First a definition:
Lesbetween [lez-bee-tween]
-noun
1.
a lesbian who identifies as neither butch nor femme
Is she butch or femme?
Neither, she is a lesbetween.
I invented this new word because I am tired as identifying as not identifying and want a tangible label that I can use to describe my status on the infamous butch-femme spectrum, thus lesbetween. I assure you that this was an original thought that I had today while shopping (a I was struggling to decide whether to should shop in the men’s or women’s section at a department store). I thought myself clever when I first thought the word but this amusement faded when I returned home and Google informed me that the idea is not that original. Regardless of whether I was the first or last to label myself as such I think it fits.
If you know anything about lesbian culture you know that there is a so called spectrum under which each woman who likes women inevitably falls. Mostly the spectrum is about the way a lesbian looks but can also be about the way a lesbian acts too. For those of you that may not be familiar with this subject let me give you some more definitions (according to the highly reliable UrbanDictionary.com)
Butch [boo ch]
–noun
1. an overtly/stereotypically masculine or masculine-acting woman. can be used to denote an individual, or the dominant role in a lesbian relationship
Marge is pretty butch. she's really strong, fixes cars better than a mechanic, and takes damn good care of her woman.
Femme [fem]
-noun
1. an overtly feminine dressing/acting lesbian. as opposed to a butch woman.
All the others girls think Brit's acting femme to fit in with the straight chicks, but apparently that's just her personality.
It should be made clear that I am by no means unique in the lesbian world as a lesbetween; in fact I think the majority of women would probably identify as such but we find ourselves bound to picking one or the other (or at least which side of the spectrum we fall). There is striking similarity to the political spectrum in that although we may be conservative on some issues and liberal on others we must ultimately choose to identify as republican or democrat (yes, I do realize that you can also choose “independent” but that just complicates the matter and my attention span is short).
So, now that I finally found a label for myself I feel empowered to share it with the world and build a strong coalition of women who fall in the middle and do not wish to decide if they lean to the left or right of the butch-femme spectrum. All hail the lesbetweens as we wear baggy men’s jeans while showing off our cleavage, grow our hair out only to cut it all off again and continue to challenge the gaydar of humans everywhere.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Monday, January 14, 2008
What an exciting five minutes...
Almost simultaneously I received:
1. A congratulatory email notifying me of my admission to Anderson
2. A much unexpected email requesting a Haas interview
I feel much better now...
1. A congratulatory email notifying me of my admission to Anderson
2. A much unexpected email requesting a Haas interview
I feel much better now...
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Take your Passion and Make it Happen
The last couple of weeks have been a roller coaster ride to say the least. The highlights include:
1. The end of a six and a half year relationship and a three and a half year marriage
2. A hurricane like storm in Sacramento that left me (and a great deal of others) without power most of the day
3. A trip to New York City
4. An interview at the Yale School of Management
5. Still no word from Haas
6. Confirmation of my next project down in the OC
7. Finally finishing and submitting my last application
Some of the highlights are obviously more monumental than others (I know some of you probably barely made it past number one). I am not quite ready to talk about each of the things on the list, at least not publicly, so I won't be recapping all of them in great detail at this point. But I do think there should be some context to go along with this post.
Now that it has been almost two weeks since New Year's Day I feel it is probably a good time to update you on my progress in sticking to my resolutions....
1. I have successfully kept to watching less than three hours of television for each of the past two weeks. It has actually been much easier than I had thought it would be. I think most of the time I just turn on the television without really even thinking about other things I could or should be doing. Now that I am not turning on the television I think about those other things a lot more often and have actually gotten many of them accomplished in the last two weeks. I do have to say though that, at least to some extent, time wasted on myspace has become a substitute for the time wasted watching televsion. I think I have developed an uncontrollable addiction and I am not really sure how to stop. I will have to save myspace for next year's resolutions though because I am not yet ready for a 12 step program in this area....
