the grand unveiling 2012

New Years Resolutions 2012

1. Read 150 books.

last year i had a bunch of ideas as to how i wanted to complete my reading goal, some of which i managed to uphold (books had to have more than 150 pages) and some i failed miserably at (my goal to read more non-fiction). i'm going to do the same thing this year, but in some instances i'm going to get much more specific than i was last year. so here's the breakdown of how i'd like to completely my reading goal:

a. read the following books from my book shelf:
Swamplandia by Karen Russell
The Revisionists by Thomas Mullen
The Hole We're In by Gabrielle Zevin
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Suzanna Clarke
Curse of the Wolf Girl by Martin Millar
World War Z by Max Brooks
more to be added when i have a chance, but i'll start there.

b. read entire stephanie plum series by janet evanovich

yes, i said janet evanovich. last year i read all of the books in the anita blake, vampire hunter series by laurell k. hamilton so i wanted another series with a similar number of books that would last me for most of the year. i also wanted to series to be something super popular that i wouldn't typically pick up. janet evanovich fit that criteria.

c. read more non-fiction

last year i put a number on this and didn't succeed. this year i'm just going to state that i want to read more non-fiction. shouldn't be too hard to as i only read 2 non-fiction books last year.

d. graphic novels will NOT count in the reading goals this year

you'll be able to follow my reading progress at http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3508320-carrie
if you yourself is a reader, sign up...i'd love to be able to see what all my friends are reading.

2. Be a better blogger.

my goal this year is to post a blog much more regularly. i have plenty to say so now i just need to find the time to say it. i'm going to aim for at least once a week.

3. Be a better friend.

i am awful at staying in touch with friends who don't live in the same town i do. my best friend lives across the country from me and i'm luck if i talk to her once a month. i want to change that. i want to make a point to talk to those friends outside of GR more regularly. i want to be in the loop of their lives, not the girl they send christmas cards to, but never hear back from. as for my friends in GR, i want to do better there too. i want to be the once reaching out to make plans instead of sitting at home waiting for them to call me.

4. End the year with at least $1000 in my savings account

here's a few of the ways i'm going to attempt to save some money:

a. use less gas. i drive a lot for work (no less than 70 miles a day just to get to and from work) so economy is going to have to come in my driving habits in my off time. i'm going to attempt to take advantage of the buses. i used to ride them regularly, but have gotten out of the habit. everywhere in GR i'd want to go is on a bus route so when ever possible, i'm going to try taking the bus. i'm also going to change churches for awhile. i love my current church, but it is 20 miles or so away from where i live. there is a church within walking distance of my house and another only a 3 mile drive from my house, either that i would feel comfortable going to. i doubt the change will be permanent, but at least for now, i'm going to try going somewhere closer to home.

b. eat at home more often. living with other people meant my food got eaten by someone other than myself more often than not. something i got tired of very fast and stopped by no longer keeping food in the house. i have not spent money on groceries in probably two years outside of a gallon milk and box of cereal here and there....well that and ice cream. there is always ice cream in my house. needless to say, i eat out most nights of the week. that takes a bit of money to accomplish. while i will not stop eating out, i will stop eating out every night. the goal is to cook at home at least 4 nights a week. guess i'll have to get to the grocery store as the only thing in my fridge is a 2 liter of diet pepsi and some ketchup. i'll also need to get the gas turned back on to the stove.

c. take advantage of my goal-setters savings account. 5/3's goal-setter savings account requires you to go into the bank to get money out of it. you can not transfer from the website (which is how i prefer to do my banking...website and ATM). i'm going to start putting $50 from each paycheck into that account upon deposit. when the next paycheck arrives, i'm going to then transfer the balance of my checking account into the savings account. this will mean i will literally live from paycheck to paycheck, but i think it'll be worth it to have a savings cushion at the end of the year. and as i hate going into the bank, i'm less likely to try to get to that money than i would be if i could sit on my couch and transfer it out.

5. Take better care of my house.

i'm not a person who enjoys cleaning. i'm less likely to do it now than i was in the past because i do a lot of house cleaning and laundry at work every day. the last thing i do after vacuuming/mopping and washing clothes/dishes at work is come home and do it again. but i need to learn. by the end of this weekend, i will have my house clean and a chore schedule set up that i will try to follow every day/week to keep my house clean. i can't promise this will stick, but i'm certainly wanting to try it.

as for the rest of my resolutions, they all deal with health and fitness and will be posted on my other website (www.notcelebrityfitclub.com) sometime tomorrow hopefully. if you're curious about those resolutions, click on over.