Make 2008 my best year yet

this is the first year in ages that i haven’t entered with a ridiculous (in retrospect) list of resolutions: new me here, new me there. which is great: i just want to carry on as i have been. maybe it’s something i’ve learned from running. slow but steady progress will get you there eventually. i seem to be shedding the all-or-nothing mindset and developing confidence that i will achieve my goals, even if it takes a bit longer than planned. and that’s something to be proud of in itself.

1) run a 10k for amnesty international
yes! on the last day of the year, with a wonderful team and in great conditions. have just calculated that my km pace was only marginally (8 secs) slower for the 10k including hills than it was for the 9k on the flat, which seems to indicate that i’ve progressed in the last 2 months.
i can’t get over how happy i am to have discovered running in the last 15 months or so. and how proud of myself i am. was filing away my finishing certificate this morning—already have a little collection.
and, as a direct result, i have achieved one of my 2007 BYY goals, which was to get my BMI down to 24 or below. and i’ve got muscles—these huge hard things in my thighs that have come from nowhere. (there’s probably something to be learned here about product vs. process goals.)
now just have to do a bit more work on collecting sponsor money!

2) cycle a century
nearly, we did 135km around waren in september. that’s about 84 miles. physically, we could have done the whole century, but we left it too late in the year—it was already dark and starting to rain as we finished the 135km day. i’m really glad we discovered the mecklenburgische seenplatte as an ace place for cycling (oooh, and the hotel was fab!). i’m going to carry this goal over to next year. and definitely plan a cycling holiday for 2009, too!

3) buy a flat!
hmm, i’ve done nothing on this. and i don’t know if i really want to. maybe it’s just something i think i should be doing. then again, it’s surely better to have somewhere you can live when you’re old than to put your money in crappy investment funds and see it disappear (i speak from experience)... i really do need to get my blimming finances sorted.

4) take control of my home
hmmm. i don’t know. i think i’ve made incremental progress, but nothing spectacular to report.

5) become a gardening goddess
same as above, really. alb is definitely the constant gardener around here. but i would like to keep working on it.

6) nurture relationships with friends and family
yes, has gone generally well. i didn’t do any catching up with long losts, but have had lots of great times with friends and family. and that’s the most important thing in life, innit?

7) unleash my creativity
bought a new sewing machine and made a good start, but haven’t done much since. was discussing courses with Deb, should look into that again.

8) make my website somewhere people want to visit again and again
hmm, not really. i seem to have lost interest. i’m just about managing to keep the site updated, but am always reacting and making short-term changes rather than looking at the big picture. a relauch is needed, but i have neither the skills nor the energy. maybe i’ll feel a bit more motivated after our January meeting. need to read some of those books i’ve bought too.

9) knowledge/courses/books/museums goal
ha, this was a good one. have read loads of books, continued going to museums quite frequently, completed the short OU writing course, and am now working on the longer one (actually, i should be working on the longer one at this moment).

so i’d put 2008 down as a great year overall, especially the last day! as i said above, in many respects i’d like to just carry on making steady progress in 2009. at the same time, i’m noticing how important and satisfying it is to have specific goals to work towards that take you to new places and teach you new things (running a 10k!). so i’m going to have a think about my 2009 goals. some will carry on from the above list, but i’d also like to have something new, challenging and exciting. hmmmmm…

i wasn’t able to get a good photo of this, but it’s the inside of my old cycle helmet. and those two cracks running left and down from the air vent in the centre are not supposed to be there. it’s thanks to my helmet that my head is still in one piece. thank you helmet.

am a bit late writing this, so now have just 2.5 weeks until we go to dorset for a week, yay! feel i have been losing track of my BYY goals even though work has been a lot less manic, so let’s have a look…

1) run a 10k
still incredibly proud of my 32-minute 5k run. _{alb was wearning my medal this morning.} don’t think i’ve been quite as proud of anything since getting my first degree (what does that say about me?)
next big goal: run around the alster (7.4km) this weekend. i can do it!

