Interesting...

In all this excitement about finishing the 101, I realized that I've actually already done a few of my New Year's resolutions. Just goes to show that I'm learning a little bit more about myself as I get older.

1. Strike a better balance between work, school, exercise, and friends. The reasoning behind this is pretty simple, but I also found that doing it is much harder than it looks. It's very easy to get totally caught up in homework and neglect my friends, family, boyfriend and puppy. I honestly feel like I didn't see my friends for about six weeks in the fall and that, frankly, sucked.
I feel like I've really done this for a number of reasons. I feel like I see my friends a lot more than I did before, I am getting way more exercise than I did before, and I realize that I'm a lot less stressed out than I was. I'm still not super-busy at work right now, which is OK, but I'll get that figured out. It's all cyclical, really.

2. Create some exercise goals and accomplish them. Bumbershoot and I were talking over IM a few days ago and were discussing running a 10K or half-marathon together. I really liked this idea for a variety of reasons. I got the Nike iPod+ thingie for Christmas and would love to start playing with it, and I really like the idea of having something to train for, rather than the ever-nebulous "get back into shape." Plus, I am so much more motivated to do things when my friends are right there with me.
Well, I ran a 15K already, and I'm signed up for the half-marathon in a week and a half. I'm excited because I definitely followed through on this and I feel better about myself as a result. Indie Rocker's been super-supportive as far as not giving me any grief for training and taking care of the munchkin while I run. I have started taking her for some runs too, which is good for both of us. I just feel good about the fact that I, literally, took this goal and ran with it. Oof, I am turning into my father. Yikes. :)

4. Get my face under control. I changed my birth control method in the past year and it is wreaking havoc with my face. I've already gone to the dermatologist once and have another appointment next month. I am pretty motivated to get this done, and I like the idea of a resolution I can definitely accomplish.
Well, I finally sucked it up and decided to go on Accutane, which is not the most fun thing in the world, but it certainly is doing something for my face. I just got really tired of trying everything and seeing no results. We really did try everything and my feeling is that I just want to get this over with. I've already gone one month and I've got four left, so hopefully it isn't that bad and I'll end up with lovely skin. That's the ultimate goal, anyway.

6. Make the relationship call.
Well, that happened, obviously. Planning the wedding is a little stressful, but what can you do? We have already started the Vegas jokes in earnest, trust me.

Overall, not too bad. I suspect that the work thing just isn't going to happen for a variety of reasons, but I don't know. I'll definitely be looking at opportunities as they present themselves, which should be a really interesting road. Grad school has been great so far in presenting me with things to think about and consider. More than anything, I'm becoming much more deliberate in my thinking about a job and much less "jump to the nearest ship." Seeing as that was my strategy for my entire post-college career thus far, that's a really nice change.

I'm still working on the charitable giving thing. Hopefully that will start materializing once I get my ducks in a row financially. At least my savings account isn't quite as much of a joke as it used to be.

Quote of the Day: "Don't turn your back on me, don't turn your back on me, don't ever let me down/We are within a mile, we are within a mile, within a mile of home" Flogging Molly, Within A Mile of Home.