Looking forward to 2014


#goals  #my life 

Well, 2014 is just about here and I guess that means it’s time to put together a list of goals for the upcoming year. I’m not particularly into the idea of resolutions per se, but I like having things to work toward and a direction for my life. It helps to add some meaning to each day and motivate me to spend less time with my ass on the couch.

In no particular order, here are my goals for 2014:

  • Be a more reciprocating friend: Obviously, I’ve had a lot going on over the last year and a half, but lately I’ve been feeling as though many of my friendships have become very one sided with me on the receiving end much more than the giving end. I want to be a better friend to those who have been there for me when I needed it.
  • Qualify for the Boston Marathon: This isn’t the first time qualifying for Boston has been on my list of goals for the year and it will be here every year until I finally do it. Looking at a calendar for 2014, it looks like I’ll get one shot at it in 2014, but I’m hopeful that with proper training, this will be the year!
  • Run three marathons: I’m planning one in the spring and two in the fall. I think I can do this! We’ll see.
  • Keep up with strength and flexibility exercises and avoid injury: I’m terrible at keeping up with this stuff. I swear up and down every time that it’s going to be different, but it never is and I always end up with some sort of running-related injury. 2014 is the year this stops. I’m not going to be lazy about this anymore, I’ve learned my lesson.
  • Spend some serious time with my camera: After a photo365 project in 2012, 2013 was an almost complete wash for photography. I spent hardly any time with my camera and when I did take photos I let them pile up unprocessed on my computer. I’m debating doing another photo365 project to get me motivated, but I haven’t made a final decision yet. I had a love/hate relationship with the project in 2012. I took a lot of awesome photos I wouldn’t have otherwise taken, but it was also stressful and time consuming. We’ll see, but I need to decide soon!
  • Spend less time on Twitter: Twitter is, by far, my favorite part of the internet. It’s been an incredible tool for connecting with other transgender people, as well as other runners. It’s also just fun. Unfortunately, I’ve increasingly let Twitter take over my life and get in the way of doing other things. I don’t want to cut Twitter out entirely, but I want to figure out how to keep up with everything I care about without blowing hours of each day trying to keep up.
  • Become a more active trans activist: I want to do more for my community. I want to write more and I want to be active offline, as well.
  • Travel outside North America: In 2012, my wife and I took an awesome trip to Berlin, Copenhagen, and, Stockholm. It was incredibly tiring, but absolutely amazing. We’ll be starting off 2014 with a week in Brussels, but half the trip will be dedicated to work so I’m not counting this trip towards my goal for 2014. I have two trips in mind for 2014, but we’ll see where we end up actually going.
  • Finally stop dragging my feet and either buy a house in New Jersey or decide to get the heck out of this state: I love New Jersey, I really do, but I feel like I need a change. It may be time to get out of here and try somewhere new for a while. However, that change may not necessarily be leaving this state, but instead just settling down to owning our own home, a place we can really make our own. This is still a decision we need to make.
  • Put the hell project I’ve been dealing on at work behind me: If I let myself actually get started explaining just how bad this project has been, by the time I’m done, I’d have to scrap this post and start working on one for 2015. Let’s just say it started in May of 2013 and we’re currently back to zero (for the third time). I’m over this project and I need to get it done and put it behind me. Mentally and emotionally, I need to be done with this.

Okay, I think that’s enough to work on for one year, right?

What are you goals, or resolutions if that’s your thing, for 2014?