Dominique is Making Friends with 30…

attainable goals…

If the first step was acknowledgement, the 2nd step is a plan.  Right?  That’s what Oprah & Dr. Phil have led me to believe, so let’s just run with it and not put too much thought into their influence. 

I’ve decided that, at least in the beginning, I need to set goals for myself that are RIDICULOUSLY EASY.  Let me explain.  I know myself well enough by now to understand that I need to be good at something in order to want to continue.  The “wanting to continue” has been lacking in previous attempts at really…anything.  (See the ‘About Dominique’ page re: cooking & knitting.)  For Dominique and her not-quite-BFF 30, success breeds interest.  With this in mind, I am going to design myself a plan for the next month or so wherein it will be IMPOSSIBLE TO FAIL.

Here’s the plan -

For an immediate rush of gratification and to feel like I’m really doing something, this weekend has taken on the theme of CLUTTER-FREE.  I have clutter.  In my environment, in my mind, in my ass, you name it.  There is excess junk that needs to go.  This weekend I am going to do the following:  clean out miscellaneous junk from the apartment, spend some time talking to John & my family which always re-centers the junk in my brain, and I am going to do a half-ass fast or “cleanse” to be super pretentious ala Gwenyth, my idol for pretentiousness.  I say half-ass cause I’m totally eating and drinking.  That BS where people deliberately do not eat…30 and I frown upon such foolishness.  Instead, I am going to eat and drink plenty of water and vegetables and fruits and juice.  There will be no meat, no dairy, no starches, etc of any kind.  (I really like the Green Giant frozen singles though, and there’s a little bit of butter and cheese sauce in those.  My view is that the good of eating corn and broccoli, respectively, outweighs the tiny bit of butter and cheese.  So those don’t count.)  Harder still, I am attempting to go without caffeine.  This may lend a very “on top of the clock tower with a gun” slant to any blog posts this weekend, so consider yourselves warned.  It’s 2 days.  I can do it. 

In the longer term, probably a month or so, I have planned the following goals. 

Health – I am going to walk or work out in some form or fashion at least twice a week.  I’m not even addressing “dieting” yet, cause a) I hate that word, b) I am trying to eat MORE fruits and veggies and not worry about eating LESS of anything just yet, and c) I’m making this stupidly easy for now.  Two workouts a week is an easy start.

Education/Finances – I am going to donate plasma twice a week.  I already do this nearly every weekend anyway, and then I found out there are people who PAY FOR THIS?!?!  I feel like the prostitute with the lowest rates.  I’ve been giving it away!  I have found a few places here in Baton Rouge that pay for plasma and I’m going to investigate one on Saturday.  The first visit is the longest, taking upwards of 2 hours, so I’m gonna do that Saturday morning.  The subsequent visits shouldn’t take nearly as long and can be done in the evenings after work, freeing up my weekend.  (This is also part of the reason for the relatively easy workout schedule.  2 nights a week will be devoted to this.)  And before any of you start worrying too much, let me be super clear.  I am not so broke that I desperately need to sell fluids.  I have a good job that I enjoy and it definitely pays the bills.  This is about getting AHEAD and helping people.  A few months of this and one of my, albeit tiny, student loans will be off my back for good.  That’s exciting!  Plus I’m really good at it.  No fainting here.  Beats a part time job any day!

Also in the Education/Finances part of the plan, I need to start reading more.  My goal will be 2 books a month, but I’m hopeful it will be much more than that once this all starts.  Donating plasma will free up a good 2 hours a week to read, so that’s a lot right there.  And the ultimate goal is to read QUALITY books, but I’ll be honest, I’m not starting there.  Some ladies at my office have really gotten into reading some paranormal romance novels and though it’s really not my thing, I’ve promised to give it a shot.  I finally dragged them both to the library in an effort to keep them from purchasing these novels that they typically only read once.  Books are great, but they waste paper and fossil fuels in being delivered to stores/homes, etc and the library is practically right next door to our office.  I made the big deal about it, so I need to keep my end of the bargain and join in the Paranormal Pervert Book of the Month Club.  They honestly aren’t terrible and they’re super quick to read, but I don’t want any laughter when I brag about completing 7 vampire/werewolf sex books.  It’s a start!

Love Life – might not be in a ship jumping phase after all.  I told John about the blog.  He read it and seems to have genuinely enjoyed it.  This proves to me that a) he has fabulous taste in writing AND imaginary-girlfriends, b) we’re both honest and mature enough to acknowledge and discuss the peaks and valleys in our relationship without freaking out, and c) he’s really on my side in all this.  He’s been super supportive and apart from a version of John in the same area code, what more could a girl ask for?  Definite continued potential there.  No men overboard just yet.

So there we go.  I will keep you all updated through the weekend.  If you want some hilarity, check in around 2am on Sunday.  That’s when I’m predicting the caffeine-headache will have either knocked me unconscious or I’ll be running around naked in the street bashing myself in the head with a frying pan and calling myself Ophelia.  We shall see!