Small One's 12 in 12

I've been too consumed by #1 on my list to even really contemplate ANYTHING besides graduate school interviews, but finally - well past the beginning of 2012, I've been able to think about 2 -12!

1. Go to grad school!
Small One spent most of 2011 preparing for the GREs, spending countless hours looking up faculty members, publications, towns, cities, costs of living, stipends, demographics... everything you can think of to make myself pretty miserable about thinking the future without being able to DO much about it.  But now it is time to stop thinking and start doing!  It is interview season I want to pick a grad school, feel confident in my choice, and start my journey as a doctoral candidate... even if it means moving away from Tall One :(

2. Bucket List
Because I'm likely moving away from Philly, I'm making a Bucket List of things I've always wanted to do but haven't.  From the Erin Express to rafting in the Schuylkill, I'm not leaving until I've completed everything!  Suggestions welcome, Philadelphians! 


3. Make my bed
 Work can be bad.  Coming home from work to my clothes strewn over my desk chair waiting to be put away and piles of dirty laundry waiting to be washed doesn't make coming home much better.  This year, I'm going to start making my bed every morning.  Step one to a happy bedroom.

4. Eat healthier
"You have a food blog AND you're a vegetarian so you must eat healthy!"  No.  I am constantly fighting the urge to inhale every piece of chocolate I see and am paying the price.  This year, I will eat my veggies and get enough protein to feel good inside and out.  

5. Stay organized at work
My job as a research technician is insane.  My lunch break usually consists of answering emails, making calls, or whatever is left undone at my computer before I have to run back to the lab or to a meeting or get called to fix a problem.  It is easy to leave papers in piles around my desk and the lab benches a mess.  I will stay organized so, even if my job is hectic, my space won't reflect it.

6. Keep better track of my spending
HOW MUCH DID I SPEND ON FOOD THIS MONTH?  Yeah, things are expensive.  As my impending status as "starving graduate student" approaches, I need to buckle down and keep better track of my spending.  Hopefully it will motivate me to waste less and therefore spend less!


7. Let people know when I'm thinking about them
Most of my friends are pretty dispersed around the country (and even world!).  Pretty often, I find myself telling humorous anecdotes about my friends from high school or college without ever notifying the character of my tales that I've been thinking about them!  I love my friends a lot and need to do a better job of letting them know!


8. Accept the things I can't control
An easy concept, but difficult task.  This one may take longer than just a year!

9. Be informed
It is so easy to live in a bubble.  I want to read the newspaper EVERY day, not just some days.  I need to keep myself informed on a wide range of topics.

10. Once a Runner
I started running cross country competitively when I was 5 years old.  I continued to run throughout middle school, high school, and college.  My senior year, I was extremely injured and unable to run (or even really walk).  I had big dreams, but never got the chance to make it happen.  I had recurrent stress fractures for about 6 months after my graduation and so have been bitter about racing and nervous about injury.  I haven't run since I graduated, but it is time to get over my anxiety and self-identify as I always have: as a runner.  Plus, we've really been using a rough definition of "Small One" since I've stopped running - I may be shorter than Tall One, but I am definitely NOT smaller!


11. Get crafty!
I have piles of knitting projects unfinished and homemade postcards unsent (see #7).  I need to find a little artful confidence and get crafty!  (Have the same goal?  Tall and Small will be doing crafts during the maybe-too-long and definitely-too-trashy but totally irresistible 2 hr episodes of The Bachelor!) 

12. Let my Spatular cook for me :)
Here is a texting conversation between me and my Spatular:
Small One: Do you want me to make dinner or should we go out?
Spatular: I could make something
Small One: Alright, let me pick a restaurant.
He may be a looker, but I suppose I should let him have a shot in the kitchen too, especially since we're planning to move in together sometime in 2012!