. Second job: Yes and no! I spent a good portion of the beginning of the year desperately trying to get a second job but no one wanted to work around my insane work schedule (understandably). But life has a way of helping you out sometime and I was able to start babysitting a friends kid as well as picking up shifts at my old job. Even though sometimes I'm absolutely exhausted (working 6am to 10m is a killer) I am so thankful that I have people in my life who think of me when it comes to doling out work hours and extra cash. 

6. Date up: Destroyed this one. Absolutely crushed it. Last year at Christmas time I had just recently broken up with a dude (who was mostly nice but made extremely questionable life choices) and this year I'm in a beautiful house with a man that I love more than anything. Funny the places where life can take you, huh? My honey and I had been friends for a few months and went on a date in January and I haven't looked back since. We moved in together a few months ago and while there have been some growing pains (I'm a clean freak, he is not) it's lovely to share a home with someone again. He is so patient and loving and understand and I am so thankful for his presence in my life.

7. Take myself on dates: I don't know why I made this a resolution. One of the strangest things about me is that I love being alone. When friends of mine talk about how terrible it is to spend the holidays single or how strong I was for being single for so long I just never get it. Being single and/or alone can be pretty rocking. I would work whenever I wanted to and for as many hours as I wanted to then I would come home and eat exactly what I wanted and watch any TV or movie that I wanted and drink whiskey and any mess that was in my house would be mine and I would know exactly why it was there and when it would be cleaned up. It was lovely. Now, I think I can talk about loving being alone because it was my choice/preferance. I have an amazing family I can see anytime I want, I have wonderful friends to hang out with, and honestly getting a date was never really that hard (finding a great man to date, now that's a challenge!).

8. Craft more: Ugh, nope. I want to be craft so badly but every craft just seems like an unreasonable waste of money. I think I'm spreading myself a little too thin, I follow all of these DIY blogs and I'm trying to do too much too soon. I'll pick a few craft projects for next year and see how those go before I start to invest a lot of money.

What I'm Thankful For

So I've realized that often times I sound incredibly ungrateful on this blog. Despite my best efforts I can easily slip into a "woe is me" pity party. SO, because I don't want to be that kind of person I've decided to compile a list of things that I am thankful for. Perhaps I should have done this on Thanksgiving but Christmas day is a good enough time to take a second and appreciate how lucky I really am (even if I'm broke as a joke!).

What I am Thankful for:

1. My family (especially my Mom). There's a MILLION reasons I'm so thankful for my family. I doubt I could list them all if I tried. My family loves me, they support me, and I have zero doubt that they would do anything for me. While I grew up poor, I grew up loved which is so much more important. In my line of work I see what can happen to women who grow up thinking that they don't deserve a certain level of love. While I may be single and broke this holiday season I'm in this position because I was able to get an education and because I knew I deserved a higher level of respect and love from a boyfriend than what I was receiving. If that's not a blessing in disguise I don't know what is.

2. That my "poor/broke" is first world level "poor/broke". Yes, I'm broke but I'm not third-world-I'm-about-to-die-of-malnutrition-broke. I may struggle to make ends meet but I have a home. I have access to a heater on these sort of cold Texas nights. I have food. I have a TV for Christ's sake! I'm so blessed even in my broke state.

3. My Job. I love my job. Seriously. I love my co workers, I love what I do, I love the fact that I have job security and I don't pay a single cent for health care. That's amazing. I'm proud of what I do and not many people can say that.

4. My Friends. I could almost copy and paste what I wrote for my family and stick it here. I have the best friends in the world. When I was going through a really rough home life with an ex they gave me a place to stay. They took care of my dog. They send supportive texts and emails when I'm sad and despite the fact that we all lead such busy lives we all make time at least once a week to see each other. I trust them and I have a hard time trusting ANYONE. They've seen me through highs and lows and I love them like they were my family.

5. Booze. C'mon. It's awesome. Also, I have no addiction to it which is pretty rad. I've cut WAY back due to my cough and the fact that I don't want to get pulled over on "No refusal weekend". I've seen the way that alcohol addiction can destroy lives and I'm thankful that I can enjoy booze but I'm not a slave to it. Heck, the other weekend I was the designated driver, Go me!!

6. That nothing REALLY unfair and shitty has happened to me (*knock on wood*). Lots of unfair and shitty things happen every day. Some poor girl got her hand sliced off and may lose her eye because she walked into an airplanes propeller. She did so because she turned around too quickly because she wanted to thank the pilot. That fucking sucks. It came out this year that Penn State was perfectly aware that Sandusky was molesting children and they didn't do shit about it. Imagine if you were that child. You're getting raped in a shower and an adult walks in and you think that you're saved and that grown man just turns around and leaves. That's beyond shitty, that's inhuman. While I believe my loan re-payment is completely unfair it's not even CLOSE to how sad and unfair life can be sometimes.

While this list doesn't even come close to giving thanks to how amazing my life is it's definitely nice to see in black and white how truly lucky and blessed I am. I have a car so I can easily get to work, I can vote, I have enough extra money so I can live in a safe area, I have enough extra money to get beers with friends. Life is amazing and if my only complaint is that my student loans are bananas then I am beyond blessed.

Get ready: coming soon, my New Years Resolution and What Rocked Me the Most in 2011. Gotta love end of year lists <3