Monday, January 4, 2010

Fifty Goals for 2010

In lieu of vague resolutions, which I almost never keep, I've decided to set fifty concrete goals for 2010. Public declaration of these goals might make me feel more compelled to achieve them, so here goes:

WEIGHT, BODY SIZE & HEALTH
-Reach 188 pounds - an "overweight" BMI.
-Reach 154 pounds - a "normal" BMI.
-Maintain or get below 154 pounds at the end of the year.
-Wear a size Small shirt.
-Buy at least one bra from Victoria's Secret.
-Unsubscribe from Lane Bryant's mailing list.
-Get labs of my vitamin levels drawn at least once.
-Revisit my surgeon for at least one check up.
-Go to the dentist for a teeth cleaning.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY & ADVENTURE
-Complete the Couch to 5K program.
-Register for and complete at least 3 "races" of any length. Walking them is fine.
-Go hiking at least 3 times.
-Go fishing at least once.
-Go to a yoga studio, preferably for bikram or "hot" yoga, at least once.

TRAVEL
-At least once, travel to a country I've never visited.
-Visit Los Angeles.
-Visit at least one state I've never been to, preferably Texas.

READING
-Read Pierre Bourdieu, Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste.
-Read Frantz Fanon's The Wretched of the Earth (nope, I've never read it all the way through.)
-Read Mitchell Duneier's Sidewalk.
-Read Mitchell Duneier's Slim's Table: Race, Respectability, and Masculinity.
-Read Katherine S. Newman & Victor Tan Chen, The Missing Class: Portraits of the Near Poor in America.
-Read Katherine S. Newman, No Shame in My Game: The Working Poor in the Inner City.
-Read Mary Patillo's Black on the Block: The Politics of Race and Class in the City.
-Read William Julius Wilson, More Than Just Race: Being Black and Poor in the Inner City.
-Read William Julius Wilson, The Truly Disadvantaged: The Inner City, the Underclass, and Public Policy.
-Read William Julius Wilson & Richard P. Taub, There Goes the Neighborhood: Racial, Ethnic, and Class Tensions in Four Chicago Neighborhoods and Their Meaning for America.

PROFESSIONAL
-Finish revising my SAW for publication.
-Build my personal website.
-Take the GRE and score above 700 on verbal and at least 650 on quantitative.
-Pass the MPRE.
-Gain admission to graduate school and/or get an appellate clerkship.
-During any gap of time between my clerkship and my next job, write and publish at least one op-ed or an LTE in a major newspaper.
-Develop a sharper research focus.
-Finish article review for Professor Schuck and email it to him.

COOKING & EATING
-Cook with or eat 20 ingredients that I've never tried.
-Write at least 15 new recipes.
-Go to McClellanville or similar coastal area to purchase fresh seafood.
-Dine in at least one of the following New York restaurants: Brad Farmerie's Public, Seamus Mullen's Boqueria, Eric Ripert's Le Bernardin, Dan Barber's Blue Hill in Greenwich Village or at Stone Barns, Wylie Dufresne's WD-50, Daniel Humm's Eleven Madison Park, Anita Lo's Annisa (when repaired), Geoffrey Zakarian's Town, Alex Guernaschelli's Butter, Aaron Sanchez's Centrico, Floyd Cardoz's Tabla, or Gramercy Tavern.
-Dine at Sean Brock's McCrady's in Charleston.

CULTURE & COMMUNITY
-Continue volunteering at the shelter through September 2010.
-Volunteer somewhere other than the shelter at least once.
-Watch all five seasons of The Wire.
-Watch the Roots miniseries (nope, I've never seen it - no one revoke my "black card" please.)
-See at least two live theater shows.

OTHER
-Write at least ten relatively lengthy emails to catch up with friends/colleagues with whom I haven't spoken recently.
-Have at least 5 meaningful conversations about religion/faith/spirituality.
-Go to karaoke at least once.
-Pay off my credit cards completely at least once (they may still have a balance at the end of 2010.)
-Own my own car/get my current car off my mother's insurance.

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