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Monday 30 December 2013

New Year's Resolutions

So, here we are on the eve of New Years Eve.  I know a lot of people don't bother with New Years resolutions figuring that they are just setting themselves up for failure.  I certainly understand that since I have not fulfilled many over the years.  Still, I have nailed at least one big one:  I smoked my last cigarette in the very early hours of January 1, 1998.  At that point I was smoking between two and three packs a day and regularly waking up in the middle of the night horking something up from my lungs.  Plus, my mother's lung cancer had returned earlier in the year and was undergoing chemo.  Her side of the family has been decimated by the disease - her father, her brother and her sister would all die from the disease and another brother would have a lung removed and survive many years.  Indeed, though I didn't know it at the time, my mother herself would succumb to her cancer exactly one year after I quit - New Years Eve of 1998.

That one success - not smoking for 15 years - is enough to keep me making my annual list.  So, just three simple ones this year:

  • Quit biting my nails:  I've been a nail biter all my life and am embarrassed by how my hands look and frustrated that I can't pick up loose change off the ground.
  • Try to stop swearing:  I swear.  A lot. Not a good role model for my daughter.  I would hate for her to swear like me.  It's a lazy form of communication.
  • Keep up the exercise and try to lose some more weight:  I've worked hard the last year and a half or so to get into shape.  I'm probably in better physical condition now than I have been at any other point in the last decade or two.
So, those are mine and I would love to hear your thoughts on resolutions in general and any you might have in particular.

A happy New Year to all and good luck in setting and meeting your goals.

8 comments:

  1. Mine:
    1. Stop eating chips. Not the nice French fried ones from the fast foods or the good food joints, but the ones that come in the king-sized-eat-till-you-throw-up sized bags.

    2. Be happy that I am alive. I know a large number of people that aren't anymore, any a number who may not make it out of 2014. Time to be happy for what I have in that area.

    3. TBD

    Brad

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    1. I expect success on number 1 will help you with number two. All the best to you and your brood in the New Year, Brad.

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  2. Geoff, that is probably the most awe-inspiring feat you can do, quit smoking! Congratulations. Quite an accomplishment. I love it when people take charge of their health. My resolution is simply to try and be thankful for each day, manage my stress at work (I'm an RN at a hospital), and appreciate my friends, family, and life.

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    1. Thank you, Dawn. Quitting smoking - and later drinking - was among the most difficult things I've done. My family and I have had far too much contact with the health care system over the past two years or so, but those experiences have made us unbelievably grateful for the work done by nurses and other health professionals. There seems to be a habit, especially in the US to thank members of the military for their service, which is well deserved, but like to thank nurses, too. So, thank you for the work you do. I hope knowing that so many are appreciative of your efforts helps you manage the stress in that part of your life. All the best in the new year. - Geoff

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  3. That's super awesome that you've ditched the smoking habit - and left it behind you! Kudos...you are SO far ahead healthwise because of it! Re: the swearing, maybe you should start a "swear jar" where you have to put in a quarter (or a loonie!) every time you swear...with the money going to your kids. That outta shut you up. ;-)

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    1. Thanks, Sonia. I've quit smoking, I've quit drinking and I'm a little concerned if I quit swearing I'll sprout a halo and wings and be forced to take harp lessons! One job I had way back when I was a student was in an isolated building so my whole division used to eat lunch together and we had a piggy bank for swearing, with the proceeds going to a needy family at Christmas. I fed that pig so much we actually were able to sponsor two families.

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  4. I'll have to nickname you "Mr. Potty Mouth." At least someone has benefited from your vices! ;-)

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  5. I've had worse nicknames. Sadly, my progress on this particular resolution is, if I am being very generous, slow.

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