2. The take the dog on a walk and going to the gym resolutions have probably been my biggest failures thus far. Although I do take some personal responsibility it is not completely my fault that I haven't been able to meet my goals on either of these resolutions. First, the weather has been unbelievably crappy and I refuse to walk the dog in the rain (or what seemed like a hurricane for part of the week). Second, I have been somewhat sick for much of the past two weeks and just the thought of running while congested makes my lungs hurt. Third, I was out of town for a good portion of the last couple weeks... I can't exactly walk the dog when I am not in the same city. Forth, some idiot stole my gym bag out of my car meaning that I have to use my old gym shoes until I can acquire a new pair; this isn’t a huge deal but fairly annoying. Despite not formally getting exercise I did an unbelievable amount of walking on my New York/New Haven trip so at least I have been more active than usual. I am determined to make both of these resolutions a priority in the next week, especially since it will probably be the last week I am even able to walk the dog every morning as I will be away on my project in OC during the week for the next six months.
3. I have been a champ at eliminating all soda (except soda water) from my consumption. It has been super easy and I really don't even miss it. I continue to drink soda water because it is really just carbonated water and I must have something to mix my vodka with!
4. In the "eat healthier" department I think I have done pretty well. I have without question been eating healthier than I was prior to making the resolution although I think there is probably room for improvement (being drunk is not an automatic pass to eat a bean burrito). Still though, whatever weight I may have gained over the holidays was gone when I weighed in for the first time on Wednesday, at a half a pound less than what I had weighed prior to the start of the holiday season.
5. My novel is not yet started but I did finish my last application on Friday which means I need to get rolling. I ordered a few books and started reading one last night so hopefully I will have more to report in this department very soon. And to those of you that keep asking me, I am not telling you what my novel is about because I need complete writing freedom as I embark on this journey and do not want to be constrained by what I might have told you it was going to be about. You will just have to wait and read it when it is done.
6. The back to school hunt continued with my interview at Yale and the completion of my Kellogg application. I feel like the Yale interview went very well, probably one of my better interviews in memory. I am not so sure about living in New Haven for two years though... the area is a bit "sketchy" and dirty once you leave the campus. The campus itself is gorgeous and I am kind of excited about the thought of going to a school that is well over 300 years old. There are many pluses and minuses but I guess it is not really worth thinking about until I get an acceptance letter which should happen on or before Friday this week.
I am beyond thrilled to have all of my applications complete and submitted now. The whole process was much more grueling than I thought. I have to say that my Kellogg application is probably one of my weakest to date; I just didn't feel like anything I said in my essays was particularly stellar or creative like I have with past applications. Still, I know my experience and "numbers" are good and hope to hear positive news out of that camp as well. It feels good to be done but a part of me did think about cranking out one more application to NYU after a fabulous trip in the city. I have ultimately decided not to though because the deadline is in like two days which isn’t enough time to get all the recommendations and transcripts submitted and I am still pretty sure that New York is too big of a place for a small town girl like me to take her first shot at city life.
On a more somber note, I have still yet to hear from Haas. I know their "Super Saturday" interviews are this coming Saturday and I still have not received an invite. Everyone around me is trying to keep me positive about the situation but I am really having a hard time and am beginning to loose hope. I am terrified at the prospect of not getting into Haas because I feel it is by far the best "fit" for who I am and who I want to be but probably even more importantly because it will mean that I have to make an actual decision about what my second choice is. I have never really liked decisions much and I feel like one of this size will be incredibly difficult. Sigh...
7. My final resolution of making 2008 about me is going to be pretty darn easy now that "me" is all I really have to focus on. I have had some pretty sad moments in the last two weeks that have threatened to hold me back from this goal but a defining moment at the gym yesterday has put me back on the right path (I do a lot of really good critical thinking while on the treadmill). The song "Flashdance" came on my IPOD and besides reminding me what a cheeseball I am, it reminded me of the passion and drive that I have throughout my life and how I have always stayed focused on my goals despite some rather extenuating circumstances. This song reminds me of this because my sister once told me that my mom sometimes cries when she hears it because it reminds her of me (apparently I come from a long line of cheeseballs). Seriously though, my mom has always called her three daughters "Earth, Wind and Fire." I am fire because of my passionate nature. In listening to the lyrics of Flashdance I can see why the song reminds her of this. I will leave you with the lyrics just in case you aren’t as big of a dork as my mother and I...
