“Carpe the fuck out of this diem”

That’s what my new socks say. I’m going to wear them to work tomorrow and start the new year right.

You know, except for the being-at-work part, but shhhh.

At least I’ll start out with the right attitude, especially given that I’ll be at work. Actually, I guess a better attitude would be socks that say “fuck this shit,” but “carpe the fuck out of this diem” is what the socks I got for Christmas say. Which I love, of course.

ANYWAY.

I’m trying to get back into working out. I read a lovely article recently from Spark People all about how even ten minutes of exercise here and there is good for you and can provide major benefits, so don’t worry or feel like you might as well not even work out if you can’t dedicate a full hour to it. Considering how strapped for time I am during the school year, working two jobs, I liked that article a lot.

I did work out faithfully for nearly the whole year two years ago, and I always felt really good afterward. So this year I’m going to start out just trying to work out for five/ten minutes a day, right before my shower. I already have a designated time of day set up, and I’ve started on that this week, just to get going.

Adding to that…I really need to eat healthier, guys. I mean, I’m not the unhealthiest eater ever. It’s not like I’m grabbing fast food all the time or gorging myself on Domino’s and deep-fried Twinkies.

But you know when you’re a kid and you won’t eat fruits and vegetables? I never outgrew that. It’s tough for me to eat healthy because I don’t like most healthy foods. I’m more likely to not eat than to eat something I absolutely don’t like.

Which I should also work on, but that’s a chore for another year.

I think it’s a texture thing more than a taste thing…but I digress. The point is, I want to work on eating healthier. I started today by buying myself some relatively healthy snacks so that I have something I like to reach for when I’m home and I’m hungry but I don’t feel like cooking.

(Another scenario in which I’d likely just not eat. I need to take better care of myself.)

I’d also like to get writing a little more consistently. Of course I’m writing regularly, thanks to Last Man Standing, but I could stand to write a set number of words a day, of something, anything, just to keep it up. Young Writers Society has a 100-words-a-day club that I kept up with for exactly one month, so I think I’ll join back up and keep track of how much I write each day.

I might do one of those annoying journal things, too, where you keep track of when you feel most inspired, when you most feel like writing, and whatever else you’re supposed to pay attention to. Mindfulness isn’t a bad idea.

Otherwise, I don’t have any real goals. I’m going back to school this year, so what other goals do I need? I’ve been accepted, the money is there, I’m ready to quit my soul-sucking grocery store job this summer and shake its dust from my feet. That’s going to be life-changing enough.

I’ve never quit a job just to quit a job. I mean, obviously I’m quitting my job to go back to school, and I’ll still work my (not soul-sucking, making-a-difference, usually kind of fun) second job. But the first time I quit a job, it’s because I was moving an hour and a half a way. The next time, it was because the store was closing in a few weeks and I’d found employment elsewhere.

So it’s kind of funky to be quitting while still living in the same city, without moving on to a new job or leaving because of circumstances beyond my control.

Actually, it’s kind of liberating. I really feel like I’m doing something. Like I’m the agent of change in my life. The protagonist of the story, if you will, which of course we really all are.

I’m excited.

Let’s carpe the fuck out of this whole annum, shall we?