Goals: 1Q15 Update

At the end of last year, in the 10 “Top 10” posts I did for the last 10 days of the year, I reviewed my goals for 2014 and set some for 2015. Accountability is what accomplishes. So let’s see how I’m doing.

1. Become healthier. Be proud of what I eat. Get undetectable Tg levels (the marker for thyroid cancer), and under 30% body fat.
   • Done: Allie’s calipers said 16.2% on January 14. I cried.
   • Close: I am frequently proud of what I eat. Making my log available to my friends helps because it means no more food secrets – which is equally scary and freeing. I have much progress to make, though, before I’m solidly proud. And I’m sure as hell going to keep working till I feel I can believe that BF number.
   • Future: The cancer markers are still there. I go for a whole-body scan next week. Please, God, good news.
2. Become a better CrossFitter. Get a strict pull-up. Deadlift over 200 lbs. Snatch 100, bench 150, and clean & jerk 125. Get skin-the-cats, consecutive double-unders, and free-standing handstands or handstand walks. Compete on a scaled team at Test Your Metal in July.
   • Done: I deadlifted 210 on January 9. And, just this morning, I did two double-unders in a row twice, so technically that’s done, although just barely. There’s much room for improvement until I can do them for real.
   • Close: My C&J PR is 115, but my power clean is 125, so I know I’m nearly there.
   • Future: Snatch, bench, STC, pull-up, handstand.
3. Become a better martial artist. Write down forms (something I did for years and fell away from). Spar at least once a month.
   • Done: Saturday I wrote and learned a phenomenally long form. It took two hours, but it really worked. The act of writing helps me so much. I’m definitely keeping this up. Also, it’s a good example to set, and that’s something that’s important for me to do, too. (And then I sparred, so there’s another good thing.)
   • Close: “Once” isn’t “often,” and as with all my other goals, I have to do this stuff regularly!
   • Future: I’m going to basically move into the dojang starting May 1 in order to make up for how little I’ve been there in the first quarter of the year. Teaching at Fordham has been a great experience, but it’s meant that I have a lot to catch up on in the rest of life, especially here. And I miss it terribly!
4. Become a better runner. Run a half-marathon and a sub-30 5K.
   • Done: I keep running!
   • Close: But not often enough. I’m going to build up to three times a week, but carefully, so I don’t hurt myself.
   • Future: My 5K time is about 36 minutes. And apparently I’m doing that half marathon in June! Fortunately, I have all the faith in the world in the programming of Dan Church.
5. Become more flexible. Get full front and side splits, backbend, cow face pose.
   • Done: I think I’m technically there on one front split.
   • Close: Pretty close on the other one.
   • Future: The other ones are harder.
6. Become a better freelancer. Make 15% more than 2014. Be more prolific on my own blog. Strengthen and diversify my client base. Get a new certification to help with the preceding.
   • Done: I’m blogging more. I’ve got one cert scheduled.
   • Close: I’ve done some cool-ass stuff already this year and have more planned.
   • Future: I have not kept as close an eye on the numbers as I wanted to over the last three months, and this is an excellent reminder to get on that.
7. Become safer financially. Rebuild emergency savings. Restart retirement savings. Find the best insurance to replace COBRA. Save for home projects.
   • Done: I’m keeping above water, which, frankly, is pretty impressive.
   • Close: The emergency savings fund is stabilizing and, perhaps, starting to creep back up.
   • Future: Health insurance. Retirement savings. Home projects.
8. Become a better human. Be kind. Assume the best. Meditate daily. Pray. Simplify. Create less garbage.
   • Done: I was meditating daily again. For a while. I’ve been purging house stuff a lot too – Freecycling and donating.
   • Close: I try to take time, breathe, assume the best, pray, focus.
   • Future: This needs a lot of work. I’m planning a short exercise that will help me.
9. Be more creative. Draw people and words. Take pictures. Cook. Bake. Write stories.
   • Done: I started a new Instagram for my hand-lettering and I’m loving that. I prep-cook pretty regularly and even made cookies lately, which was a throwback experience. I take most all of the pictures for CFA and that’s awesome practice.
   • Close: I’ve tried drawing people lately. Crap, that’s hard.
   • Future: Writing stories. Ooof. Even harder.
10. Be more fun. Sing. Visit a new country. Have a party. Do new things. Spend time loving the people I love. Be less shy with new ones. Stop buying things I don’t love. Laugh.
    • Done: I helped throw some pretty awesome events over the last couple of months. And I’m getting a lot better at loving the people I love, thanks to their help.
    • Close: There are two trips in the vague stages of planning that I’m head-over-heels excited for.
    • Future: All winter I’ve been saying that all I wanted to do all spring, summer and fall was spend every possible spare moment outside in the sunshine with people I loved. This needs to happen.