Habits, Goals & Hopes For 2021

As the first week of a new year goes, it’s not been the best. My Grandma died on New Year’s Day and we’re now back in national lockdown for the foreseeable. So far 2021 is really failing on the promise to be better than 2020 and my every instinct is telling me to get under the duvet and stay there until June.

At the beginning of every year, I always make a bit of a plan for the fresh year ahead: think about things we want to do, set a few goals, plan holidays, book leave etc. Between Christmas effectively being cancelled, the grief for my Grandma and the prospect of spending several more months in lockdown, it has never felt more pointless to do this and yet… I guess somewhere buried underneath the hide-under-the-duvet-urge, there is some semblance of hope? Hope that by next Christmas, life will be more recognisable again. And I guess it’s that which has made me peek out from under the duvet and take in the fresh year stretched before me.

More often than not in troubled and not-so-troubled times, I bring in order and purpose by making a list. Can’t help it, love a list. Some of my previous new year lists almost look slightly indecent when read back now; all the travel and weddings and socialising we assumed were a given eh? For 2021, I have three mini lists: habits that I want to continue or adopt that will keep me sane and healthy, particularly during lockdown (after two other lockdowns, I have learnt the hard way what I need when cut off from the world). Goals that I can (hopefully) continue to work towards regardless of whether or not we are under restrictions. And hopes for things we might be able to do again later on in the year.

Habits

01. Read every day. Something I pretty much already do anyway but I would like to dedicate more time to it and treat it as more of a priority because it brings me a lot of joy and calms my mind like nothing else. 

02. Go for a walk every day. I go for a walk most days at the mo but whilst in lockdown, I want to make sure I get outside every day without fail. Fresh air is so needed. 

03. Eat plant-based 5 days a week. I want to up the amount of meals that are plant-based/vegan which is something we are already doing but setting a bit of an goal makes me more aware of it and to make more conscious choices.  

04. Continue going for a run 3-4 times a week. And when I say going for a run, I do mean on the treadmill in the garage because running is infinitely improved if you can watch tv at the same time in my opinion. 

05. Breathing exercises. I will never not be amazed at how calming a deep breath can be and I’d really like to try out more breathing exercises on a regular basis and see if it helps me feel calmer amongst everything. 

06. Write a blog post once a week; I blogged a lot less in 2020 partly because I was somewhat distracted by the whole apocalypse thing and partly because I didn’t feel like there was much to say. But part of me regrets not having more of the calming feeling writing gives me in 2020 as well as more of the year, strange as it was, documented in my little online diary. I hope to rectify that in 2021. 

07. Monthly check-ins. I do this at work at the beginning of each month, sit down and make a note of key dates coming up, tasks I need to complete or be aware of on the horizon, that kinda thing. I started doing it for my personal life at the beginning of last year and then the C-word threw everything off and I sort of stopped. But this month, I sat down to write out key dates, goals, tasks, ideas and recipes to try for the month ahead and just having it makes the dark locked-down month of Jan feel less aimless. 

Goals

01. Cook, cook, cook. I baked a lot in 2020, like alotalot. I guess it became somewhat of a coping mechanism. And all it’s done is increase my appetite for being in the kitchen so, as well as baking, I want to experiment more with cooking, trying at least one new recipe a week. Although it will probably be more; I read recipe books like novels at the mo I swear. 

02. Run a 5k within half an hour. Not entirely sure how this has ended up here but I guess it just gives me something to work towards when running in the freezing cold…? Oh and I’m a slow runner (asthma problems) so I guess I’d like to slowly increase my pace a bit. 

03. Compile blog posts into a book. I really want my blog posts in physical form for memory sake so this is a long overdue task. 

04. Complete the first draft of the novel, novella and collection of essays I’m working on. Good to be a bit ambitious eh?

05. Finish renovating the utility room and garden. The next big tasks we have on our house to-do list. The utility room was started and then paused back in November thanks to Lockdown 2.0. but we hope to get it finished in January, and we then hope to overhaul our garden in the Spring. 

Hopes

01. See family and friends. Visit all of them. Stay overnight. Hug them until it gets awkward.

02. Host guests: for the weekend, for dinner, for literally anything.

03. Help my mum & step-dad move house (to live near us!) 

04. Go away for a weekend break.

05. Go on a proper (probably UK-based) holiday.

Here's to a new year. It can only get better... right?