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This is not a resolutions post

I've never really done new year's resolutions because I usually forget about them two weeks into January. But now that the holidays are over, and the sense of entitlement I have toward excess has worn off, here are a few things I'd like to work on.

Get more ambient exercise. When I quit working downtown, I cut about two miles of walking out of my day. I need to walk more in addition to the planned exercise I get. Plus, it's just nice to get outside and walk around.

Read more. This goes alone with the previous one. I used to get most of my reading done on public transit. In the last few days I have had to set aside time to sit and read. To clarify, that means reading something printed on paper, whether it's the New Yorker or one of the eleven dozen books in my to-read stack. And consequently spending less time reading stuff on the computer.

Send less to the landfill. We're actually quite good about this already. We recycle or compost most of our refuse. I always take my own bags grocery shopping. We generate little enough trash that we share one garbage bin with our upstairs neighbor. But I need to use reusable food containers more often, and not so many ziploc bags. I should reach for the kitchen towels more often than the paper towels. Buy more food in bulk and less food in ridiculous packaging. (Trader Joe's produce, I'm looking at you.) And the harder thing to do will be to reduce the stream of junk mail. It is really, really difficult to get oneself off of catalog mailing lists.

Drink less alcohol. Way less. I think I had something to drink almost every night in December. And November. That's a lot of calories. Not to mention wear and tear on my liver, stomach, brain, etc.

All sounds pretty reasonable, no? What things in your life have you decided to work on?

January 5, 2007 3:21 PM