Resolved

With the New Year ringing in, resolutions are expected and they are something I've been known to go over board on. Two years ago I had over 72 things written down to complete/improve upon in the year of '06. Granted, some were just random things like: eat a hot dog on the roof, but others were of a more serious nature and were used to stretch me. I documented all of them in my journal and dated the checklist as I completed each item. This year I think I'll do a bit of the same, force myself on erratic escapades but also include the areas of my life I earnestly want to strive to refine. Here's just a few.

1. Use the Thesaurus. I want to learn {and use} a new word every day. How cool would it be to wind up with over 300 new words in my vocabulary.
2. Take more baths. Every person should resolve to take more baths. Scrunch yourself into your {in my case, tiny} tub and immerse your ears, just to listen to the beat of your own heart.
3. Don't forget the little things. Little things are like saying morning prayers, stopping to help someone, taking out your ear phones on campus and appreciating the air, having real intent, genuinely caring . . . maybe this one is too broad . . .
4. Travel to 4 different countries. This could be hard and if needs be, I might have to count California as a foreign land.
5. Run a Triathlon. It was funny, a good friend made the same resolution and it made me smile. Hopefully Mom and I will be able to conquer the feat together {hint hint}
6. Read a book that sounds boring. This may sound like a strange one, but I think it's important to learn to give everything a chance.
7. Do something that scares me. I don't really know what scares me, so this will have to be more carefully defined as I hone in on what it is that makes me feel unnerved.
8. Eat a strange food. I've seen weird things hanging in butcher shop windows and watched this guy who eats things I wouldn't even dream of sampling and it has inspired me to broaden my horizons, and my taste buds.
9. Get up Water Skiing. As embarrassing as it is, waterskis have been the bane of my Lake Powell existence. Everyone says "you just pop up!" well I've never popped and my 5 year old cousins kick my trash on the skis. Even wakeboarding was easier, but I feel like a familial outcast because my waterskiing skills are exceptionally sub-par.
10. Sketch. I miss the days when my sketchbook followed me everywhere and my eyes were constantly observing, feasting, waiting to prey upon the next great thing to grab me and follow the fluid motion of my hand as I translate it into lines and shapes on paper. This means, I need to buy a new one.