Life Right Now: January 2016

I haven't written a "life lately" post since October, so it seemed like it was probably time for a general life update. 

Right Now in Entertainment:

- I've been ramping up my reading in an effort to finish the Semi-Charmed Winter Book Challenge before the month is over. Can I do it? I don't know. I'm cutting it close, but I still may pull through.

- Speaking of reading challenges, I finished my first book for Book Challenge by Erin 4.0! (In case you're wondering, that book was The Martian.) Once January/the SCWBC15 is over, I'll be able to turn my focus to this challenge. I already have several books checked out from the library in preparation. (And yes, I realize this picture also contains a book I've already finished for the challenge. Whatever.)


- With all this reading, my next Show Us Your Books! post is going to be huge. (Don't say I didn't warn you.)

- Eric and I finished Making a Murderer earlier this month. So much of what happened was so crazy (particularly when it came to Brendon) that I found it hard to believe it actually happened. I haven't read any of the articles claiming to have more information that have been floating around online yet, but I plan to at some point. (I know Jana recently posted a couple of related links that I need to check out!)

- We also just finished the last available season of Law & Order: SVU on Netflix. I know I mentioned this on Monday, but I'm disappointed that the older seasons aren't available right now. I love Olivia but I do miss Elliot.

- We've now moved on to Californication. I watched at least two or three seasons years ago, but Eric had never seen it. He loves it (possibly because of all the raunchy humor and boobs?). I love it for many reasons, but especially because the main character is a writer and because there are a lot of great literary and musical references. Win win.

- I'm clearly getting addicted to Netflix. Again.

- We also finally watched Inside Out this month. I was planning to watch it for the Fall Film Challenge, but I obviously didn't get to it before the challenge ended in November. It was even better than I thought it would be! If you haven't seen it, you should. (And prepare to get emotional. I cried not once, but twice. I'm such a sap.)

Right Now in General Life Updates:

- For the most part, I've been sticking with my January goals. I'm planning to write a post at the end of the month that goes into more detail (this definitely helps with accountability!), and I'm pretty excited that I'll actually be able to mark most of them off with a PASS.

- I need some new workout shoes, but I'm not sure what I want. I just know that I really need to get rid of the shoes I have now. I've had them for about five years, and, for some unknown reason, they're starting to hurt my feet. (Maybe because they're old?) I have a couple of gift cards I can use so I'll get them for free (or next to nothing), but I can't figure out what color/style/brand I want to go with. If anyone has a favorite style/brand of workout shoe, please feel free to leave a suggestion!

- Clearly my life is kind of boring right now. Haha.

Right Now in Things I'm Looking Forward To:

- Tomorrow Eric and I are having a much needed date night. We've been trying to be a little more frugal this month, but we've also been getting a little stir crazy hanging around the apartment every weekend ... So it's definitely time to get out and do something fun! We're not doing anything amazing or original (dinner and a movie), but I'm really looking forward to it.

- We're going to one of our favorite restaurants, Saigon, for dinner and since we first talked about making plans for a date night, I've been craving a huge, spicy, delicious bowl of pho. And bubble tea. Always bubble tea.


- I'm even more excited about the movie, though. We're going to see Anomalisa, which has been on my "Must See" list (which, if you're wondering, is much shorter than my "To Read" list) since I first heard that Charlie Kaufman had something new in the works. It's finally here! I love Charlie Kaufman films (with the exception of Human Nature), and I really hope this lives up to my expectations.


I think I may start making these "Life Right Now" posts a regular monthly thing. My life isn't always super exciting, but these posts are kind of fun to write. I also like reading these types of posts on other blogs, so hopefully at least a few people will like reading them on mine. (And it doesn't hurt that Kristen is now cohosting a link-up that these types of posts would be perfect for!)

New Year's Resolutions for 2016

I'm officially very behind on all things blog. I'm going to periodically be working on getting at least somewhat caught up this weekend, but I have a lot of other things I need/want to do as well ... So we'll see how much I actually accomplish.

I originally wanted to post my 2016 New Year's resolutions yesterday before Eric and I headed out to dinner, but I ran out of time. I think that actually worked out well for me, though, since it gave me a little extra time to think about the things I'd like to work on and achieve this year.

I know that a lot of people think it's silly or stupid to make New Year's resolutions. And I get it ... It's just a new year. Nothing really changes between 11:59 p.m. December 31st and 12:00 a.m. January 1st.

