- Start coming to terms with my body. I have a somewhat warped body image. A lot of the time I think I'm hideously fat, or at least lumpy and cellulite-y. In reality, I'm 5'2" and 120 lbs (and dropping). Really, not that bad. I like having the hourglass shape, and a 36C bra size. Anyway, I think I'm doing better. Usually PMS is the worst, and the rest of the time I'm okay.

- Vowed to do more than just work, clean, sleep, and sit at home like boring old married folks and...

- Spend more time with friends. I combined these because they are virtually one in the same. I was getting in a rut in 2001, and was very stressed because of it. Not to mention the insomnia. This goal resulted in missleigh and I taking a mini vacation, where we had loads of fun doing not much more that sight-seeing and shopping. We also went to several concerts: Tori Amos, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Tenacious D, and Joan Osbourne. I think there was at least one night the four of us (us, and our men) went to dinner, then bowling. Leigh said she sucks at bowling, but had fun anyway. It was funny to watch her and Ken cheer each other on.

As a whole, our group of friends tried to have more parties as an excuse to hang out more. We had the porn party (or was that 2001?), Halloween and christmas (of course), a couple of birthday parties, and probably something I'm forgetting. Oh, K and I went to a gun show. That counts, right? (She bought a .380 auto.) And Leigh and I managed to hang out numerous times despite her having 14 jobs.

- We got one room out of 7 re-done in our house - the guest bathroom. We're zooming along, now! I guess we'll do the "corner bedroom," or my workout room next. That just involves a lot of Kilz and paint and drop cloths.

- We never had a yard sale. I wanted to do it in late summer or early fall, when it was not too hot. We did gather most of the junk in the garage, though. I have to sort, arrange, and price everything now. We'll then have to post an ad, make and post signs, etc. I'm not looking forward to dealing with the retired ladies who'll show up at 7am and offer me 25 cents for stuff. I am looking forward to getting rid of this junk, and any money made is a bonus.

- I'm in an ongoing effort to be less abrasive. I know it's warranted sometimes, but I know I can be pretty harsh. I also am trying to be more generous, understanding, and helpful to my friends. I don't want to be hard to be around, but I won't kiss ass, either.

- With little fanfair, I marked one year as a vegetarian. It's been, um, interesting. I've eaten some yummy food, including lots of fake shrimp (or skrimp, as I like to call it), lots of couscous, lentil soup, UnChicken, SoyBoy ravioli, Amy's frozen entrees, way too much pasta, lots of fruit, pinto beans & collard greens, my fabulous vegan cornbread, etc. OK, so I don't eat as healthily as I should, but I don't have the time it takes to prepare most stuff (or a personal chef).

I've slowly lost a bit of weight. Not too much. Last time I weighed (in pajamas) I was 119. I'd like to get down to 110-115, but that's not why I stopped eating meat (no matter what my family thinks).

I decided (very recently, after a year of frustrating conversations and my inarticulate explanations) that I would not go into detail about why I don't eat meat (or broth, or lard, or green beans seasoned with fatback). In order to not sound self-righteous or judgemental (in the eyes of my family, anyway), I try to gloss over the realities of factory farming and my reasons. As a result, I sound unsure of myself and not very informed. To avoid exacerbating the already present propensity for conflict, I'll just keep it low-key.

- I somewhat succeeded in developing more confidence about my abilities at work and becoming less paranoid. Part of the reason is realizing that I do know more than I think I do (as my boss told me once). Another part of the reason is witnessing some truly incompetent people and realizing that if they're not paranoid, I certainly have no reason to be. Though being on call (this month!) still freaks me out a bit, I have co-workers who encourage me to call them if I need help. Even if it's late.

- I decided at some point to have massages at least every month. A while back I was so tense and my back and neck got so tight that I pulled a muscle while doing crunches. This has helped tremendously. I think I do need to see a chiropractor, though, in conjunction with the massages. Even after my massage Friday I'm having the tingling between my shoulder blades as I type this. I'd go twice a month if I could afford it.

That's all I can think of for now.

What Was Your PastLife?

Perfect body? Rich and famous? Not bright? Oh, no. I must have gotten that one because I said Vogue was my favorite magazine, only because it was the answer closest to Allure. Oh, and my worst nightmare was gaining 50 lbs. Hey, that's a lot when you're 5'2"!

Take the Purrsonality Quiz!

Surprisingly accurate.