Public resolutions could lead to success

By writing this column, I’m accomplishing the first of a number of resolutions I have for 2009 – resolutions I’m making public in order to help myself accomplish them.
The first resolution I have is to actually write down my resolutions. I’ve made resolutions in the past, but I never wrote them down and thus never cared about following through with them. But now, in the form of this column, my resolutions are not only written down on paper but also available for thousands of people to read. I figure peer pressure can sometimes be a useful tool.
My second resolution, one I share with millions of others, is to lose weight. Since getting married five years ago, I have let myself get out of shape, partially because of my wife’s wonderful cooking but also because of my love for food, especially sweets, and my general aversion to regular exercise.
My goal in 2009 is to lose 50 pounds, which would put me near a weight I was when I graduated from college 11 years ago. Although many may consider that a goal that is too high, I once lost 70 pounds the summer between my junior and senior years in college, simply by exercising a lot and eating properly. I should have never got off that regimen, but I allowed a lot of other things to come between me and it, and as a result my body is the one that has had to suffer. For that, I apologize to it.
I have two tools at my disposal I plan on using to accomplish this resolution. The first is “Wii Fit,” a video game unlike any other game ever made in that it requires people to work out. I used it in August and lost 12 lbs. initially, but I stopped using it after I once again let other things come between me and it for a week. When I started using it again, the game scolded me for avoiding it for a week and for gaining back 5 lbs. Scared of it, I haven’t used it since then, although my wife continues to use it on a regular basis, and it has helped her lose weight.
When winter ends, and hopefully I’m down in weight, I plan on starting a jogging routine again. I had one for a number of years, and it allowed me to stay at a reasonable weight, but, to no surprise now, I let a lot of things come between me and it.
My second tool is my wife, who is intent on losing more weight with me. We’ll make sure each other sticks to our game plan, which includes more exercise, the cutting off of all sodas and eating smaller portions. It’s easy to eat too much when we eat out at restaurants, given the big portions they dish out, so we’re also cutting back on those, which should also allow us to save more money.
My third resolution is to write something other than the journalistic items I write for The Gazette on a weekly basis. I majored in English in college in hopes of becoming a writer, which I am by means of this job, but I originally intended on becoming a writer of fiction.
Since graduating I haven’t written one piece of fiction, although some of the things politicians have told me over the years could be considered fictional.
For the lack of a better excuse, I allowed a lot of other things to get between me and fiction writing. This excuse ends in 2009, and my goal is to write something that could be published. Whether or not it actually gets published is partially out of my hands, so I’m not making that my goal.
My fourth and final resolution is to read a stack of books by my bed I’ve purchased during the past year but never seem to read. I’ve always been a reader, but 2008 was a slow year for me doing so. It started out well, but by the time summer arrived I lost all interest. I’m in the middle of a book I should have stopped long ago, mainly because it’s not that interesting, but now I’m at a point I want to finish it to find out what happens. Since I’m not really into it, I’ve found plenty of other things to do.
If I could find a way to read or write while working out on the Wii, then maybe 2009 could be a successful year for me.