resolution check in

I have not been doing very well with my resolutions. This is why I never make them - instead of ending up better off, I fail and get angry at myself. But I think that maybe it's time for me to get angry at myself. If the alternative is remaining forever in the place I'm at right now... then some anger isn't much of a deterrent.

Money

Although I haven't yet filled out the paperwork to open an additional savings account, I have been watching my spending pretty well. I started to work out a monthly budget spreadsheet, but I got frustrated with Excel and quit. Guess I should take that whole bit about being "proficient in Microsoft Office technology" off my resume.

I also had a very enlightening conversation with my brother, Smarty Pants Future Huge Salary Accountant. He informed me that I'd be much better off opening a CD, which apparently will give me a much higher interest rate. I know nothing about this kind of stuff... clearly, since I'm 25 and just recently opened my first savings account. But after listening to his advice and feeling incredibly stupid in the eyes of my little brother, I decided that a savings account is the way for me to go right now. I'm just looking for an "emergency fund" - not necessarily another way to make money.

Fingernails

This is probably the area at which I'm failing the most miserably. Work has been more stressful than usual lately (which also explains my lack of posts for more than a week - sorry 'bout that), and my poor fingers are the bearers of my weary load. Tonight I'm pulling out all the stops, though. I'm gonna shellack 'em up with this new O.P.I. strengthener stuff I found... apparently it'll make my nails the envy of all the nails in the world. So sayeth the bottle, anyway.

[aside: in looking up how to spell "shellack," Google was nice enough to point me here. Check out the example for number 5.]

I promise that my hands aren't always so grotesque looking. It's really hard to take a picture of your right hand when you're right handed.

Photos

Miserable. All I've done in the way of organizing my photos is rearrange the frames sitting on top of my entertainment console. The rest of my photos are still sitting in My Documents on my laptop, just waiting for a motherboard crash.

Food

I'm actually doing really well with this one. I've been making dinner every night (except for last... particularly awful day entitles me to one Arby's Beef-n-Cheddar - SHUT UP YES IT DOES) and having the leftovers for lunch the next day. And you know what I found out? I'm a damn good cook!

I made chicken with vegetables and wild rice in a super-awesome herb sauce, made sans recipe... which used to scare the beejeesus out of me. But I had to use a bunch of vegetables before they went bad, and I had some chicken in the freezer, which resulted in me falling madly in love with my slow-cooker. Who knew you could throw some raw things in a pot before work and come home 9 hours later to the wonderful aroma of what would turn out to be a most delicious meal?!

Here's lemon rice soup, also sans recipe... because apparently there's egg in lemon rice soup. I hate eggs. The only way I'll eat them is if they're smothered in cheesy-omeletty-goodness. So I just made up my own recipe minus eggs and other weird things like kale, which I've heard is traditionally used in lemon rice soup. I used a Lipton Rice packet, though, because I didn't have any white rice and it was too cold to go out. It was delicious - nom nom nom.



Writing

Miserable. Aside from this blog - which I've neglected for over a week, although I think I should still get points for keeping up with the sites on my blogroll, thank-you-very-much - I've not written a single thing that could even be construed as creative. Press releases, profiles, newsletters, and magazine article rewrites (because apparently I suck at my job, too) be damned - I'm still determined to write something creative and worthwhile before I die.

[aside: speaking of... I just heard that Heath Ledger died. I thought he was a great actor - First Knight was awesome, and Brokeback Mountain is one of my favorite movies of all time. And I was really looking forward to seeing him in the new Batman. Oh - and he was gorgeous. Another Hollywood-type lost to an overdose. Sigh.]

Reading

I pretty much suck at this, too... but not for lack of trying. That's the theme of this entire blog post. I'm still trying to make my way through Great Expectations for The Challenge, but it's not really going according to plan. The last couple weeks of work have seen a strange influx of large proofreading projects, making my eyes refuse to focus by the time I get home. It's all I can do to follow SoapNet's 90210 reruns, let alone muster up the courage to read a text that drives me insane. Did I mention that? This book still makes me crazy, just like it did in 9th grade. On the plus side, though, I'm about halfway through... which is tons further than I made it in high school. I have less than 10 days to finish before next month's book. I'm trying to believe... but I don't think I want to know the truth.

And there you have it, friends. My awful progress thus far. And I was so pumped up about 2008. So far, the year has given me nothing but an ulcer, some gray hair, and several very large migraines. Chin up, I guess, huh?