Long time...

... no see.

My last post was in November 2009. Seeing as how it's December of 2011, it's clear that time flies when you're not completing these goals.

In my defense, over the last 2 years...

... I got laid off from the paper.
... so I started my own business.
... which wasn't making money quickly enough so I got a part time job.
... and then another one.
... Michael and I got engaged.
... and then married.
... so we moved.
... his parents were both in the hospital (at two separate times) for over a month each.
... my father had his hip replaced.
... my grandparents spent more time at doctors or in hospitals than ever before.
... so my grandparents moved in with my parents.
... so my parents had to reno their whole house.
... meaning Mike and I had to reno their house.
... we took a 10 day honeymoon to Maui.
... and now that things have slowed down (ha!), it's our first Christmas as a married couple, so naturally we're hosting 14 people for Christmas Eve while both working retail for the holiday season. Along with our other jobs.

But after a couple months of financial hardship, overextended calendars, and general unrest, Mike and I have decided to take stock of our situation and try to goal-set our way out of it. Instead of attempting a second round of "101 goals in 1001 days" which, to be honest, was just too long of a time frame for a) me to stay interested in the exercise and b) my goals to stay relevant to my life, I've decided to attempt a more manageable "30 goals to 30." Since I will be turning 30 on 1/18/2013, approximately 395 days from now (approximately = exactly), that's a reachable deadline.

I've already started drafting the goals. Coincidentally, some of the goals looked the same as before without realizing I was repeating myself. "Hold a yard sale," "Save money," "Lose weight" - just a few recurring themes. But I also discovered that I completed a few of the goals without remembering they were goals.

005 Buy a Laptop - Out of necessity, I was forced to buy a laptop when we discovered that I couldn't run a home based business while sharing the same laptop that Mike was trying to run his home based business from. Now I am the proud owner of a (bargain) Best Buy refurbished MacBook.

041 Go Hiking 3 Times - I've gone hiking well over 3 times at this point. One benefit to Mike working at REI (besides his sweet discounts) is that he now wants to share in my lifelong love of the outdoors. We've hiked all over the Wissahickon, climbed over frozen waterfalls at Rickett's Glen, and trod through a bamboo forrest to a hidden waterfall in Maui.

068 Wear a bikini on the beach - Once I got to my wedding/honeymoon fighting weight, I wasn't afraid to "tie one on" so to speak.

080 Visit Karen in DC - It took a 5 hour Megabus journey, but I visited Karen in 2010 for the Rally to Restore Sanity held by Jon Stewart/Stephan Colbert. It was pretty goddamn great.

092 Get a facial - A luxury, but nothing is too extravagant when you're preparing for a wedding apparently.

Once I've completed my "30 by 30" list, I'll be back.