All these things that I have done

So resolutions. I used to poo-poo the whole resolution thing, but in the last few years, like to-do lists, I've come to like it. I used to think, as someone on my friends page wrote (I can't remember who, sorry) that you were setting yourself up for failure but now, I'm not so sure. Like so many things, the trick is to have the right attitude to the resolutions.

For me, making resolutions has become an aspirational thing. It's what do I want to do with this year? What do I want to achieve? I've been finding that it helps me when I set goals and evaluate them. Evaluating them might involve me deciding that actually the goal was unrealistic or that I've realised it's not really something I want after all, but that's not a problems. It can also give me a boost when you look back and realise how far you've come. If there's a goal I haven't met that I still want then reviewing helps me to focus on why that is and reminds me to think about it and how to achieve it.

Anyway. Enough rambling on. Last year's resolutions:

• Reach my target weight at Weight watchers. I want to get down to 10st and then stay there. Ideally I'd like to do this by my birthday at the end of February, but I don't know if I will actually be able to make that. No progress here at all. I was doing OK but then hit a plateau at about 11st2lb but then I didn't lose any more for a while and started to loose my motivation. With the house move followed by Christmas I've ended up putting a lot of it back on. I'll be having another go this year, but probably not go to WeightWatchers meetings as I've got a little disillusioned by them and have now got all the literature anyway (after a year they repeat themselves). I'll be trying to use some of their methods though - they did get me pretty far before.
• Re-pay all my un-managed debts. By unmanaged, I mean debts which don't have proper payment plans. Like my overdraft, for example. I did do quite well on this and have in fact paid off all my overdraft but I still have some money on interest free cards which I didn't manage to finish paying, mostly because of buying the house instead. I'll be working on this one again this year.
• Go to Paris. I don't think we're going on a big family holiday this year, but I do want to finally make it to Paris with Alex. Perhaps a week, perhaps a long weekend. Nope. Just didn't get round to it. We're hoping to go this May.
• Buy an mp3 player. Check.
• Join an orchestra or choir. Nope - I just didn't get time in the end. To be honest, while I'd still like to do this, it's not really going to be realistic right now.

And this year's resolutions

• Complete the TTP project* in good time.
• Get some rest. Don't take on any more new projects for at least 6 months and let the ones I have settle into a routine.
• Take better care of myself. I need to get round to addressing a couple of health issues and I need to take better care of myself generally - I'm drinking too much and snacking too much and not exercising enough.
• Get back to the weight I was at last year (i.e. about 11st)
• Write more letters. Actual physical letters.

* I've wanted a project called the TTP project ever since seeing the Dilbert cartoon and now that we're designing a call logging system for work and I can call it what I like, that's what I call it.