Looking Back, Looking Ahead
By Mitch Berg
Last year, I made the big mistake of posting my “resolutions” – which weren’t resolutions at all, since I don’t do them; they were goals – in this space.
Or was it a mistake?
Let’s look back (answers in blue):
- I’m in vastly better shape than I was a year ago. Now is no time to backslide; joining the “Y” (for the kids and I) in about two weeks (Did it!)
- In a similar vein, now that I’m working in downtown, I will be well able to bike to work when the weather improves, especially in the summer (when I don’t have to drive kids to school and I can get as early a start as I want). That’s the goal for the summer; bike it to work every day weather permits. (I did it, and it was very successful More below).
- My daughter has had a blinding flash of epiphany re school in this past three months. Need to facilitate my son’s having the same thing (It’s just gotten better for my daughter – it’s been a great year for Bun. She really bloomed at school, and in her summer job. Still working on Zam, but there’s early promise.).
- My house is the next priority. Going to improve the overall level of housekeeping quite a bit. Even if I have to pay for the help. (OK, not everything can be a raging success. Things improved incrementally, though. It’s an “opportunity” for ’08)
- Also re the house – I’m going to build that patio I’ve been yammering about for the past two years. (Ummmm…
Will work on it this summer)
- In many ways, the job I have now is the one I’ve been hoping to find ever since I left StorageTek in 2000; I am, at least nominally, in a leadership position. I’m going to make the most of that in the coming year. (So far so good)
- The blog – there are a number of things I’ve been dying to do with this blog as it approaches its fifth anniversary, in about a month. More later (Ditto).
- Also – after nine months of thinking about it, I’m going to try to get my podcast site finally up and on the air in the coming weeks. There’s a technical issue I have to work out – but it’s finally doable (Life is what happens when you’re making other plans, sometimes).
- As re the NARN – well, the status quo isn’t half bad. We’re starting to see how well the show’s actually been doing; continuing to clobber the competition in head-to-head radio combat. Next year will bring even more fun stuff (Very true!).
OK, so on to the goals for ’08:
- The bike thing: Start earlier. Indeed, try to start biking to work this spring, before school lets out for the summer, and try to continue after school starts in the fall, to extend my biking season ideally from April through October. (Alternate option: gain a LOT of weight, so I can easily conceal an S&W Model 29 or an M1911A1 or something. Health vs. Firepower…firepower vs. health…oh, screw it, I’ll take the health).
- That’s gonna involve the Great White Whale of my personal life; getting my kids to get up and reliably get their own butts to school in the morning. It’s going to take some work.
- Continue Bun’s great success in school. It’s been a huge, and gratifying, turnaround for her.
- Get Zam to turn the corner.
- Work hard on enacting True North’s goals for the year – of which much more later.
- Find the next step for the NARN, and take it. That mostly involves listening for that banging sound, and figuring it’s opportunity rather than just kids leaving bags of burning poop.
So anyway – all the best to all of you!
Will work on it this summer)





December 31st, 2007 at 11:27 am
“True North’s goals for the year” More satire less snark?!? I mean, it is a spoof site, right?!?
December 31st, 2007 at 11:32 am
If it makes you feel better to believe that, go right ahead.
December 31st, 2007 at 12:14 pm
Thanks for the advice, I will not be posting my 2008 goals on the blog.
December 31st, 2007 at 3:10 pm
My New Year’s resolution is to cut down some of the seventy year old ohia trees in the rain forest out back. If I get chiminera I can burn the wood & release all that carbon into the atmosphere faster than it would by just letting the wood decay.
I will not stop until my carbon footprint is as large as Al Gore’s or your average UN bureaucrat’s carbon footprint.
December 31st, 2007 at 3:25 pm
Best wishes is 2008!
October 25th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
[…] Last year and the year before I posted looks back at the previous years’ big goals (I don’t do “resolutions”), just to do a quick gut-check. […]