First, when there's nothing but a slow glowing dream
That your fear seems to hide deep inside your mind
All alone I have cried silent tears full of pride
In a world made of steel, made of stone
Well I hear the music, close my eyes, feel the rhythm
Wrap around, take a hold of my heart
What a feeling, bein's believin'
I can't have it all, now I'm dancin' for my life
Take your passion, and make it happen
Pictures come alive, you can dance right through your life
Now I hear the music, close my eyes, I am rhythm
In a flash it takes hold of my heart
What a feeling
What a feeling (I am music now), bein's believin' (I am rhythm now)
Pictures come alive, you can dance right through your life
What a feeling (I can really have it all)
What a feeling (Pictures come alive when I call)
I can have it all (I can really have it all)
Have it all (Pictures come alive when I call)
(call, call, call, call, what a feeling) I can have it all
(Bein's believin') bein's believin'
(Take your passion, make it happen) make it happen
(What a feeling) what a feeling
1. The end of a six and a half year relationship and a three and a half year marriage
2. A hurricane like storm in Sacramento that left me (and a great deal of others) without power most of the day
3. A trip to New York City
4. An interview at the Yale School of Management
5. Still no word from Haas
6. Confirmation of my next project down in the OC
7. Finally finishing and submitting my last application
Some of the highlights are obviously more monumental than others (I know some of you probably barely made it past number one). I am not quite ready to talk about each of the things on the list, at least not publicly, so I won't be recapping all of them in great detail at this point. But I do think there should be some context to go along with this post.
Now that it has been almost two weeks since New Year's Day I feel it is probably a good time to update you on my progress in sticking to my resolutions....
1. I have successfully kept to watching less than three hours of television for each of the past two weeks. It has actually been much easier than I had thought it would be. I think most of the time I just turn on the television without really even thinking about other things I could or should be doing. Now that I am not turning on the television I think about those other things a lot more often and have actually gotten many of them accomplished in the last two weeks. I do have to say though that, at least to some extent, time wasted on myspace has become a substitute for the time wasted watching televsion. I think I have developed an uncontrollable addiction and I am not really sure how to stop. I will have to save myspace for next year's resolutions though because I am not yet ready for a 12 step program in this area....
2. The take the dog on a walk and going to the gym resolutions have probably been my biggest failures thus far. Although I do take some personal responsibility it is not completely my fault that I haven't been able to meet my goals on either of these resolutions. First, the weather has been unbelievably crappy and I refuse to walk the dog in the rain (or what seemed like a hurricane for part of the week). Second, I have been somewhat sick for much of the past two weeks and just the thought of running while congested makes my lungs hurt. Third, I was out of town for a good portion of the last couple weeks... I can't exactly walk the dog when I am not in the same city. Forth, some idiot stole my gym bag out of my car meaning that I have to use my old gym shoes until I can acquire a new pair; this isn’t a huge deal but fairly annoying. Despite not formally getting exercise I did an unbelievable amount of walking on my New York/New Haven trip so at least I have been more active than usual. I am determined to make both of these resolutions a priority in the next week, especially since it will probably be the last week I am even able to walk the dog every morning as I will be away on my project in OC during the week for the next six months.
3. I have been a champ at eliminating all soda (except soda water) from my consumption. It has been super easy and I really don't even miss it. I continue to drink soda water because it is really just carbonated water and I must have something to mix my vodka with!
4. In the "eat healthier" department I think I have done pretty well. I have without question been eating healthier than I was prior to making the resolution although I think there is probably room for improvement (being drunk is not an automatic pass to eat a bean burrito). Still though, whatever weight I may have gained over the holidays was gone when I weighed in for the first time on Wednesday, at a half a pound less than what I had weighed prior to the start of the holiday season.
5. My novel is not yet started but I did finish my last application on Friday which means I need to get rolling. I ordered a few books and started reading one last night so hopefully I will have more to report in this department very soon. And to those of you that keep asking me, I am not telling you what my novel is about because I need complete writing freedom as I embark on this journey and do not want to be constrained by what I might have told you it was going to be about. You will just have to wait and read it when it is done.
