To Infinity (err, 2009) And Beyond!

With spring finally almost here and every aspect of my life in turmoil, I need to lay down a couple of goals for the upcoming year and even into 2010, and outline briefly how I intend to hit those goals. Critically Correct seems like a good place to think aloud.

Goal: Go hiking in March 2010.

More than anything else right now, I want to return to the Smoky Mountains to go hiking once again much as I did over Spring Break 2006. I wouldn't even mind retracing the exact same trails we did back then, because to be honest the trails are stunningly beautiful.

The goal requires considerable work. For one, I need to get in shape hardcore... I got my butt kicked last time I went, and if it wasn't for Brent's persistence I would have turned back on several trails and stayed at a hotel. But making fourteen mile hikes daily, combined with steep elevation changes, makes for brutal torture of the body. I don't necessarily need to lose weight to go hiking: I simply need to be strong enough to be able to carry my weight and forty extra pounds up a mountain. Once I can do that, I'm good to go.

I'm planning to start on this goal now. Weekly exercise, particularly walking and jogging, is part of my routine. I'm avoiding putting on excess weight by changing my eating habits to include healthier foods for breakfast and lunch (but leaving room for dinner to be what I want). Eventually sometime this fall I plan to begin long-distance walks with weight on my back to simulate the stress I'll be putting on myself, and by next March I hope to be on my way to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Goal: Move out of my house in 2009.

I'm really hoping to see this happen over the summer since I've been putting it off since January already. I want to live in Findlay, closer to my job, so that I can have more time for myself. Right now I dedicate two hours of my day to driving to and from Findlay and fill my gas tank twice a week. Living in Findlay would cut two hours of driving down to ten minutes (give or take), which means I could stay up later at night, get up later in the morning, and overall be happier to get more time for myself. I could spend more time at work without being too stressed about having to drive so far to get home, and more importantly, I could finally live on my own, hopefully before I turn 25!

I plan to do this simply by doing what I have been doing: saving money. I have specific targets that I want to hit in my savings before I move out, and by the middle of June I should be there. Hopefully I can celebrate my 25th birthday in my own apartment.

B3 out.