My New Year’s resolutions are usually the same each year, which means I don’t succeed in accomplishing them and need to try again. And they will sound familiar––lose weight and exercise more. As usual, I say that this year I’ll really try.

Last year, another resolution was to organize house, garage, and basement and I did. So, I did succeed in accomplishing one of my New Year’s resolutions.

Keep up with reading matter

This year, besides losing weight and exercising more, I want to keep up with the newspapers and other stuff that piles up. I usually just give stuff a quick look and add to the pile that I seem to get to only every few months. Well, I’m going to try to stay on top of all the reading matter that comes in every day. My plan is to go through everything at least weekly and not let it pile up. We shall see!

Lose weight

As to losing weight, I have done some research on the Keto diet. I’ve paid for and downloaded a bunch of Keto cookbooks. I now have lots of recipes and meal plans. And I’ve done some research on the downsides, the side effects of the Keto diet. In so doing, I discovered a supplement that is advertised as being able to do the same thing as the Keto diet without doing the Keto diet. Of course, I don’t totally believe it, but it might help. So, we’ll see.

I know I should replace some of the carbs that I eat with more protein and that’s what the Keto diet does. I won’t jump into it totally, and I’ve already begun using the supplement. So, between the Keto recipes and the supplement, I should be able to lose 12 to 15 pounds. What’s different this year is that I have a plan. In the past, I didn’t. I was just going to eat less. Well, that never works for me.

Exercise regularly

As to exercising, I organized and cleaned out the garage. So, I have an exercycle that I can get to and use, as well as a small trampoline that is set up so I can use it too. The trampoline used to be on end behind a bunch of stuff. I know me; if the exercise equipment is not set up ready to use, I won’t use it.

My plan is to work out on the equipment in the garage on days that are cold or raining.  And on other days, I’ll go walking around the neighborhood. So, I have a plan. In past years, I was just going to go walking and then it would be too cold or raining. Then I wouldn’t go out. Before long, I didn’t go at all. This year, I have a plan. We’ll see how it works out.

Put together new book

One last resolution is to write another book and have it ready to sell at the Florence Festival of Books in September. Of course, we don’t know if we’ll be able to have the festival this year, but I’m going to use September as a deadline anyway. And the book is already written and has photos. Well, not exactly. I will be using 15 blog posts and put them together as a book.

When I was undergoing chemo, I wrote about the whole experience on my blog. Since then, I’ve run off and put together about eight or nine of those blog posts and shared them with folks newly diagnosed. I’ve done it at least a half dozen times and some of those were passed on to others. I was told more than once that I should put them into a book, but I’ve always poo-poohed the idea.

I was talking to a friend just a couple weeks ago who has a friend recently diagnosed, whom she wants to help. It was the same type of cancer I had, so I suggested my blog posts. It’s been six years since my cancer and a couple years since I had to run off any copies. This time, while I was running off copies, I read them. Rereading them after so much time, I decided that 15 blog posts would, indeed, make a decent book. There was a compelling beginning, all five months were covered, and there was a satisfying ending. So, I think there’s a book there and a market for it. Best of all, it won’t be hard to put together.

As 2021 begins, I have four New Year’s resolutions that I believe are actually doable!

I wish you the best of luck with your New Year’s resolutions!!!