2012 Came in with a Blast

I may be a few days late with this, but better late than never. And after almost a full year without posting here I, again, thought this would be a good place to put down my year's end thoughts.

My goals were simple and attainable last year:

1. Stay alive. A staple first in all of my goals. At this point it should be understood, but I may be a little superstitious about keeping it here. I don't want to leave it off and that year be THE year.

As you might imagine I completed this one. Couple of close calls throughout the year, but I finished in one piece and better than before.

2. Make it through broadcasting school. I will not fail.

I did it! I didn't get any sort of high honors, but I did graduate. It was an amazing experience, and one that will have a sister this year. In May I head back for an advanced course. It should push me into becoming a much better broadcaster.

3. Get married to The One. We have a beautiful wedding planned.

We had a beautiful ceremony. We are thankful for all those that attended from far and wide. And most importantly we are still together and happily married.

4. Make the most of our time in Germany. There is plenty to do, and I do not want to miss out.

This is more a long term goal as we still have two and a half years here at least. We are off to a reasonable start and will be looking to explore even more this year.

5. Make it back for my sister's wedding. I am going to do everything in my power to make it back.

I am incredibly happy to say that I did make it back for her wedding. She looked absolutely beautiful, the ceremony was perfect, and the reception was rocking. I wish the two of them a blessed marriage and I hope in fifty years the two of us will celebrate our anniversaries in style.

Over the last year and a half, most everything seemed to break my way. Other than a few things I really haven't had to deal with adversity. While I don't plan on seeking trouble out, what I do plan is to actively pursue improvement and not just hope my luck continues.

My goals for the year 2012:

1. Stay alive.

I might need to reduce my speed on the Autobahn, but if I get out of 2012 alive it will be worth it.

2. Travel.

The One and I were talking this morning about going to someplace new at least once a month. I think that is a perfectly reasonable goal. There isn't anything saying we can't travel more than that, what it allows is for us to have some flexibility with our other goals.

3. Bike 1000 kilometers.

I want to ride my bicycle. With a busy schedule, weather related problems, and down right laziness I don't want to put the goal any higher than that. Though, I can see myself pushing well past this goal if I start biking to work on the days we have good weather. It's roughly 30 km round trip; one month of biking to work nearly puts me at my goal.

4. Make a good size dent in our debt.

The One and I have a plan in place to end our debt and put us in the green permanently. We both have to make a few sacrifices, but in the end we both know it will be worth it. We both know that eating our own lunches instead of eating out will be well worth it as it allows us to travel more and more.

5. Get the Promotion I've Wanted

Third times the charm.

I hope this time next year I'll be looking at another completed list.

Happy New Year,

Skate