6. The back to school hunt continued with my interview at Yale and the completion of my Kellogg application. I feel like the Yale interview went very well, probably one of my better interviews in memory. I am not so sure about living in New Haven for two years though... the area is a bit "sketchy" and dirty once you leave the campus. The campus itself is gorgeous and I am kind of excited about the thought of going to a school that is well over 300 years old. There are many pluses and minuses but I guess it is not really worth thinking about until I get an acceptance letter which should happen on or before Friday this week.
I am beyond thrilled to have all of my applications complete and submitted now. The whole process was much more grueling than I thought. I have to say that my Kellogg application is probably one of my weakest to date; I just didn't feel like anything I said in my essays was particularly stellar or creative like I have with past applications. Still, I know my experience and "numbers" are good and hope to hear positive news out of that camp as well. It feels good to be done but a part of me did think about cranking out one more application to NYU after a fabulous trip in the city. I have ultimately decided not to though because the deadline is in like two days which isn’t enough time to get all the recommendations and transcripts submitted and I am still pretty sure that New York is too big of a place for a small town girl like me to take her first shot at city life.
On a more somber note, I have still yet to hear from Haas. I know their "Super Saturday" interviews are this coming Saturday and I still have not received an invite. Everyone around me is trying to keep me positive about the situation but I am really having a hard time and am beginning to loose hope. I am terrified at the prospect of not getting into Haas because I feel it is by far the best "fit" for who I am and who I want to be but probably even more importantly because it will mean that I have to make an actual decision about what my second choice is. I have never really liked decisions much and I feel like one of this size will be incredibly difficult. Sigh...
7. My final resolution of making 2008 about me is going to be pretty darn easy now that "me" is all I really have to focus on. I have had some pretty sad moments in the last two weeks that have threatened to hold me back from this goal but a defining moment at the gym yesterday has put me back on the right path (I do a lot of really good critical thinking while on the treadmill). The song "Flashdance" came on my IPOD and besides reminding me what a cheeseball I am, it reminded me of the passion and drive that I have throughout my life and how I have always stayed focused on my goals despite some rather extenuating circumstances. This song reminds me of this because my sister once told me that my mom sometimes cries when she hears it because it reminds her of me (apparently I come from a long line of cheeseballs). Seriously though, my mom has always called her three daughters "Earth, Wind and Fire." I am fire because of my passionate nature. In listening to the lyrics of Flashdance I can see why the song reminds her of this. I will leave you with the lyrics just in case you aren’t as big of a dork as my mother and I...
First, when there's nothing but a slow glowing dream
That your fear seems to hide deep inside your mind
All alone I have cried silent tears full of pride
In a world made of steel, made of stone
Well I hear the music, close my eyes, feel the rhythm
Wrap around, take a hold of my heart
What a feeling, bein's believin'
I can't have it all, now I'm dancin' for my life
Take your passion, and make it happen
Pictures come alive, you can dance right through your life
Now I hear the music, close my eyes, I am rhythm
In a flash it takes hold of my heart
What a feeling
What a feeling (I am music now), bein's believin' (I am rhythm now)
Pictures come alive, you can dance right through your life
What a feeling (I can really have it all)
What a feeling (Pictures come alive when I call)
I can have it all (I can really have it all)
Have it all (Pictures come alive when I call)
(call, call, call, call, what a feeling) I can have it all
(Bein's believin') bein's believin'
(Take your passion, make it happen) make it happen
(What a feeling) what a feeling
Thursday, January 3, 2008
On Politics
I remember my excitement during the 2000 election as a first time voter. I took an American government class during my senior year of high school and to this day I remember the regular rants of my instructor during the 2000 debates and primaries. It was here that my understanding of the crazy system that we use to elect our presidents was built, it was here that I was altogether apathetic about Mr. Al Gore and it was here that my disdain for Mr. George W. Bush began. As I started as a freshman in college in the Fall of 2000 I continued to pay close attention to the candidates and the issues and tried to make a decision prior to the November election. When my vote was cast I voted for Nader, not because I was particularly intrigued by him or the Green Party, but simply because I was particularly unintrigued by my other choices. I remember returning to my dorm that evening and being scolded by my roommate for “wasting my vote on someone unelectable.” At the time, I thought I was making a statement but looking back on it I wonder if she was right. Should my abhorrence for Bush have outweighed my detachment from Gore (which has changed completely in light of his recent efforts)? Perhaps I should have cast my vote for the electable candidate that I disliked less? These questions followed me into the 2004 election and now haunt me in 2008.