2) cycle a century
hmm, should look into blocking off time for some long cycling days in june. hmmmmm.

while we’re talking sporty things, our swimming pool closes for the summer (?!) on 29 june. i think i have 12 more swims left on my card, so want to go as often as possible…

3) buy a flat!
at the moment i’m just dropping this into the conversation occasionally and learning useful bits here and there, but what i really need to do is my blimming 2007 taxes!

4) take control of my home
hmm. have at least discovered i’m quite good at tidying while listening to audiobooks. and do now have a sewing table and a lampshade. but could do so much more…

5) become a gardening goddess
more hmmm. have borrowed a sander and it would make sense to get the balcony table done pronto.

• celebratory hamburg weekend coming up
• D coming next weekend
• get in touch with Diana!
• reply to Maeve, get in touch with A/M in bournemouth?

• more sewing! things to impress family in Dorset!

8) make my website somewhere people want to visit again and again
have lost momentum here completely at the moment. don’t feel able to make any big changes until the ai.de site has been relaunched…

9) knowledge/courses/books/museums goal
am behind with OU course, this must be a definite priority of the 3-week project. first whatever-it’s-called due on the day before we fly…

• run around the alster DONE!
• finish losing 5k, dammit!
• 5 swims 3 done
• catch up with OU course, submit first assignment done!
• do 2007 taxes nope
• sand/treat the balcony table nope
• install the new blinds done
• quick and easy yet impressive sewing project nope
• work: ama website done, code book nope, other stuff came up, listening comprehension texts done—and nothing else if i can help it!

that doesn’t sound bad at all. if i could just delete that pesky last point it would be wonderful…

april is looking nice and relaxed, workwise. and No is my default setting! but i do find that i often flounder when i’m not working, and don’t really manage to make much progress on my other goals. am loath to take on big projects and instead end up “decluttering magazines” and useful things like that. i think i need to raise the bar a bit, but am not sure quite how. will start by setting some reasonable-sounding goals for the rest of the month.

1) run a 10k
oooh, i’ve just signed up for the ladies’ 5k fun-run in tiergarten in mid-may!! if only i’d done it a few days earlier i could have saved myself 3 euros. am very nervous about running with other people and am definitely going to run the route beforehand so i know what to expect. DONE DONE DONE! 32 minutes!!!
actually, there’s another fun-run on in a couple of weeks, but that would be 6.3km, and there’s a vague possibility that we might to frankfurt that weekend, so i won’t sign up just yet. (reminder to self: online registration possible until 16.04.) nope, didn’t do that one.
goals: keep running! yes indeed!

2) cycle a century
have found some fantastic-looking routes around waren an der mueritz, which is very easy to get to by train.
goals: hope it stops raining soon so that we can take a few days out and get some practice! it did stop raining, but what happened to the time?

3) buy a flat!
going to an auction next week with P just to see how it works. will see how inspired i feel after that. done, interesting!
goals: get 2007 taxes done in april! nope

• focus on office, find places to put things! nope
• get sofa covers washed alb took them in!
• cull bookshelves, try to clear table of books! have sorted some out for oxfam and moved the rest off the table, at least. table is now sewing table.

• finish clearing up balcony
• repot seedlings
• think about doing whatever needs doing to wooden things
  none of this done

• make definite plan to visit E/meet in HH looks like we’re going to wait til june…
• get ma booked in for july nope
• meet up with I yep!
• do Moabit tour with M nope
• mail D and some more long losts talked to A, she’s hoping to come to eetalee! yeah!

7) unleash my creativity
sewing course was supposed to start this week, but has been postponed (they couldn’t get enough people together).
goals: get sewing machine out and see if it still works (can only do this when table is cleared of books) argh! got new sewing machine instead!

• start working my way through the readers nope

• do what i can to prepare for OU course, yay!
• get new museum year ticket and see cool stuff not yet, but no hurry while the weather’s so good
• read another of my TBR books nope

i feel i have been neglecting my goals terribly, but if i get something written down, it might not be as bad as i think.

1) run a 10k
have been running about twice a week. i don’t seem to be getting any faster, and it doesn’t seem to be getting any easier, but still. the fact remains that i can now run happily for half an hour plus, whereas a few months ago i found half a minute difficult. and it does make me really happy when i actually get out there and do it. just witnessing the greening of the trees is wonderful. mentioned my idea of doing the 5k relay in june as an amnesty action to else, who leapt on it. but when i heard the times her husband’s team are aiming at (all under 20 minutes!), i started back pedalling rapidly. must get over that.

