Ordinarily, I don’t “do” New Year’s Resolutions. I’m too good at breaking them and then wind up feeling guilty, with guilt then prompting me to indulge in all of my worst habits far more than I most likely would. So for years now I’ve snickered over other peoples’ resolutions, certain they’d break them and equally certain they’d wind up in the very cycle I’m trying to avoid.
But this year it dawned on me that, even though I haven’t made resolutions on New Year’s Day, I’ve still made resolutions of sorts at other points during the year, and I haven’t kept them, either. The result? I’ve been griping about changes I’ve wanted to make in my life without making any effort to, well, actually change. No more. This year, I’ve made four New Years’ Resolutions — and I fully intend on keeping each and every one of them.
1. I’m quitting smoking. I’m actually on Day 2 of it, and thus far it hasn’t been as bad as I’d feared. (Pardon me while I go knock on wood.) Oh, sure, I’ve thought about having a smoke a couple of times, but mostly I’ve been able to remain distracted enough not to think about it. Maybe coming down with chicken pox has some benefits after all — scratching has certainly kept my hands busy!
2. I’m going to lose weight. I’ve always kept an extra 10-15 pounds on my frame, but in the past year I’ve added more weight on top of that. (No, I won’t tell you how much.) Since I’m quitting smoking, I realize packing on more pounds is the normal thing — good thing I’d dropped 10 pounds, and kept it off, before the holidays! I’ll be chomping on celery and carrot sticks to stave off the nicotine cravings, and hopefully they’ll help me avoid calorie-laden snacks, too.
3. I’m going to exercise. I hate, hate, hate exercise in all forms. Always have, probably always will. But between homeschooling, blogging, and working on my novel, my life is far too sedentary. Hence the extra pounds. So, when those nicotine cravings get to be too unbearable, I’m going to lift weights, do yoga or ride my exercise bike. (As I’ve mentioned before, the latter would get used far more often if I could figure out how to rig my laptop to it!) So, hate it or not, I’m going to follow the same advice I give my son about his personal hygiene: you don’t have to like it, you just have to do it.
4. I’m going to paint all the rooms in our house I don’t like. We’ve officially lived in our house for two years next week, and yet I’ve yet to change the apple green color in our family room, the streaky paint in our basement bathroom, the two hunter green (and two off white) walls in our bedroom, the leaf-green in our kitchen (complete with rooster stencils) or the Pepto Bismal pink in our master bathroom. I hate those colors, but I haven’t done a darned thing about them. Time to change that.
5. Finally, I am going to have drinks with Beth Donovan! We’ve lived practically around the corner from each other for two years now, and yet we’ve never managed to get together. What a shame, too! Beth strikes me as a funny, witty and down-to-earth kind of woman… they precise kind of person I most enjoy hanging out with. So here’s to hoping our schedules will get in synch soon!
What resolutions did you make, and how are you doing with them?
Tuesday, January 2nd, 2007, 2:01 pm | 
My Venomous Life | 
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January 2, 2007 at 7:53 pm
You have many things on your list that I need to do as well.
I quit smoking many years ago. My method was a basic cold turkey method…but when I got the craving, I went to the store and bought the oldest, nastiest cigarette they may have on the shelf. You know, the kind that never sell and nobody smokes. Stale, nasty, make ya vomit kind of smokes…it worked. It put a taste in my mouth that I just cannot shake and I have absolutely no desire for a cigarette today. Cigars…now that is different. But, I usually have those around special occasions.
Good luck to you…nothing like publishing what you want to do. Perhaps I should do the same thing, that might put the pressure on me!
January 2, 2007 at 8:37 pm
Holding myself accountable was the big reason for publshing these, particularly on the smoking thing. I’ve tried to quit so many times, but have never actually made it to the end of Day 2 without breaking down and lighting one up. It’s always been, “Well, one won’t really matter.” This time, I haven’t given in. I just keep telling myself the craving will pass, that I want to quit, and that in a week this will be much easier.
Sure wish VH wouldn’t keep giving in, though — just smelling the smoke on him when he comes in from “sneaking” a cigarette outside is an awful temptation.
January 2, 2007 at 8:52 pm
My Quit Meter just gave me this positive little reminder:
Sure, it’s small but it’s a start!
January 2, 2007 at 9:29 pm
Best wishes on the smokes thing. Everyone I know who has really quit has done it as you are now. Just fed up with it and done. I would have said it was the best resolution you could have made for yourself, except that I have had drinks with Beth a couple times, and she and her Man-Friday are down-right all-right.
January 2, 2007 at 11:37 pm
Best of luck on the smoking thing. I knew a guy once who quit cold turkey from a 3 pack a day habit – successfully. He was taking tae kwon do… when he got cravings he’d do pushups until his arms collapsed. *grin* Possibly you could use the exersize bike in that way…
On the exercise. I’ve found that if I put it in my treo as an appointment – I will do it as opposed to thinking I’ll get to it later in the day. I know you left your old treo behind… but if you have a calendar in outlook or something of that sort – where you can make appointments with alarms (very important to have an alarm!) you might be able to do some working out. Do a little bit at the same time every day instead of trying to do a lot in 2 or 3 days a week. Consistency really helps.
On the painting – set up todo lists. Start with the room you want done first. Plan out what you would do every day (maybe even one wall at a time instead of the whole room at once) put it in your calendar… then you’ll do it just to check it off. (remember to add a reward for finishing at the end)
And have a good time with Beth! We want to hear all about it. *grin*
January 3, 2007 at 5:01 am
I never, ever do the resolution thing, but like you this year is different… and I have some weight to lose as well.
Don’t know what it is about the holidays; I stop working out and start stuffing my face. But my ‘holidays’ are starting earlier every year… LOL!
January 3, 2007 at 6:19 am
I just quit smoking, again, back in August and so far so good. I find Zyban works wonders to keep me from taking off the heads of people around me, but I’m weak that way. One of the other things I practically chanted when a craving hit hard was, “No matter what I do, the craving will be gone in 10 minutes.”
January 3, 2007 at 11:49 am
I’ve been doing a similar chant. It’s surprisingly effective. So far the single biggest difference for me this time – versus all the other times I tried to quit – is that I am not giving myself an excuse to take “just one little puff” or to have “just part of a cigarette to quell the cravings.”
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