here we are at the beginning of a new year, and it is time to set some new goals for myself. i did ok with last year’s and am trying to be realistic with this year’s. without further ado, all the things i would like to accomplish in 2018…

go on one weekend day hike each month. one thing i really want to be better about is exploring outdoor opportunities around memphis. there are great hiking trails within 30 miles of the city in almost any direction, and i would like to get out and see some of them. i figure setting the goal of one saturday or sunday a month is realistic, with june and july being bonus months depending on how summer conference is going.

cross off a few more of my 35before35 list. we’re down to less than 6 months until i turn 35, so i am hoping to cross a few more things off my list. wish me luck!

re-read two favorite books. i love reading new books, but i also love returning to old favorites and rediscovering them. i’m not sure which two i’ll read this year, but the ones i’m currently leaning toward are the book thief, all the light we cannot see, and the shadow of the wind. and it is also time for my bi-annual harry potter re-read.

a bear-veena reunion trip. ellie and i managed a quick catch-up in new york last year [and i do mean quick; we overlapped for about 3 hours], but this year we are hoping for a longer reunion. we are still figuring out where we will go, but it will most likely be somewhere in europe during the last week of march. i can’t wait.

complete three coursera and / or skillshare courses. in an effort to continue improving myself, i would like to take advantage of all the free online courses that are available and learn some new things. i am currently enrolled in a coursera course on health and gender, after which i’ll see what strikes my fancy for round two.

get a plant and keep it alive. i’ve never attempted to keep a plant alive but think i am about ready for the commitment. we’ll see how this one goes.

begin following kid president’s guide to being awesome. last year i purchased kid president’s guide to being awesome, and i would like to start following his guide to being a better person. this will likely be a new series, depending on how successful i am with it.

be vegetarian for one month. i have been wanting to try this for a few years but have never designated an actual month for it, so this will finally be my year. i’m going with february, partly because it’s the shortest month and partly because it’s the one month where i don’t have any trips or anything special going on and so should be able to stick with it. i really should have done this in india, where it is much easier to be a vegetarian than memphis, but it just means i will have to be a little creative.

get started on my 40before40 list. yes, that’s right, there’s a new list in the works, but this one has a little bit of a twist: 25 of the things will be centered around exploring more of memphis, and the other 15 will be broader life goals that i would like to accomplish, a few of which will be rolled over from the 35before35 list. and yes, most of it will be food related.

buy a house. this is the biggie. i have casually been looking at houses in memphis for the last few months, but i would like to step up my search and potentially move before summer conference begins. that means a busy spring is on my horizon, but i am looking forward to it.

and there you have it, my goals for 2018. it’s sure to be an interesting year, and i hope you’ll join me for the adventure. here’s wishing you and yours a wonderful year ahead.

xx