In 2004 I did completely the opposite of what I had done in 2000. I voted for John Kerry, who was an electable democrat but also a complete bore. I voted for him not because I knew he would be great but because I knew he had to be better than Bush. I remember being shocked and appalled that everyone else in America did not agree with me, especially the people in states like Ohio where the economy and the people had suffered tremendously over during Bush’s first term. It was at that moment that I realized for the first time that my Father was not the only conservative republican in America, and that Americans are deathly afraid of change, regardless of how bad things are. Not to mention that putting an issue like same sex marriage on the ballot brings the evangelical Christians out to the polls in record numbers.
With the Iowa caucus results rolling in tonight I feel my excitement about the 2008 election growing but at the same time I feel a repeat of my 2000 and 2004 experiences beginning. Although I have not completely ruled it out, I am fairly certain that I will not vote for a republican candidate this year. This in mind I have focused closely on the democratic race, hoping that one of the top candidates will grab my attention, but even more importantly my passion. That has yet to happen and I am starting to wonder if it will. The thought of having a woman president is altogether much more interesting than I find Hilary Clinton. Her ideas seem run of the mill and her stance on the issues seems very safe and unassuming. At the same time the thought of having a black president is altogether much more interesting than I find Barack Obama for much the same reason as Hilary. John Edwards is neither a woman nor a black man and is uninteresting to boot.
Being a true “nerd” I created an excel spreadsheet tonight that scored all of the candidates according to how well their stances on various issues aligned with my own. I had hoped that a clear front runner might emerge from the top three candidates with this scoring but what I found is that based upon these scores alone I would cast my vote for Kucinich or Gravel (two very unelectable candidates) if I had to decide tonight. All of the other democratic candidates were a virtual tie with Obama on the lower end. This highly interesting activity revealed two important facts. The first is the fact that I am a hardcore liberal. I won’t waste much time examining this fact as it was not really a surprise to me and I doubt it is for any of those of you that will read this. The second, more interesting fact, is that all of the top candidates are pretty much united in taking a safe and dull approach to most of the issues that will inspire very little change. I am clearly not interested in the status quo or even small steps towards change; I am looking for a candidate that will shake the very foundation of politics and demand large scale change across most of the “hot” issues in 2008 including health care, immigration, the war, social security, fighting poverty and same sex marriage. I find it very uninspiring to hear politicians go on and on about the issues plaguing America while spending very little time talking about how they will fix them, or coming up with ideas that will only “kind of” fix them. Health care is one of the issues that I am most informed about and can best use as an example. Our health care system is completely broken and no “band-aid” approach is going to fix the rising costs, shrinking results and growing population of uninsured. Large-scale change is needed on all levels to fix the problems that we face. Universal coverage which is proposed by most all democratic candidates (though in slightly different ways) is only a part of the solution to our problems. Laying down a universal coverage program without reducing health care costs and improving care is unimaginable and even irresponsible. I will back this up with a fact that truly opened my eyes to the problem: the average life expectancy of a male in the U.S. is around 80 years of age, the same as Mexico; the shocking part of this statistic is that we spend over $5,000 per person on health care each year while Mexico spends just over $500. Now I will get off my soap box and get back to the point…
Using my psychic powers it is easy to predict that Gravel and Kucinich will loose the Democratic nomination to Obama, Clinton or Edwards (alert CNN and the Washington Post). This means that I will ultimately be left with the same decision that I was left with in 2000 and 2004, choosing between a candidate I despise (especially if it is Mr. Huckabee) and a candidate that is passionless and commonplace. My realization is that I will probably never feel the passion that I want to feel for any mainstream candidate because my candidate would probably never make it into any position of power (mayor, senator etc) that would give them the credibility to make a realistic bid for president. I will find myself making the same decision every four years to either throw my vote away to Ralph Nader or some other independent or vote for the democrat or republican I hate the least. I will let you know what I decide for this election in November.
