Sandy’s Snippets

Once Upon a New Year

Most of us have managed to drag the progressively molting Christmas tree to the curb, securely tuck away the Menorah in the attic, rid ourselves of our “over stayed their welcome” relatives (especially his), polish off the remaining remnants of the A-Z Turkey recipe concoctions and even summon the courage to open that smoking mail box, knowing full well it is not some neighborhood terrorist attack but only our holiday credit card bills. By now, we also should have successfully unclogged the pine-needle-ridden Hoover, scraped the last of Aunt May’s fluorescent Poli-Grip from the guest bath sink, extricated the turkey carcass from the frig and secured the missing pieces to Johnny’s transformer figurines which implanted themselves in the bottom our bare feet while scavenging through the dark recesses of our kitchen to acquire the last drumstick from the frig.

As we head into 2009, somewhat successfully putting most of the holidays behind us, we all deserve a comfy reclining chair, warm nubby flannel jammies, fluffy slippers, the remaining eggnog, brandied to perfection and a refillable Prozac prescription readied for consumption. We have once again, miraculously and somewhat unblemished, managed to make it through the most harrowing season of the year with our families in tact. Okay, maybe a smidgen more dysfunctional, but nonetheless in tact.

As we move into the New Year, our mission, should we accept it, is to take a moment, preferably in that comfy reclining chair with all of our toasty regalia and antidotes and reflect on 2008 and begin to consciously plan 2009. We need to pull out our maps and determine where we’d like to go and how we plan to get there. Oh no! It’s that ugly four letter word. A word we shudder to voice out loud. It is a word that connotes diligent change, work and often produces that infamous bead of sweat across our brows. It’s…it’s… GOAL!!!!

Whether we set simple goals such as becoming a kinder gentler person, especially to our relatives, or loftier goals like losing weight, quitting smoking or paying off those over extended credit card bills, both require change and work. Behavioral psychologists state it takes a person approximately thirty days to form a new habit. Well maybe a little longer if it involves our relatives.

The New Year provides us with the opportunity to make our own lists and check them twice. Only we can change the naughty to nice. Yet, even with the best intentions, we make one lethal mistake. Somehow we forget that Rome was not built in a day. Where we are today is the accumulation of many years of doing things that necessarily haven’t worked, but have become comfortable. For many of us, just changing our hairstyles causes a great deal of stress. Life changes…now that’s a killer!

So where do we start? Installing the latest version of Quicken on our computer and actually using it this time would be a fine beginning. Our CPAs would adore us and it would probably save many a marriage on the eve of April 15th. Whatever goals we set with that stroke of midnight champagne toast, we must voice them out loud, write them down, put them somewhere we can see them everyday (a great place might be on the bathroom mirror) and begin working toward these goals just like we have everything else in our lives; one step at a time. However, we must not neglect one of the most important steps in this whole process; routinely checking our progress. We routinely check our eyes, our teeth, our cholesterol, our….okay you get the picture. Making a life change is much like taking a road trip. We must set our location, continually monitor our path and make the needed adjustments to ensure we get to our desired destination. So with all this said, get in the driver’s seat, pull out your maps, chart your course and make 2009 one of the best years ever!

I’ll see you there!
Sandy Mullen

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