2) cycle a century
my bike is running well and i’ve been particularly thankful for it (and for the good weather) while the bus strike is on. the strike is now indefinite, and i have about a mile further to cycle to the new office, so i’m just keeping this one ticking over nicely.

have also taken up swimming again, which much surely further the first two goals?! and i lurve it.

3) buy a flat!
really need to get my finances in order. penny is probably taking me to an auction in april, which will be interesting, and may prompt movement on this.

4) take control of my home
have continued general discardia. have taken stuff to oxfam. have got new oven!!! have read some of Apartment Therapy but not got round to implementing it. the place is still in complete chaos really, though small steps have been taken.

5) become a gardening goddess
ooooh, mushrooms have been harvested and eaten, though far fewer than we’d been expecting/hoping for. i think it may just be too warm.
had a morning clearing up the balcony and cleaning plant pots. have four lovely new kitchen herbs from the new flower shop: rosmary, savory, lavender and thyme. am also growing seedlings. five of the six herbs i planted have come through (not sure which), but i’m not really sure what i have to do with them now. must look for herb book.

6) nurture relationships with friends and family
had to cancel frankfurt trip, which turned out to be just as well because they were all sick. have met up with various friends, but could do better on this one, really.

7) unleash my creativity
P has signed us up for a sewing course in april! signed up for the OU writing fiction course starting in may!!! ooooh, i can’t wait (also a bit scared) (well, a lot scared). oh, and have been doing a bit more cooking now we have a cooker that actually works. lots planned, anyway. must really talk to Deb about our shelved ideas.

8) make my website somewhere people want to visit again and again
bumbling along. have to get that database finished so that we can get people actually using the site! decided against the php course (too much of a commitment, timewise), but have ordered myself a book/cd on that and mysql so that i can have a go at teaching myself.

9) knowledge/courses/books/museums goal
love book club, am a bit behind with TBR challenge but never mind, have been to the museums a few times, am learning new website things…

indeed, not as bad as i’d feared. still, i do need new challenges. it would make sense to keep setting myself more mini-goals here.

1) run a 10k
run at least twice, and as often as possible. this really makes me feel so much better—it must be top priority, come wind or weather.

2) cycle a century
bike’s going in for an inspection this week, should come out as good as new. maybe start looking at maps and planning a route?!

3) buy a flat!
no action

4) take control of my home
continue general discardia. take stuff to oxfam? focus on kitchen/cooker so i feel able to approach Hausmeister about new cooker.

5) become a gardening goddess
mushrooms haven’t come through yet, starting to wonder if something’s wrong.
buy new mud for kitchen herbs and plant seeds.

6) nurture relationships with friends and family
meeting P on Weds, H+I on Thurs, M, M + B on Thurs, and going to P’s opening on Sat!

7) unleash my creativity
ask P about sewing course

8) make my website somewhere people want to visit again and again
bumble along

9) knowledge/courses/books/museums goal
going to reading on Weds. continue with Smilla.

Missed out on last week (was a bit fazed by some bad news), but never mind. Langsam aber sicher.

1) run a 10k
am working at home all week so i’m aiming to run just about every day. am doing week 8 of the couch to 5k plan at the moment (28-minute run) purely because i prefer the music to week 9. i have the route for the ladies’ 5/10k run i want to do in May—it’s just down the road in the Tiergarten. one day when the weather’s good i want to cycle down and run/walk the route, just to see how far it is and how long i take.
did a couple of runs—but it hasn’t stopped raining since friday.

• go to bike shop, get some advice, and buy bits. DONE! well, i went, got advice, they ordered the necessary bits, and i made an appointment for an inspection at the end of the month when everything will be done

• keep working on organising my finances by writing that vbl letter. (a very incremental step towards this goal, but never mind.) nope, nothing done

• measure windows for blinds and balcony for … argh, i can’t remember any words … a wall-mounted shade-giving thing. go to jaloucity before cinema on thursday and get some advice/prices. done: went and got the advice of a very competent and helpful young man, decided what blinds we want, now just have to measure the windows again properly (just the glass bit) and go back to order them.a whole lot of discarding and general tidying got done this week, too. things are looking a lot less cluttered. plus made the appointment for the mieterbund.