In 2004 I did completely the opposite of what I had done in 2000. I voted for John Kerry, who was an electable democrat but also a complete bore. I voted for him not because I knew he would be great but because I knew he had to be better than Bush. I remember being shocked and appalled that everyone else in America did not agree with me, especially the people in states like Ohio where the economy and the people had suffered tremendously over during Bush’s first term. It was at that moment that I realized for the first time that my Father was not the only conservative republican in America, and that Americans are deathly afraid of change, regardless of how bad things are. Not to mention that putting an issue like same sex marriage on the ballot brings the evangelical Christians out to the polls in record numbers.
With the Iowa caucus results rolling in tonight I feel my excitement about the 2008 election growing but at the same time I feel a repeat of my 2000 and 2004 experiences beginning. Although I have not completely ruled it out, I am fairly certain that I will not vote for a republican candidate this year. This in mind I have focused closely on the democratic race, hoping that one of the top candidates will grab my attention, but even more importantly my passion. That has yet to happen and I am starting to wonder if it will. The thought of having a woman president is altogether much more interesting than I find Hilary Clinton. Her ideas seem run of the mill and her stance on the issues seems very safe and unassuming. At the same time the thought of having a black president is altogether much more interesting than I find Barack Obama for much the same reason as Hilary. John Edwards is neither a woman nor a black man and is uninteresting to boot.
Being a true “nerd” I created an excel spreadsheet tonight that scored all of the candidates according to how well their stances on various issues aligned with my own. I had hoped that a clear front runner might emerge from the top three candidates with this scoring but what I found is that based upon these scores alone I would cast my vote for Kucinich or Gravel (two very unelectable candidates) if I had to decide tonight. All of the other democratic candidates were a virtual tie with Obama on the lower end. This highly interesting activity revealed two important facts. The first is the fact that I am a hardcore liberal. I won’t waste much time examining this fact as it was not really a surprise to me and I doubt it is for any of those of you that will read this. The second, more interesting fact, is that all of the top candidates are pretty much united in taking a safe and dull approach to most of the issues that will inspire very little change. I am clearly not interested in the status quo or even small steps towards change; I am looking for a candidate that will shake the very foundation of politics and demand large scale change across most of the “hot” issues in 2008 including health care, immigration, the war, social security, fighting poverty and same sex marriage. I find it very uninspiring to hear politicians go on and on about the issues plaguing America while spending very little time talking about how they will fix them, or coming up with ideas that will only “kind of” fix them. Health care is one of the issues that I am most informed about and can best use as an example. Our health care system is completely broken and no “band-aid” approach is going to fix the rising costs, shrinking results and growing population of uninsured. Large-scale change is needed on all levels to fix the problems that we face. Universal coverage which is proposed by most all democratic candidates (though in slightly different ways) is only a part of the solution to our problems. Laying down a universal coverage program without reducing health care costs and improving care is unimaginable and even irresponsible. I will back this up with a fact that truly opened my eyes to the problem: the average life expectancy of a male in the U.S. is around 80 years of age, the same as Mexico; the shocking part of this statistic is that we spend over $5,000 per person on health care each year while Mexico spends just over $500. Now I will get off my soap box and get back to the point…
Using my psychic powers it is easy to predict that Gravel and Kucinich will loose the Democratic nomination to Obama, Clinton or Edwards (alert CNN and the Washington Post). This means that I will ultimately be left with the same decision that I was left with in 2000 and 2004, choosing between a candidate I despise (especially if it is Mr. Huckabee) and a candidate that is passionless and commonplace. My realization is that I will probably never feel the passion that I want to feel for any mainstream candidate because my candidate would probably never make it into any position of power (mayor, senator etc) that would give them the credibility to make a realistic bid for president. I will find myself making the same decision every four years to either throw my vote away to Ralph Nader or some other independent or vote for the democrat or republican I hate the least. I will let you know what I decide for this election in November.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
A New Year, a New Me?
