2012 New Year's Resolutions

Ok - first order of business is that I really tried to make my resolutions quantifiable. It was hard for me to determine if I did some of the ones I had last year so down with that madness.

• Travel Somewhere New - If you read my last post, you know this was one of my favorites from last year. It's also kind of a gimme because I've already been talking about going to a few different places this year. It's nice to have obtainable goals sometimes... I would like keep this one on my list until I've checked off more of the globe. 
• Save up a Nest Egg - What a weird phrase... nest egg... makes me feel like I'm having a baby or something. I should call it the "single girl's party fund" or "I don't need a man to buy me a house money" or something empowering like that. Either way, I think that I have all of the tools to make this one happen as well. No - I know it will happen.
• Pass the CFA - Yes, we are in the heart of "things I didn't do last year" land. I feel like I've come full circle on this one. After failing last year (yes, I like saying failing because I'm not going to pat myself on the back and say "nice try"), I was about ready to give up on the program. Then, I got a new job and I've been using the tools I was learning. It's nice to have that knowledge at my fingertips and I'm actually excited about the program now.
• Get back on a gym schedule - I think 2 days a week is realistic. 3-4 would be fantastic but let's aim for 2. I love when I go to the gym often and just feel so strong. I really want to get that back.
• Go out less - shoot, I guess one subjective resolution slipped in. A few weeks ago, a friend asked me how I have a 50 hour a week job, go to the gym, read books, have a social life, and do whatever else I do. Well, I don't really sleep, and I do have a to cut out a lot of me time. I love going out and having a good time, but sometimes I just want to slow down. A lot of my other goals are a little more academic and I'd really like to focus on that. 
• Do something adventurous - or maybe a little crazy. I want to really try something new like jump out of a plane, go scuba diving (not really that crazy... swim with a shark?), hold a scorpion, do a rain dance with head hunters, or some other just ridiculous adventure. A couple of years ago I went hang gliding - so I want something like that.
• Read an average of 2 books a month - When I was in high school I worked in a book store (great high school job) and I loved it. I was a kid in a candy store. I read books like they were my oxygen and frankly, I still own books from that time that I haven't gotten around to. I basically had to work 2 part time jobs because I pretty much broke even on the bookstore paycheck / books purchased equation. Well, ::insert shameless promotion:: the Kindle has gotten me to love reading again. Let me explain. Imagine you had a book that was small enough for you to carry everywhere. This book could become whatever book you wanted to read. If you didn't know what you wanted to read, it would suggest books that you might like based on your favorites. I could go on, but you get the point. Add a book clud in there and my affinity for sales and I'm pretty much hooked. I have such a back log of great books to read, and I even have a few hard copy books that friends have lent me as well. Basically, I'm back to being that teenager who devoured books and I need to make sure I keep that up. For my sanity, I will count a full CFA study guide as a book if the study/fun reading balance is uneven. 
• Frame all of the paintings in my apartment - On a couple of my trips, I picked up a couple of really nice pieces of artwork from some of my favorite places. It turns out - you can haggle the price of a painting but the framing is another story. At this point, I just need to bite the bullet and get them done.
• Get more organized - this one may be a shocker to some of you. If you've ever seen my hard drive, my photos on Facebook, planned an event with me, etc, you probably think I am one of the most annoying organized people ever. However, if you have ever seen my living or working spaces, you greatly disagree. I've been slowly trying to go through all of my stuff and de-hoard. I think the combination of that and some more adult furniture will really help me get the rest of my life as organized as my work ethic. I love the saying "a cluttered desk is a cluttered mind" and I can only imagine how much more I can get done if I find a space for everything. 
• Write 1 blog post a week (on average) - Maybe I'll finally get caught up that way?

So here we have it - 104 trips to the gym, 52 blog posts, 24 books, 4 framed paintings (and counting), 1 test, at least one new place, something crazy, and some spring (/summer/fall/winter/always) cleaning. Wow - sounds like 2012 is the year I become an adult...