But I like making goals, and I like achieving them. For me, New Year's resolutions are simply goals I plan to spend the next 365 days working toward. Even though I probably won't achieve all of them (I never do), I like taking the time to reflect on things I'd like to change, skills I'd like to work on, and personal challenges I'd like to take on.


1. Continue practicing yoga regularly (at least 2-3 times each week).

I admittedly fell off the wagon a bit by the end of 2015, but it's one of my favorite ways to exercise. I even wrote a post last year detailing why you should stick with your "practice yoga" New Year's resolution (if that is, in fact, one of your goals for the new year). Clearly I think yoga is pretty awesome.

2. Organize and stick with a workout schedule.

Ideally I'll be working out 3-4 times each week, but I need to figure out what's going to work best for me (and that might change from month to month). I feel best when I'm working out regularly, so I need to take the time to create a schedule that's easy to stick with.

3. Lose 15-20 pounds.

I'll be honest and say that "lose weight" is on my list of resolutions every year. (I know, I know ... So original.) Last year I just made a more generic "lose weight" goal. And while that was fine and I did lose weight (though I've unfortunately managed to pack it back on over the last couple of months), I wanted to make a more concrete goal this year. I know this probably sounds like a lot of weight (and, for a very short person like myself, it is), but it's still a realistic amount. If I lost 16 pounds, I'd weigh what I did at my wedding in 2013.

4. Read 60 books.

After making a 50 book goal for myself for 10 years, I finally accomplished it in 2015! Not only did I accomplish my goal, I crushed it with 59 books! This year I've decided to increase my goal to 60. I'm going to be incredibly impressed with myself if I can exceed this one!

5.  Create and stick with a weekly meal plan.

This is something I say I'm going to do all the time, but I never do. In an effort to eat healthier, waste less, and save some money, I'm going to do my best to stick with this goal.

6.  Hit at least my first daily goal on Swagbucks every day.

I will make an exception for this goal and say that I don't expect to hit my daily goal every day if I'm traveling, but otherwise I should be able to easily accomplish this. I've been using Swagbucks a lot lately, and I think it will be nice to continue making some easy extra cash to contribute to our savings and/or to use as "fun" money.

7.  Get more organized.

I used to be an incredibly organized person, but I've noticed a steady decline over the last few years. Most of the time this isn't a huge deal, but lately I've been more and more annoyed with my lack of organization. I've thankfully been able to stay pretty organized at work, but at home? Not so much.

8.  Work on a blogging schedule and stick with it.

This is another one of those things I always say I'm going to do, but never actually do. While blogging is just a hobby for me (as opposed to a source of income), I enjoy it most when I'm consistently participating in all aspects: writing posts, reading other blogs, commenting on posts, responding to comments, participating in link-ups, etc. Creating and sticking with a schedule should (hopefully!) help me stay on top of things and get more out of it.

9.  Work with Eric on smaller monthly goals.

I typically make monthly goals (though I didn't post my November results because I didn't stick with my goals at all and I didn't even bother making any for December), but Eric has never done this. We both have a lot of things we'd like to do throughout the year, but we also both know we'll need to break some of these goals into smaller segments in order to effectively complete them. We talked about this a lot while we were stranded in Chicago (it's not like we had anything better to do!), and we agreed that we would work together at the beginning of each month to come up with smaller goals for the month and then post them on the fridge so we have to look at them every day. We're both hoping this will keep us on track.

10. Be more frugal.

I don't think I spend freely all the time, but I'm definitely the type of person who will stop by a coffee shop for a $5 latte while running errands or spend $50 more when I'm ordering stuff online just so I qualify for free shipping. While I don't think it's gotten completely out of hand, I do have several more personal financial goals that I won't be posting here ... And the only way to achieve those goals is to save more and spend less. I'm not saying I can never stop for a coffee or buy something fun for myself because that's too restrictive and I could never stick with that. What I am saying is that I need to be a little more aware of my spending and saving habits.

On January 1, the new year stretches before me like a blank book, ready to be filled with new stories and adventures, triumphs and failures. Yes, nothing has really changed between 11:59 p.m. December 31st and 12:00 a.m. January 1st ... But that doesn't mean I can't try to make positive changes, learn some new things, and challenge myself to be better and do more during the next 365 days.

Wish me luck!