Reflections on Declarations

If you recall this post, last year I decided that I would not make New Year's resolutions, but rather I would declare a list of things I would like to work on in 2009. How did I do? Pretty ho-hum, I think, but I'll leave that up to you.

Declaration #1: Get Healthier
I worked quite diligently at eating more locally produced foods this past year. I joined the Titus Farms CSA. I shopped at local farmer's markets and the Lansing City Market. I sourced local meat, cheese, and milk. I put up food. I even considered joining a cow share program in order to consume raw milk, but I decided against that (seemed a bit inconvenient to drive to St. Johns every few weeks and distribute milk). I learned a lot from the Locavores group on Ravelry. My sister-in-law and I purchased a pasture-raised, organic turkey for Thanksgiving.

I also had the bike restored, but have yet to go on a bike ride because I cannot figure out how to properly adjust my helmet. Don't laugh. It's a feeble excuse, and it's sad, but true.

To work on in 2010:
1. Eat less.
2. Walk more.
3. Ride the bike after taking helmet to cycling shop for proper fitting.
4. Cook more and eat at home.

Declaration #2: Improve the House
2010 is going to be the Year of the House. I pretty much took a break from home improvement this past year; after all, I had the porch renovation done in 2008. There were some minor accomplishments. I decluttered my clothes and coat closets and gave away at least ten, if not fifteen, kitchen-sized bags of items to charity. I have a deck/patio plan and Dad is coming this spring to tear out the old deck, build a new smaller deck, and install a patio. I also removed the dead tree from the back yard.

To work on in 2010:
1. Paint rooms.
2. Begin to purchase nice furniture, starting with new mattresses.
3. Continue organizing closets and drawers.
4. Hang stuff on the walls.

Declaration #3: Reduce the Stash
Ha! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

Excuse me while I pick myself up off the floor.

Okay, seriously, the stash grew tremendously this year. Reality set in during the summer. I organized the stash cupboard and took pictures for all to see, which yielded some comments regarding the size of my stash relative to the amount of time I have been knitting. Small Child #1 told me I don't need any more yarn. Perhaps the biggest reality check came when a knitting friend revealed her stash cupboard, and to my horror I realized that my stash is larger than hers, despite the fact that she has been a knitter for ten years. Yikes. No, not yikes. YIKES!

Hence, the cold sheeping began in mid-October. Read all about it here.

So, that's how I did this year. Not great, but at least some progress was made. How about you? Did you make resolutions? Did you keep them?

And finally, to wish you a happy New Year, I leave you with a goody from the dudes at JibJab.

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