Happy New Year!!!!

To all of you scattered about this huge small wonderful world I send my very best wishes for a wonderful new year!! For me the celebration is quiet and this year is no different. I won't go out (amateur night) and will likely be in bed before the ball drops but I did see the Sydney celebration on TV this morning so there is my celebration. I'll look back on the past year and think about the upcoming one and be extremely grateful.

A few resolutions:

1. Re-do another room. Re-doing my kitchen and mudroom this year literally changed my life and the way I feel being in my home. I need to keep this momentum going and I think the next room will be the small bathroom off my study. I'll need help with that in the way of a contractor. It might only be 20 square feet but right now that is space that is a tragedy. Harvey can tell you. It sucks and is pretty much a toilet and litter box room.

2. Frame the 2 photos I took in Japan at Hamariku Gardens. I love them and got them blown up as soon as I got back. For 18 months they have lived in the mailing tube and possibly are covered with mold. For my birthday in 2006 I requested and received two Great Frame Up gift cards so I could go frame them (it's a do it yourself place and everything I've ever done there has turned out so GREAT). I still haven't done it but in 2008 I will. Included in this resolution is hanging them. On a wall. Not laying them up against the other artwork I have that is standing against a wall.

3. "Tweak" the mudroom. Need to get the coat rack up, change out the light fixture, buy or make a privacy screen for the litterbox . . . It's a great room that right now is just gorgeous but needs some work to make it welcoming. Just needs some attention and possibly about $100 total to make it right. My primary entry door is the back side door into the mudroom and I want to make this a room that is comfortable and exciting to enter.

4. Get rid of more crap. When I returned from Japan 2 years ago after living for a year in an empty apartment and sleeping on the floor and living happily with the barest of minimums I walked in my sweet little house and couldn't believe how much crap I had that I never used and didn't like. I spent 2006 getting rid of a great deal of it - I cleaned out every closet and made huge donations to Goodwill and gave away a lot on Freecycle and sold a few things on Craigslist. That was a huge accomplishment but now I need to go to the next level. In 2006 I was merciless. I decluttered without thinking beyond 3 questions: Is it necessary? Is it useful on a regular basis? Do I love it? In the 2 years since I have made an effort to keep myself clutter-free but I still have things I'm holding onto for sentimental reasons and they are freaking with my chi. Time to get rid of it so I can concentrate on taking proper care of those things that are useful and necessary and loved. Like putting ribbons and costumes on the cats for example. Because a pissed off cat is fun to watch.

Of course my resolutions also include the usual ones: lose the weight, stop the damned smoking, be healthy. But this is a journey and these things are not to be listed and resolved they are to be lived. As such they are not on my list. Lists are to put things that need to be checked off. For several years I've had on and off borderline high blood pressure and I've always had a problem with high cholesterol. I take NO MEDICATIONS and I would like to keep it this way. This year I will work to make better choices to keep me healthy.

Harvey I got your tag and I'm working on it. I swear. I am finding it difficult to find 7 things that migfht be even remotely interesting. I can find 3 but I need more time for 7!!! Since tonight is introspective for me maybe I will work on that! Also I need to brush up on my HTML so I can link properly.

OH YEAH!!

5. Learn HTML and get a website.