Resolutions for 2009

Ah, the sound of fireworks is already popping a short distance from my house. I figured I would post my resolutions now before I go to bed. Unfortunately, I have work to do early in the morning at work, so I will not be able to ring the new year in with friends. Hope you like my resolutions. If you don't, too bad for you. Ha!

1. Start saving money from each paycheck, mostly to spend at Christmas

I thought about the idea to save up money all year to be able to buy presents for friends and family at Christmas. I've never been one that has been able to afford presents for anyone and that's something I would like to change. Perhaps this idea could also include any birthdays of friends and family any time in the year. And if I don't spend it all, I could let the money "roll over" as part of next year's savings. I kinda like the sound of that. I've been known to be impatient at times, but this is an official goal that has been made and I plan on sticking to it. Imagine if you saved $50 per paycheck and you get paid every other week:

26 paychecks * $50 = $1,300 at the end of the year

2. Buy a camera for the 365 Photo Project

Once I heard about the 365 Photo Project being led by Alison here on Blogspot, the thought tickled my mind for a while. I remembered how I used to love taking weird, random photos with my old camera (not top-notch, but quality by my standards) and would love to be able to do it again. Not only would I be able to take one photo a day, but I would be able to explain it and with a little imagination, possibly make it into a story. That sounds like some serious fun to me.

3. Drink less caffeine

As mentioned, I think drinking less caffeine is necessary for my health. For anyone that knows me, my caffeine intake amounts to one or two 20-ounce Mountain Dew drinks a day. It's usually just one, but the caffeine content of just one 20-ounce Mountain Dew is about 92mg[1]. Also, I believe I read somewhere that it only takes as little as 100mg of caffeine a day to get addicted. Sorry for the lack of reference on that fact. In any case, I have been pretty good health-wise with the minimal amount of caffeine and would like to cut it off altogether.

4. Write/blog more

Yes, I would like to write and/or blog more. Chances are kinda high that if I write more, I will be blogging more. Because I will have more content to write about and will end up posting it here anyway. Yes, the current problem is content to write about. This is not a major problem, but it's one I aim to fix. I believe I have something to share with the world and there's bound to be someone out there that will want to hear what I have to say.

5. Eat healthier

You heard right. Eating healthier is good for anyone. It doesn't mean I am trying to lose weight because I already know that I am skinny enough and have problems keeping my weight up. That is, despite the fact that I eat like a horse sometimes. I guess it all depends on what I am eating and not how much. I think I have already started working on this a little bit, but I think it's necessary to drop it on the list anyway.

5a. Eat out less

Eating out can get expensive, even for a young bachelor who has a little excess cash (also see #1). Among the affordability of the meals is the content of the food. Not all food cooked at a restaurant is necessary healthy for you. Take pizza for example: Umm, yeah. Enough said. I have been a bit of a slacker when it comes to getting groceries so that I don't spend so much on food by eating out. I will be aiming to fix this problem by simply buying groceries more often. Anybody else have that problem or am I alone in that boat?

5b. Eat more fruits and vegetables

I realize that the food I eat consists of meats, seafood, pastas, and cheeses. It's not that I don't eat fruits and vegetables, it's just that I don't eat them enough. Again, as I said in the one above, it just requires me to simply buy groceries plus buying fruits and vegetables. Simple, right?

I couldn't think of any more after the fifth one, so I decided to make that my official list of resolutions for the year 2009. I think this would be the first time I set out to actually make some real resolutions and I intend on keeping them all. Discipline, my friends. Discipline. Feel free to leave comments about my resolutions list. Happy New Year of 2009 to all! Stay safe!