Bring It On, 2012

I have to admit that 2012 has not been everything I had hoped for and more...yet! To say that it has started off pretty rocky would be quite the understatement, and it it is so tempting to just throw my hands in the air and say, "You win, 2012, I give up!" It would be incredibly easy to just resign myself to having a bad year and settle for whatever that may look like. But guess what, 2012? I refuse to give up! Sure, January and the majority of February have been quite the test of faith, but I still have ten and a half months left in this crazy year to turn things around. So that's what I'm going to do. Each month for the rest of 2012 my goal is to do something for me--something fun, something daring, something I've dreamed of doing and just haven't gotten around to yet. Sure, my budget is somewhat limited, but that doesn't mean I can't make the most of it. So here are some ideas I have already come up with, and I'd be more than happy to have some feedback or ideas from any of you who are reading.

February: I need some sort of change. I've been throwing around the idea of chopping my hair (like shoulder-length...ah!), going on a shopping spree, and getting a tattoo (my parents already want to disown me for even THINKING about that one!). I have already made a hair appointment for this weekend while I am at home in Akron, so we'll see how drastic it really is!

March: Road trip to DC with my good friend Stacey to visit my big sister. Hoping to meet up with some friends and just have a good time. Also planning on doing a 3-4 mile race on St. Patrick's Day!

April: No ideas yet...but I'm sure they will come!

May: Running the Cleveland Half-Marathon in honor of my 25th birthday! I decided that I wanted to do something different to celebrate this birthday, and running a half-marathon is something healthy and definitely rewarding. Training is already in progress and I am excited to take this on!

I haven't yet thought about the rest of the year. I know that I have off work from the second week of May until August 1st, which leaves plenty of time for vacations! I am still debating whether or not to get a job over the summer to make some extra money or to just relax and enjoy some "me time." I plan on staying at Muskingum for another academic year and am looking forward to making the most of my time here. I realize that this is not a "forever" job for me, but I am prepared to use this time to learn more about myself, to meet new people, and to explore different opportunities.

For the rest of 2012 (and beyond, of course), I refuse to sit idly by while my life happens to me. It's my turn to decide what my future will look like, what goals I am going to achieve, and who I will allow to be by my side throughout all of it!

And we'll end with a song: