New Semester's Revolutions

New Year's resolutions don't work for me. I made a resolution this year to floss my teeth more often. I'm not sure where my dental floss is right now. Last year I resolved to figure out what I was doing with my degree. Now I'm even more confused than ever. This has gone on fairly consistently since I started making new year's resolutions.

In my humble opinion, resolving to do something all year on January 1st is setting yourself up for failure. It's hard to start a diet when there's all that old Christmas fudge and fruitcake kicking around your house. It's hard to start an exercise regime when you come home from work and it's dark, cold and snowy, you get sick, and your body just wants to hibernate (someday I am going to prove the Theory of Human Hibernation. It's going to rock the science world). It's hard to keep a diary when you're supposed to be writing thank-you notes. It's hard to make a change in yourself when nothing else is changing around you.

Which is why I like to make resolutions before making a transition in life, instead of making resolutions before a transition in the calendar year. At some point, I'm sure that there will be fewer transitions in my life and I'll turn to new years and new seasons to make resolutions, but for now I'm going to do what works for me when it works for me.

The transition in my life right now is going back to school after a semester of working and living in the "real world." Here are my resolutions (in no particular order).

1. Treat school like I'm getting paid to do it. Even though I'm not. Even though my degree will probably only make me overqualified to flip burgers, and under-qualified for anything else. Just suck it up and work it out!

2. Don't leave the house without makeup. This may seem like a shallow resolution, but hear me out. Since it takes me less than 5 minutes to do my make-up, the days when I go without it are usually days when I don't give a darn. While these days aren't always terrible days, the attention I pay to my physical appearance is a pretty good indicator of my mental health. When I take those few minutes to put on makeup before I head out, I am more likely to take a few minutes to enjoy the day later on.

3. Don't kiss boys with girlfriends. Even if you don't know that they have girlfriends. Because you always do know. And it's just bad news for everyone involved.

4. Don't let the social situation surrounding an activity lessen your enjoyment of that activity. An example: If you like doing radio at school, and the cool radio kids at school make you feel uncool, just keep doing your radio show and enjoying the hour at the crack of dawn on a weekend in the on-air room. Show all the cool radio kids by being highly successful at all radio-related activities. (Were they on Inside Appalachia? Were their news stories broadcast on NPR?).

5. Keep track of your bank account, Janney! Just do it.

Okay, that's enough resolutions. Of course, as always, I'll strive to eat well, exercise more, and be a happier person. And because it is no longer January 1st, I feel like I have a bigger chance of success at all of these.

P.S. Happy birthday Mom!