It may be a bit cliché to start a new blog on New Year's Day with a title like "A New Year, a New Me," but I suppose I have always been just a bit cliché.
I keep an unspoken list in my head of the things that I should or would like to be doing that I am either avoiding or simply not making time for (I am sure I am not the only one). The list seems to get longer and longer with each passing year but in 2008 I am determined to cut that list down to a much more manageable group of "to dos." This inaugural post will eliminate at least one of the "to dos" on my list in that I have always felt that I should be capturing my daily thoughts and affirmations in a journal of some sort. I realize that a blog is a rather public means of doing so, but the idea of having others read and respond to my writing doesn't really bother me, in fact it excites me a bit.
I have turned a portion of my unspoken list into several resolutions for the New Year. My master plan is to track my progress (or lack there of) in keeping to/achieving these resolutions in this blog, while also sharing other random tidbits about my life and my thoughts about the world at large.
The small stuff:
1. Watch three hours of television or less each week - This is important to me on a number of different levels. Most importantly, keeping to this resolution will prevent me from sinking so much valuable time into meaningless entertainment. I would strive to eliminate TV completely but with the L-Word season beginning this weekend that seems a bit far fetched (I am not yet ready to overcome my addiction to lesbian pop culture). I also know that there are many documentaries and other specials that I will want/need to watch so I need to keep a cushion of time available for these. I am hopeful that eliminating the numerous hours I spend in front of the TV each week will free up the time that I need in order to achieve some of my more time intensive resolutions.
2. Take the dog on a walk each morning - This one is for me and for the dog and is something that I set my alarm for almost every morning but embarrassingly have not once done. I am most worried about failing at this one because I have never been (and likely never will be) a morning person and because it is freaking freezing right now! Alas, I am determined to make it happen this year.
3. Stop drinking soda - I successfully cut out regular soda a few years ago and I am now ready to eliminate the diet as well. It is one of my most unhealthy habits and it is time that I let go. Caffeine will still be a regular part of my day (I refuse to eliminate coffee) but the carcinogenic-filled diet soda will be gone for good this year.
4. Keep to a regular workout schedule - This is something that I am actually fairly good at when I set my mind to it so hopefully putting it in writing will be the motivation I need to put my mind to it. I want to go to the gym at least three times a week; for now I am going to designate those days as Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday but my work schedule is fairly chaotic so I will be flexible with the days as long as I find at least three each week.
5. Eat Healthier - No list of my New Year's resolutions would be complete without this one. My constant struggle with food continues into 2008... along with a regular workout schedule I also hope to improve my diet with the ultimate goal of loosing weight (duh). I would like to drop 30 pounds in 2008 and will track my progress here. I will not do my first weigh in until next Tuesday because I am frankly petrified to get on the scale today after two weeks of Holiday eating... I need a week back in the normal world before taking the plunge, stay tuned.
The big stuff:
1. Start my first novel – This has always been dream of mine and after stumbling upon the story line of a lifetime over the holidays I am ready to start writing, or least start researching. There are a few books that I would like to read and re-read over the next couple months to get a better grasp on the style I plan to use to deliver my story. I have to finish my last B-school application before starting this project, but since it is due on January 11th, I will get started in short order. More on this later...
2. Go back to school - This one is already in motion and I really have no doubt that it will happen at this point. I have applied to four MBA programs already (Haas, Anderson, Marshall and Yale School of Management) and have one final application in the works (Kellogg). I have been accepted to Marshall already and have interviewed with both Anderson and Kellogg in the last week. I will interview at Yale next week and have my fingers very firmly crossed that I will hear from Hass soon (my first choice). It will be a monumental change for me and I can hardly wait! I will hear back from all of the schools (except Kellogg) by the end of this month and hope that I will have a fairly good idea of where I will be in the fall of this year.
3. Make 2008 about Me - This one is a bit selfish but I have decided that I am totally okay with that. With a great deal of change coming my way this year I think I have a unbelievable opportunity to find myself in a way I have never have before. This is by far the biggest resolution on my plate for the year and although it is a bit ambiguous at the moment I am sure that I find ways to apply this resolution every day in 2008 and can't wait to share the results!
