mission statement
I don't usually subscribe to the tradition of New Year's resolutions. The practice always seemed to lack substance, but perhaps I've been looking at it all wrong. What is a New Year's resolution, anyway? Is it a goal, a promise, a commitment, a claim, a hope? My dictionary tells me that it is a formal statement of opinion or determination. For the purposes of this entry, a resolution is an expression of a decision, no more and no less. I made many of these choices about how I will live my life months ago, so now I simply affirm them as a reminder to myself.
Stop playing Counter-StrikeI made the same resolution unofficially last year. I didn't play for ten months but then logged on in a moment of weakness. I enjoy playing this game, but too often I log off and wish I hadn't wasted so much time. I recognize the value of recreation, but other activities and even other games leave me with a more rewarding sense of accomplishment. Counter-Strike only offers addictive minutes of action at a time, after which the game resets, and I just lack the good sense to know when to stop. Besides, my favorite server just switched to the new version, which my computer can't run.Rein in my credit card debtDuring my first couple years living in Austin, I accrued a nontrivial credit card debt while setting myself up with furniture and whatnot. I have demonstrated to myself that I can live within my means, though I must be more careful now that I don't have three housemates with whom to split the rent. Ideally I will reduce the debt perhaps $100 each month, but at the very least I will forbid myself from allowing it to grow any larger. Even though I fully expect to graduate in a few years and increase my income substantially, I refuse to borrow any more money from that future self. I receive too much satisfaction from being able to support myself to think otherwise.Exercise more; eat lessOver the past few years I developed a habit of working out with the weights and weight training machines at the gym. The next step is to add more regular cardiovascular exercise to my week, minimally via DDR but perhaps through running or swimming. Also, I've been trying to reduce my portion sizes at meals. I would like to drop the habit of finishing my plate just because I can.Continue cooking and swing dancingBoth of these hobbies are relatively new to me and still require some activation energy, although I enjoy the end result of the former and the transient joys of the latter. I would like to gain much more experience in both areas, but they could easily fall by the wayside if I allow them. My decision to learn to cook and to dance is part of a deliberate attempt to grow into a more rounded individual, who descends at least occasionally from the realm of ideas and symbols to the real world, full of aroma, texture, and movement.Find time to read againReading was my first and favorite hobby, but then it became a luxury for between semesters. Now I see an odd contrast between how few books I read now and how much books have shaped my beliefs and identity. Last semester I spent much more time reading rec.arts.sf.written than reading actual written SF. In the future I hope to convert Counter-Strike time into reading time, along with those moments on the bus and in bed before falling asleep.
Like all New Year's resolutions, these decisions are easier said than done. Nevertheless, I won't set deadlines or quotas, since I'm no good at enforcing such measures. Instead, I hope that whenever the time comes to follow through with these choices, I might think back to these slightly formal statements of opinion and determination and remember why to do the right thing.
Of course, the above is not an exhaustive listing of all the choices I have made about my life, but they are what's on my mind looking ahead to this year. Well, at least it's what I've made up my mind about. Note also that I have made a distinction between lifestyle choices and mere goals that I would like to achieve. Among the latter: propose a thesis, attend IJCAI in Scotland or ICML in Germany, go to some baseball games, obtain a summer internship, respond to Alice's letter from last July, finish those video games I started, etc.
Stop playing Counter-StrikeI made the same resolution unofficially last year. I didn't play for ten months but then logged on in a moment of weakness. I enjoy playing this game, but too often I log off and wish I hadn't wasted so much time. I recognize the value of recreation, but other activities and even other games leave me with a more rewarding sense of accomplishment. Counter-Strike only offers addictive minutes of action at a time, after which the game resets, and I just lack the good sense to know when to stop. Besides, my favorite server just switched to the new version, which my computer can't run.Rein in my credit card debtDuring my first couple years living in Austin, I accrued a nontrivial credit card debt while setting myself up with furniture and whatnot. I have demonstrated to myself that I can live within my means, though I must be more careful now that I don't have three housemates with whom to split the rent. Ideally I will reduce the debt perhaps $100 each month, but at the very least I will forbid myself from allowing it to grow any larger. Even though I fully expect to graduate in a few years and increase my income substantially, I refuse to borrow any more money from that future self. I receive too much satisfaction from being able to support myself to think otherwise.Exercise more; eat lessOver the past few years I developed a habit of working out with the weights and weight training machines at the gym. The next step is to add more regular cardiovascular exercise to my week, minimally via DDR but perhaps through running or swimming. Also, I've been trying to reduce my portion sizes at meals. I would like to drop the habit of finishing my plate just because I can.Continue cooking and swing dancingBoth of these hobbies are relatively new to me and still require some activation energy, although I enjoy the end result of the former and the transient joys of the latter. I would like to gain much more experience in both areas, but they could easily fall by the wayside if I allow them. My decision to learn to cook and to dance is part of a deliberate attempt to grow into a more rounded individual, who descends at least occasionally from the realm of ideas and symbols to the real world, full of aroma, texture, and movement.Find time to read againReading was my first and favorite hobby, but then it became a luxury for between semesters. Now I see an odd contrast between how few books I read now and how much books have shaped my beliefs and identity. Last semester I spent much more time reading rec.arts.sf.written than reading actual written SF. In the future I hope to convert Counter-Strike time into reading time, along with those moments on the bus and in bed before falling asleep.
Like all New Year's resolutions, these decisions are easier said than done. Nevertheless, I won't set deadlines or quotas, since I'm no good at enforcing such measures. Instead, I hope that whenever the time comes to follow through with these choices, I might think back to these slightly formal statements of opinion and determination and remember why to do the right thing.
Of course, the above is not an exhaustive listing of all the choices I have made about my life, but they are what's on my mind looking ahead to this year. Well, at least it's what I've made up my mind about. Note also that I have made a distinction between lifestyle choices and mere goals that I would like to achieve. Among the latter: propose a thesis, attend IJCAI in Scotland or ICML in Germany, go to some baseball games, obtain a summer internship, respond to Alice's letter from last July, finish those video games I started, etc.