2011--The Year of Finishing

And no, I don't mean this year will be all about races, faux painting my walls, or getting new flooring.

This year I've decided that it will be the year that I finish all (or most) of the unfinished things/projects I have in my life. A long time ago I told you about how I always make a list every summer of things I'll try to finish, but I never end up completing anything (or very few). Well, as I started thinking about all the things on those lists and what my new year's resolutions should be, I decided that I should combine them because clearly, I have a problem.

My problem is I get really excited about something, or I decide to try something, and I have to do it right then. But, if it ends up taking too long or I lose interest, I tend to put it away or stop, thinking I'll pick it up later when I have more time. But of course, I never seem to have enough time, other things get in the way, there are more important things to do, I forget about it, etc. I have a pile of books that I've started and haven't finished, arts and craft projects that are half complete, and various other things that I've been meaning to get to but haven't started.

So in an attempt to make myself a better person, and one that finishes what she started, I've decided that I'll make a master list of the things I've been meaning to finish, and I want to get a majority of them completed by the end of the year. Some of them I HAVE to finish, others  I'd like to finish, but I won't be too upset if I don't get to them. After all, I've got a lot of projects on this list (and if you'll notice, a few of the projects will seem familiar, since I've had them on other lists. See, I really am terrible at this).

And because I'm a big believer in making yourself accountable for your goals, I'm sharing these projects I need to finish with you, my blogger friends. Hopefully, you can bug me about getting them done, and as I complete and mark things off my list, I'll let you know. Well, here they are:

HAVE TO FINISH THIS YEAR

• The 3 books I had agreed to edit for a few family friends and my grandfather. Why does this have to be done? Well... I'll be honest, all 3 authors are fairly old, and I want to get their manuscripts back to them before something terrible happens, if you know what I mean.
• The Christmas stockings for my parents that I started in high school. It has been ridiculous how long it has been since I started these and have yet to finish. My parents ask me every year, and they've had the same stockings since they first got married. The waiting has got to end, and I have to finish them. By Christmas.
• Finish writing one of the novels I've started. I have started about 3 novels, with ideas for a few more, and I have yet to actually sit down and finish writing them. Some require some research, which is why I've stopped, but the one I'm hoping to finish (I started it when I was a junior at BYU) is the furthest along and doesn't require any research (at least not yet).

LIKE TO FINISH THIS YEAR

• My BYU graduation album/scrapbook. I have the pictures, so it's not like they are going to go anywhere, I'd just like to finish the scrapbook so I can put all the scrapbook crap away in a box.
• The various books I've yet to finish. Again, I'm pretty good at remembering where I've left off on a book even if it's been awhile, but I'd like to be able to put away this pile of books by my nightstand. (I'm hoping audible.com and librivox.org will help me in this endeavor.) Also, I'm pretty sure my little sister would like me to finish the one I've borrowed from her (An Abundance of Katherines by John Green). She keeps bugging me about where I am in the book, and every time I tell her I'm in the same place since the last time she asked me, she gives me this exacerbated sigh and walks away.
• My New York collage/poster. I had this bright idea to make a collage poster of all the bags and postcards I got while on my trip to New York City last year. I should probably actually do that since they are all sitting in a bag in my room.
• Print out/make a book out of my blog. I like to use my blog as a journal, if you couldn't tell, and a while back when I abandoned my Xanga (yes, I'll admit, I totally had a Xanga that I updated fairly regularly), I made a word document of every Xanga post I had with the plan that I'd print it out and bind it so it'd be my journal for future generations to read and admire (read: mock and criticize). My friend Mary did this with her Xanga posts awhile back and I thought that was a good idea. Again, the word document ain't going no where (I have it saved in like 3 different places), but I'd like to actually print it out and finish it. This one should be fairly easy for me to accomplish this year. Yay!

I could probably come up with a few more if I think about it some more, but I feel like this is a pretty good list that I can actually accomplish this year. Let's hope I can do it. I don't want to go another year with my parent's stockings looking like this: 

Dad's stocking: I realize it's hard to tell, but only the red and green and Santa's skin are done.

My mom's stocking: Haven't even started.