I keep an unspoken list in my head of the things that I should or would like to be doing that I am either avoiding or simply not making time for (I am sure I am not the only one). The list seems to get longer and longer with each passing year but in 2008 I am determined to cut that list down to a much more manageable group of "to dos." This inaugural post will eliminate at least one of the "to dos" on my list in that I have always felt that I should be capturing my daily thoughts and affirmations in a journal of some sort. I realize that a blog is a rather public means of doing so, but the idea of having others read and respond to my writing doesn't really bother me, in fact it excites me a bit.
I have turned a portion of my unspoken list into several resolutions for the New Year. My master plan is to track my progress (or lack there of) in keeping to/achieving these resolutions in this blog, while also sharing other random tidbits about my life and my thoughts about the world at large.
The small stuff:
1. Watch three hours of television or less each week - This is important to me on a number of different levels. Most importantly, keeping to this resolution will prevent me from sinking so much valuable time into meaningless entertainment. I would strive to eliminate TV completely but with the L-Word season beginning this weekend that seems a bit far fetched (I am not yet ready to overcome my addiction to lesbian pop culture). I also know that there are many documentaries and other specials that I will want/need to watch so I need to keep a cushion of time available for these. I am hopeful that eliminating the numerous hours I spend in front of the TV each week will free up the time that I need in order to achieve some of my more time intensive resolutions.
2. Take the dog on a walk each morning - This one is for me and for the dog and is something that I set my alarm for almost every morning but embarrassingly have not once done. I am most worried about failing at this one because I have never been (and likely never will be) a morning person and because it is freaking freezing right now! Alas, I am determined to make it happen this year.
3. Stop drinking soda - I successfully cut out regular soda a few years ago and I am now ready to eliminate the diet as well. It is one of my most unhealthy habits and it is time that I let go. Caffeine will still be a regular part of my day (I refuse to eliminate coffee) but the carcinogenic-filled diet soda will be gone for good this year.
4. Keep to a regular workout schedule - This is something that I am actually fairly good at when I set my mind to it so hopefully putting it in writing will be the motivation I need to put my mind to it. I want to go to the gym at least three times a week; for now I am going to designate those days as Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday but my work schedule is fairly chaotic so I will be flexible with the days as long as I find at least three each week.
5. Eat Healthier - No list of my New Year's resolutions would be complete without this one. My constant struggle with food continues into 2008... along with a regular workout schedule I also hope to improve my diet with the ultimate goal of loosing weight (duh). I would like to drop 30 pounds in 2008 and will track my progress here. I will not do my first weigh in until next Tuesday because I am frankly petrified to get on the scale today after two weeks of Holiday eating... I need a week back in the normal world before taking the plunge, stay tuned.
The big stuff:
1. Start my first novel – This has always been dream of mine and after stumbling upon the story line of a lifetime over the holidays I am ready to start writing, or least start researching. There are a few books that I would like to read and re-read over the next couple months to get a better grasp on the style I plan to use to deliver my story. I have to finish my last B-school application before starting this project, but since it is due on January 11th, I will get started in short order. More on this later...
2. Go back to school - This one is already in motion and I really have no doubt that it will happen at this point. I have applied to four MBA programs already (Haas, Anderson, Marshall and Yale School of Management) and have one final application in the works (Kellogg). I have been accepted to Marshall already and have interviewed with both Anderson and Kellogg in the last week. I will interview at Yale next week and have my fingers very firmly crossed that I will hear from Hass soon (my first choice). It will be a monumental change for me and I can hardly wait! I will hear back from all of the schools (except Kellogg) by the end of this month and hope that I will have a fairly good idea of where I will be in the fall of this year.
3. Make 2008 about Me - This one is a bit selfish but I have decided that I am totally okay with that. With a great deal of change coming my way this year I think I have a unbelievable opportunity to find myself in a way I have never have before. This is by far the biggest resolution on my plate for the year and although it is a bit ambiguous at the moment I am sure that I find ways to apply this resolution every day in 2008 and can't wait to share the results!
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