Friday, January 3, 2014

New Year's Resolutions? Not My Thing.

But I'll make a resolution on any other day of the year.

Really, it's quite ridiculous, this little part of me that's so determined to not do something a certain way just because that happens to be the way everyone else does it.  For quite a while, I didn't make resolutions on New Year's Day, or Eve, or what-have-you, just because that was the time that everyone else made theirs.

Not because I-know-I-won't-keep-it-so-why-try, or because I-think-we-should-make-life-decisions-not-year-long-resolutions, or anything like that.
No.  My only problem was that everyone-else-does-it-and-I'm-not-going-to-be-like-everyone-else-if-I-can-help-it.

Don't get me wrong here - I was a resolving fool.  I could make resolutions with the best of them.  And fail with the best of them...

But starting on New Year's? Never.  Well, to be more truthful, my journal from 1999 may have some resolutions in it...

My sister, I'm sure, has quite given up being my accountability partner for any of these middle-of-the-year resolution plans, because I can justify myself (to myself at least) into or out of anything, no matter how reasonable she may be in her steady efforts to keep me accountable, or how ridiculous I may be in my efforts to get out of things.

So, you may imagine how much I surprised myself last year when I made a New Year's Resolution, albeit somewhere around January 5th or so as I recall - but still - closer to New Year's than ever before.

And, how much more surprised I was when I kept my resolve throughout the year.
I did slip once, which I justified, and which may or may not really have been necessary, but the fact remains - I proved something to myself in a major way:

It is possible to make one of these resolutions and keep it for the duration of an entire year.

Also?  Let's talk about the fact that this was a resolution not to buy myself any clothes.

NOT TO BUY MYSELF ANY CLOTHES In case you didn't hear correctly the first time.

Now, in case you haven't noticed, I'll tell you a few things:

  • I'm a woman
  • I care about how I look - specifically how I dress
  • A year spans across all four seasons - Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter


Shockingly, I was fully clothed at all times (not in rags either!), I had a warm coat, an embarrassment of riches in the scarf and swimsuit department, and more button-ups than a woman who works at a summer camp should ever have need of.  And dresses.  So. Many. Dresses.  Shorts were a little freak-out moment, as you may remember.  But that was the only point where this was actually mildly difficult.  And I say mildly, because really? 5 pairs of shorts is plenty for a woman who also has the blessing of a washing machine and dryer in her apartment.

All in all, I learned a lot about myself from the whole experience, and I really feel like a different person as far as shopping goes.  We'll see what this year holds as far as whether we've actually killed the shopping habit as I would have liked to.

So, lessons learned:

  • New Year's Resolutions can actually make a difference in my life, and my habits
  • I can actually keep a resolution if I really determine to do it


Therefore, you can bet I made a resolution this year:

I'm going off processed sugar for a year.

There.
I said it.

Guys, I'm really scared about this one, and I'm afraid it may be harder than last year
*cringe*
Throughout my entire life, I've consistently craved sweet way more than salty or sour or savory.  And I know I have got to make a change.  I've gone off sugar for a few months at a time before, but I always go back to old habits of putting so much junk into my system.  Now that I know I can practice self-control, though, I'm going to do it for an entire year, so hopefully I will learn to get my sweet tooth under control.

Now, please don't think the point of this post was to say "Look at me and what I accomplished already, and what still-greater things I'm going to accomplish, because I'm Superwoman."
The point of this post is that I need you, and you, and you to know, so that you can keep me accountable to this decision.
Also I'm hoping it's a good way to revive the faith of some of you that have experienced some difficulty in keeping me accountable in the past.

Also, I think it's worth noting that I really don't think I'm going to make a huge change in my life by breaking a habit for a year, then returning to the way I was.  I will be coming up with some sort of plan to keep myself under control this year with the shopping - maybe one item a month or something?
Not sure yet, but I'll let you know.

Also, have you ever seen so many colons and bulleted lists and hyphens in a single post?

Also, do I say "also" too much?

6 comments:

  1. If I wanted to make a really easy new year resolution this year for myself I would say no buying anymore t-shirts. I still regularly wear tshirts from 10 years ago. But Sugar on the other hand thats a tough one. I wish you the best of luck and ill be sure to only offer you corn flakes for cereal options.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know. Breakfast is definitely going to be the hardest part :(

      Delete
  2. You go girl! Stephen has only been allowing himself one sweets day/week, since last June. It has really helped us all realize how much sugar we take in. We are all going to try and embrace his resolve this year...just as soon as we finish all the holiday candy ;) I have a great granola recipe that we make with maple syrup. Stephen and Kevin eat it with (homemade goat milk) yogurt for breakfast or snacks all the time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Megan! First off, I never knew you had a blog, so I excitedly went to it and discovered that... You haven't posted since last January. I was quite sad, but enjoyed reading the old news all the same.
      I've been thinking about trying to make a good granola. I'd love to hear what's in yours as far as nuts, grains, etc. But I really have an aversion to Maple Syrup, unfortunately :(

      Delete
  3. You can do it! Really the more you go off of it, the more you realize how truly gross it is. Honest. And there's totally agave nectar and honey and molasses and um, maybe dark chocolate should be an exception cause it's not very sweet and has all those antioxidants? Anyways. You have a lot of delicious non-processed sweetness to discover, and friends who write really big run on sentences to cheer you on. Hooray! :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hahahaha! Friends who write really big run on sentences are my favorite kind :)
      Thanks for the support, my dear!
      Also, I saw Agave nectar at the store the other day, but was a little afraid to pick it up as I have no idea how to use it, so just got honey instead. Have you used the agave nectar before?

      Delete

Yes! I'm so happy you decided to leave a comment.
I read every single one, and just love hearing from you!