Good-bye 2003, Hello 2004

Good grief! I can’t believe that in just a few hours 2003 will be history. I don’t bother to make predictions or resolutions. I’m not psychic, so I can’t see the future, and resolutions are usually broken in the first week.

Predictions for the future? I predict the sun will continue to rise in the east and set in the west; days will be light and nights dark; that summer will be warmer than winter and winter will be cooler than summer; that there will be 29 days in February this year, and that there will be a presidential election in the fall.

I’d like to believe that the economy will continue to improve, that Osama will be caught or proven to be dead, that peace will reign in the Mideast, and that tomorrow I won’t be writing about another terrorist attack in the US.

When I do make resolutions, I try to make it more of an “I’ll try to…” thing than “I resolve to” because resolving to do something usually involves major lifestyle changes (dieting, exercising, and so on) and they almost always fail. When I “try to” do something, it’s not set in stone and not set up for failure from the beginning.

So, I’ll try to be a better person by taking better care of myself. That way, I’ll feel better, my attitude will be better, I’ll have more patience and understanding, and I’ll have more tolerance toward stupid (I have a serious problem with stupid). I’ll try to plan for the future so that I’ll be able to retire when I want to, instead of continuing to work past my burnout time.

I (will try to) plan to continue working out at Curves three days a week. I was weighed and measured a couple of weeks ago and although I didn’t show a weight loss, I did lose 6.5 inches around the waist, and a half-inch to an inch around the hips, thigh, and arm. I saw improvement and that helps to motivate me to continue. Now that the holidays are all but over, I’ll be able to work on my dietary changes (not a diet, but eating better) and the few, relatively minor health challenges I have.

I (will try to) continue to do what I can to get the Fair Tax Act passed. And, no, I don’t have such a high opinion of myself that I can get this done all by myself or that without me it won’t get passed! But I think it’s important enough to do whatever I can to spread the word about the FTA so that those who have the influence can. I’ve written about it before and there is a link in the sidebar for the website. Right now, I’m planning to write at least once a month about it. Yes, it’s that important and will make that big a difference in your wallet and bank account.

And finally, I will try to let those who are important to me know how important they are to me. I won’t regret telling people how important they are to me, but I could regret not telling them.