Last year, I stole an awesome idea from one of my internet stalkees, Alida, and I did the 31-for-31 thingie. I liked it so much, I’m going to do it again for my birthday this year! (For quick refreshment: In Part 1, you are meant to list 31 things you want to do this year. In part 2, you are meant to list 31 things you’ve learned this year.)
Of my 31 to-dos, here was what I accomplished:
- Get my arm back to 100% (or preferably, 120%) – Yeah bitches!!! I’M BIONIC NOW! And thankfully, the scar healed up a bit more so I can be less vain about being attacked by Somali pirates. But the plate sticks out all the time and it’s still frustratingly uncomfortable (as well as one of the screws starting to work its way out), so I may end up removing it soon. We’ll see.
- Be diligent with physical therapy, and stop being so pig-headed and impatient about how long it takes to freaking heal a stupid bone (Ahem.) – I followed this advice, which is why my arm is super-ridiculously-strong now. My husband, who separated his shoulder JUST AS I WAS GETTING BETTER last March, did not do his physical therapy, and now looks like the Huncharm of Houston. I told him that would happen, and he was pig-headed and impatient, and that’s what he gets for it. I can’t take him anywhere with me now. (Just kidding, baby. You’re still beautiful.)
- Buy a boat (30-34ft preferably) – Bought a 32ft catamaran! Husband spent about two months solid fixing it up in North Carolina while I
worked on the housewatched Netflix. - Start jogging – I actually started jogging in March 2012 (as soon as my doctor said I could), and then I got a workout buddy and started going to high-intensity spin classes shortly thereafter.
- Get good enough at jogging to start running (if doctor says it’s okay!) – See above!
- Lose 25 pounds (minimum) – I lost 35 pounds. :) Spin classes paid off!
- DO NOT EDIT NOVEL – Technically, since I didn’t write on the novel much, I didn’t edit it either. But I started writing in it again!
- Finally reply to the long emails I received from my lovable friends that have been sitting in my inbox for months – I did this!! I DID THIS!!
- Talk on the phone with my friends and loved ones more, no matter how much I hate being on the phone – I did this, but not much. :\
- Go skiing – I actually went to Steamboat Springs in March, only days after my doctor said it was okay to do physical activities (though he was confident I’d be okay if I fell down), and despite super baby-giraffeness, I DIDN’T FALL DOWN ONCE. But I did get eyefucked by a real life wolf in the middle of a section of forest while no one else was around. It was a majestic fucking experience, until I realized that if he was there, his pack was probably close by and I was not really interested in getting potentially mauled by wolves without the ability to punch one of those motherfuckers in the throat.
- Say yes to something that scares me (Or many somethings.) – MANY SOMETHINGS. I did them all! They are mostly all secret, and the ones that aren’t I can’t remember anymore. But just trust me.
- Get the landscaping done on the house – Done.
- Try a food item I’ve never had before (but NOT pig brains. Or any other brains.) – Done. Can’t remember what it was, but it was good.
- Play the lottery. – I won $3!
- Listen more. – Done, learned a lot.
- Be honest. – Done, potentially lost a friend, who came back and said I was right and she should have followed my #15 above.
- Dance as often as possible. – In the shower, in the kitchen, whenever I’m happy, whenever I’m sad, whenever I just almost tripped and am now trying to cover for it in front of the supercute bartender who totally just noticed me, whenever I am grocery shopping, whenever I am drunk, whenever I am not drunk….
Of all the things I’m most proud of, it’s #6. I’d been struggling for a few years with self-esteem and comfy-in-my-own-skin issues from gaining weight. It was a combination of metabolism/age and a job that didn’t really give me much time to shower and sleep regularly, much less plan out healthy meals and eat them, but regardless…I changed jobs, and with it, I stopped giving myself excuses to stay lazy. I started to become responsible for my own health, my own nutrition, my own self-esteem again. I discovered that yes, it’s hard and yes, it’s difficult to go have dinner or drinks with friends who don’t think about their health, and to have to turn down 400-calorie alcoholic beverages and politely explain that it wasn’t worth it to me to have that cheesecake when I’d rather spend my cheat meal on tex-mex. :) But the feeling of taking care of yourself, of watching your body transform, of knowing that it’s worth it, was better than any tiramisu in the world.
Even better, I accidentally motivated others to start treating themselves better. My husband, just through our diet changes (drinking only water and cutting out processed foods, etc), dropped 25 pounds as well. My friends ask me to help motivate themselves to get fit. I’ve like, become someone that people look up to. It’s weird. :)
It’s been a crazy year, peeps. 2012 was one of the worst years of my life, and it seems to have been the same for everyone else, so…I’m glad it’s over. 2013 is going to bring some amazing things my way. I can feel it!
Prepare thyself for 32 for 32! And I promise, after this, there will be less sap and motivational music. PROMISE.
itstaylormade 