2007 Round-Up (a.k.a., Did Liz Meet her Goals?)

Back in February of 2007, (yes, I got a late start), I published some of my goals for 2007 on the blog. You can read those here. Alas, when you pursue such an endeavor, you actually have to reevaluate whether you reached some of those goals. It's not always a fun thing to do, but nonetheless, needs to be done.

So, did I? Hmm, let's see.

1) Learn how to play golf and then play golf, lots. Done. Well, kind of. I know HOW to play golf; I did take lessons, but I didn't play.

2) Learn how to scuba dive, so that I can go diving in Belize in 2008. (See #3.) Nope.

3) Plan a visit to Alli, a dear friend who's in the Peace Corps in Belize, for 2008. Done! The girls and I are going to the wonderful world of Belize this spring! Yeah!

4) Make a difficult decision. Done. Done! DONE! (Well, soon enough, at least. Can't hurry the law.)

5) Endeavor to read more books, to where the stack on the corner table is under 5 books by the end of the year. Hmm, corner table stack is gone, but I've got a library now with real bookcases. I might have just shifted the stack. I'm not really sure. But I have read more books than I did last year. (I wasn't in grad school this year like I was last year, you see.)

6) Have more fun. More than when? How much more? What counts as "more?" (Note that this goal is horribly written; you should always make goals measurable. My strategy professors at UNCG would have a fit.)

However, given the events of this year, I think I had enough fun. Dancing for my birthday, out to L.A. to see my sister's wedding, random trips to Charleston, SC, for the weekend, girls trip to Wilmington, last week's sleepover with the girls (who says you can't have a sleepover when you're 30?!), etc. I think I could always use more, though.

7) Act out some fantasies. (Read what you want to into this one, but you're not getting detail unless I want to share it with you.) Some, yes. Others, no. Again, you don't get detail on this unless I've already shared it with you. Sorry.

8) Get more massages. I must not have been thinking very well when I wrote this list. Again with the "more" issue. I think I did meet that goal, though; I can think of at least four that I've had this year, and surely that's more than I had last year. I seriously, seriously considered buying one of those massage packages from Kneaded Energy. Might still do it.

9) Rescue my grandmother's emails from the computer I haven't used in 7 years. At some point, I'll post them here. Done! And since I'm posting Grandma's thoughts when the feeling moves me, and there are 36 more, you'll get the blessing of seeing a new set this year.

10) Volunteer more and give more. I have what many good, Southern, church-going people would call a blessed life. I know it and I know that it could be gone in an instant. I'd better be grateful and share. *Sigh.* More than what? And perhaps more appropriately, more?! I give a lot. I do. Most of the time, it's without want for anything in return. But, I did perhaps achieve this goal and because it feels boastful to say why I think that, I won't.

11) Workout on a fairly regular basis. (I've completely sucked at this one in the past two weeks, and seeing as how I'm going to give blood this afternoon, I'm not going to get it today, either.) Hmm, do the first six months average out to the entire year as "fairly regular?" I'm thinking probably not. I've not had a decent workout in a long time. Yes, it's my own fault. Yes, I could be saving that money I'm sending to the YMCA. Yes, I have fantasies that I might get back into a "fairly regular" workout routine.

Maybe I'll start today. Oh wait. I already did. Walked a 5K at midnight this morning. January 1, 2008 - DONE! Now, onto January 2 . . .

12) Find another "damn" dress that I can afford - and wear it. Done! Not so much on the affordable part, but done nonetheless! Now, if I can just find a reason to wear it again . . .

Oh, and I:
- Wrote a book
- Bought a house
- Found two great jobs
- Was asked to sit on another board
- Made some really great friends
- Bought art that I love
- Learned how to get the leaf blower to start
- Learned how to wipe a hard drive
- Know what makes me happy
- Sent my Christmas Cards before Christmas
- Had a couple of parties
- Watched two seasons of Gilmore Girls
- Had green grass for a few weeks (really, the kind you want to take pictures of, because you just can't believe it)
- and . . .

2007 wasn't all that bad of a year for me, it seems. Not one of my best, but certainly one that has special meaning for me nonetheless. I can only imagine that 2008 will be much better. Really, I can't have two years like '07 in a row.

So, come on, world! I'm ready to have a wonderful, fabulous, terrific year! Bring it on!