30 on the 31st

I made it! I wrote 30 posts in 31 days! Yippee Skippee! (Where did that phrase originate, I wonder? I'm not going down that rabbit hole right now, though.)

As you may have guessed, I am not one to make resolutions. Since things change so quickly, having a resolution can become a burden. I would rather 'work' on things as they come up and are relevant, if that makes sense. I think we should continually work to improve ourselves and our world and making a resolution at the beginning of the year doesn't necessarily do that.

If you make resolutions, what are they and how successful are you at keeping them. Do you put a time constraint on them? Does that help?

I do like to do some reflection on the past year and look forward to what I know to be coming in the new year, but I don't dwell on either. I do think 2010 will be a big year of change.

• My oldest daughter will be going off to college (at least that's the plan) which will change the dynamic of the household quite a bit.
• I am turning 50 which is significant to me because my mother died when she was 50. It is one event that has really got me thinking about what I want to do with the rest of my life. How will I make a difference?
• I'm doing two marathons, my 9th and my 10th. I never thought I'd do 2 much less 10. It is a bit of an addiction. There is such satisfaction to it. And with my 9th, I'll be raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society so there is an even better reason for doing it.

As you contemplate what you will do in 2010, please remember that we all need to give back somehow. Whether it's by doing a marathon and raising money, giving time or donating goods, each of us needs to take care of those who are in need. It will make the world a better place.

And have a VERY Happy New Year! Raise your glass, hug your friends, kiss your family members and remember those who have passed before us. We have a limited time and we need to make it the best time we can.

29 and counting

To 30! I am very proud of myself for sticking with this 30-day blogging challenge. I have wanted to let it go a couple of times, especially at the beginning, but I'm glad I forged ahead and met the challenge.

What I have learned is that 300 words is not a lot of words and is very doable. Finding a topic is the hard part. I know what I need to work on to make posts more interesting and I know that if I want to continue I will need to find a couple of consistent topics to cover. That is the new challenge I face and I have to decide how I will accomplish it.

And only 27 more shopping days.

The snow is slowly melting, but NOT FAST ENOUGH! It's pretty for about the first 1/2 hour and then I'm over it. I did take some photos last night of our tree in the backyard but I haven't downloaded them yet. I was too lazy to do it last night.

We did not go for a walk this morning because of the snow. I wasn't sure how slippery it would be and I really don't want to fall - I have two marathons to do in 2010 so I can't risk injury!

The dog is on the couch. I turned around to look at him and he had his chin on the tv tray. I knew if I got up to get my camera he would move so I tried to take a photo of him with the webcam. But sure as shootin', he moved as soon as I pushed the button to take the photo. How did he know I wanted to get a cute photo of him? All I did was turn around to look at him. He usually doesn't stay still long enough for a photo so I thought I would have a good chance this time. Foiled again.

Off to watch the snow melt and take the Christmas tree out. The house is almost back to normal, whatever normal is!

I may be crazy

Uh oh! I'm baaacckk! I have decided to take the 30 day blogging challenge (http://jumping-duck.com/2009/11/30-days-of-blogging/). This could be very interesting.

Each day for the month of December I have committed to writing at least a 300-word post. While 300 words doesn't seem like a lot, when one hasn't been blogging since April, it's a huge challenge. Why, right now, I only have 62 words down.

The thing is, I always have ideas for posts swimming around in my head. The problem is getting them out of there and onto virtual paper. I am hoping that taking this challenge will instill in me the discipline necessary to become a successful blogger. I’m actually quite excited about this. Please enjoy the ride with me!

Today is World’s AIDS day. I remember back in ’85 a friend of my roommate was doing a survey (I don’t remember for whom or why or who was tabulating the results) about AIDS/HIV and what I thought it was, how people contracted it, how many would contract it and when a cure would be found.

Of course, I don’t remember my exact responses, only that I was so very wrong in my predictions of how many would get it, how fast, and how long it would take to find a cure. I really believed it would not spread like it has and a cure would be found in short order.

Now, more than 33 million people have HIV/AIDS with 22 million of those in Africa. And 2 million are children under the age of 15. Sobering, staggering numbers.

So, what do I do? I can help raise awareness. This disease is not going away and we need to continue to be vigilant about it. I need to make sure my children understand about it and know how to protect themselves. I will buy (Red) when I can – I already have a (red) iPod.

If each of us just takes one small action, we can make a difference. What will you do?