Goals!

I've been reading some fun blogs about minimalist lifestyles (see: http://zenhabits.net/ or http://rowdykittens.com) as well as some great books about living a greener life ("Green Chic: Saving the Earth in Style" by Christie Matheson, "It's Easy Being Green: A Handbook for Earth Friendly Living" by Crissy Trask and "The Green Book" by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostigen). These books, combined with other life events, have all gotten me thinking about who I am, who I want to be and how I'm going to get there. A lot of people probably think I'm a hippie because I've been really into environmentalism the past oh...year or so, and that's fine with me because if I'm going to be associated with peace and love then thumbs up (though I realize the stereotype of a hippie comes with a lot of other images, but we're all about breaking stereotypes around here so...), and maybe some just think I'm a nag. But I guess all that to say, and I've said it before and I'll say it again, I care about these things (i.e. social change, poverty, the environment, gender issues, sociology) because 1) I believe in responsibility, especially as a Christian, and 2) I'm a firm believer that if we don't do something now it's all going to come back around and bite us in the ass. Plus, it's fun and interesting! It really comes down to what I want to be known for I suppose. I don't say this to be pretentious, I say it because I really believe it's true, and vitally important. I want meaning. With all of that in mind, I've been re-visioning my future and where I want to go. What that comes down to is breaking down who I want to be which is a person who cares about others and the world around her. I hope to teach others about living out their passions and using them to make things better. I'd say I've figured out my passion (Sociology), but the application part can be super hard sometimes (it's so much easier to sit on your butt!). But there are tons of people to meet and help, and our world is too small to not do something (anything!!!). I often think about the accomplishments of others--the things they've done to help others and I want to be like that too. Thusly, I've thought over my goals for the next year: I figure I'd start small, and work my way up to something big.

ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS:

1. Buy less, and only the necessities (this will reduce my environmental impact, and the amount of trash I produce, also will try to reuse what I have before buying more)

2. Call companies to tell them to STOP SENDING ME JUNK MAIL (too many trees and too much waste!)

3. Use an eco-friendly option if available

2011 GOALS:

1. Run a 5K for some sort of charity

2. Cycle! (Mom and I have been thinking of bike riding from Seattle to Portland--wouldn't that be neat-o?!)

3. V-o-l-u-n-t-e-e-r. This one can be a challenge with the nature of my job and its unpredictability (i.e. being on call a lot), but it's necessary: I think I'll start small (maybe twice a month) and hopefully work my way up to a bigger time commitment

4. Encourage, encourage, encourage the people around me (spending more time writing letters, tell more people "thanks!")

5. Talk to someone I love/write someone a letter at least once a week (this can be hard when things get busy)

OTHER GOALS (the "eventuallys"):

1. Get my PhD! Become a professor and teach super awesome and engaging classes and inspire the lives and minds of students everywhere!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2. Publish an article

3. Get thee to Italy!

4. Take a West Coast bike tour (maybe with my brother; he's an avid cyclist)

5. I'm not sure, but I want to organize something BIG. I've thought about ways to do this: i.e. organizing a trip for students to help alleviate poverty when I become a professor or something like that. I'm still waiting on what that's "supposed" to be...