• start clearing up balcony if weather holds. nope, everything will be waterlogged. did sort out herb seeds i bought a million years ago. the mud has turned to dust, but the seeds are (mostly) still within their best before dates.

• mail A and DS nope
• meeting H+I on Thurs, maybe M on Weds DONE!
• meeting old colleagues on Fri DONE!also met up with M twice, and she introduced me to her excellent optician!

7) unleash my creativity
have at least been trying out some new recipes, can continue doing that for the meantime. made celariac and apple soup, that’s creative

• not much this week. see if any ideas come up during tk tomorrow.

• continue with Smillaum, she went missing this week
• another museum jaunt DONE—old pots and pans museum, and the neue nationalgalerie

Here we go with the weekly goals:

1) run a 10k
ran 3 times in england over christmas and twice at the seaside, and am duly proud of self. the berlin slush may prove a challenge, but at least it’s not minus 16 degrees or anything silly. goal: at least 2 more runs this week. 1 run—the weather was terrible. looking better now though.

2) cycle a century
need to take better care of my bike, starting with oiling the chain! not yet, weather was also a problem here.

3) buy a flat!
keep working on organising my finances. perhaps have a chat with ml. had a quick look at an online property portal, that was interesting.

• declutter/tidy card shelf DONE, though it was mostly rearranging and not much decluttering

5) become a gardening goddess
stocktaking. have a look at balcony. what is herbs pot doing? new kitchen herbs?
hee hee, have ordered myself a mushroom-growing set! it’s arrived and looks fun/doable.

• mail A and DS not done
• write to granma DONE

• return to campanula tapestry! not done, but did recycle last year’s kitchen calender by correcting all the days!

• collate incoming mails and act on them! DONE
• research dreamweaver prices looking spenny

• new bookclub book finished!
• flit around one of the charlottenburg museums at the weekend yes, went to Helmut Newton museum for the first time!

Have tried to keep things to a realistic level, but that seems quite a lot already. Goodness. Well, we’ll see how it goes.

am still ruminating on my 2008 goals, but this is what i have so far. i have a feeling that last year’s goals were a bit scared and watery. these are formulated in a spirit of boundless, yet realistic, optimism. these are my goals, i’m going to do my very best to attain them—and if it doesn’t work out, well, so be it.

• do first things first
• courage, ma brave!
• anima sana in corpore sano

• i am talented, focused and inspired (as last year)
• i am lean, strong and healthy

1) run a 10k for amnesty in may
well, i’m at 4k already, 10k is surely reasonable?!

2) cycle a century
oooh, this’ll be brilliant. already looking forward to poring over maps and planning routes.

3) buy a flat!
ha! only about 10% of berliners are owner-occupiers, buying really isn’t the done thing here. but we’re going to look into buying a little sth that we can maybe live in when we’re old and can no longer walk up four flights of stairs and rent it out in the meantime. it will necessarily mean making progress on various other goals, especially organising my finances. and it’s something new and exciting. ha.

4) take control of my home
things need replacing, decorating, decluttering, reconsidering… one well-defined project a month should get this moving.

5) become a gardening goddess
meaning grow lots of eatables on the balcony—again, one step at a time, starting with herbs.

6) nurture relationships with friends and family
important one, this! can think of at least 3 people i’ve lost contact with in the last year or two. can start by sending a few mails.

7) unleash my creativity
this one certainly needs BYYing!

8) make my website somewhere people want to visit again and again
set up routine for updates, relaunch with new CI, set realistic goals for no. of visits, etc

9) knowledge/courses/books/museums goal.
needs specifying, but no time right now. main priority for first quarter 2008: get best possible use ouf of last 3 months of annual museum ticket (best time of year to be going to museums anyway).

10) room for one more!

i’m going to be writing weekly lists here akin to my working-at-home lists, which are very helpful. i think that may work better for me than monthly lists. courage, ma brave!