Well, here we are...the last day of 2009.

Normally I eschew all New Years Resolutions. I'm a pretty rigid person to start with, so adding structure to my coming year is rarely something I need. But this year I am considering setting a resolution, but I'm not sure what it should be. I think it would be fabulous if I could think of something that wouldn't be a temporary change, something that would actually stick in my life.

I could make some kind of resolution about exercise or weightloss, but seems an especially temporary resolution. It isn't that I don't think having a healthy body is important, but I think that goal will ever be before me. It is easily a goal that I could imagine having every year. While I am starting a 8 week diet/exercise plan on January 3rd, it won't be this years resolution.

I'm tempted to make my resolution something about my laundry room. It is always such a mess and right now I can barely walk into it. But...it seems like a good cleaning it probably just what the doctor ordered...I'm not sure it rises to the importance of a New Year's Resolution. I suppose my resolution could be something about not just dumping stuff onto my laudry room counters and making sure I put things where they really go instead, but it is such a useful way to quickly "clean" when people are coming over that I'm not sure I want to commit to not doing that.

Perhaps learning to pick up as I go, or making sure I clean the dinner dishes before I go to bed at night, or something about not leaving the half-folded laundry laying around could be my resolution. I do think that I would benefit from those things. But I don't know if I feel inclined toward any of those things. I'm kind of attached to my bad habits. Someday I want those things to stop being a part of my life, but I don't feel any impetus to fixing it right now.

The one thing that I do feel an impetus to change is my tendency to say things that I think are funny, but really shouldn't be said and might hurt another person who heard me joking around. I don't want to be someone who makes others feel bad for the purpose of making other people laugh. I don't know how to wrap my arms around this goal. My friend Zach taught me 5 "P" words to making a good goal. I can remember 4 of the P's. One was Personal...the goal has to personally relate to you for it to be effective. Another was Practical. There is no sense in making a goal that is too big to be practically completed. Another was Possible...is it within your control? Another was Provable. You have to be able to show that you succeeded at a goal. I can't remember the other P word. Hmmm...

So, does this goal of watching my smart-mouth comments pass the "good goal" test?
* It definitely passes the personal test. It definitely relates to me personally and is something that I want to work on.
* Does it pass the practical test? While I think it is a big goal, I don't think it is too broad. I'm not trying to work on every single thing I shouldn't say...I'm just trying to work on the things I say to be funny that aren't funny to the person I'm referencing. I'm going to say it is practical enough.
* Is it possible? Yep. Challenging for someone who likes to be comical, but definitely possible.
* Is it provable? I'm not sure how one would prove improvement in this area. It isn't like I know how often I actually do this...I just know that I do. I sure don't inform people that I said something terribly funny about you to another person and he/she really laughed. Snarkiness just sneaks up on me...

This goal has the possibility of being my resolution...but I'm not committed to it yet. I've got 16 more hours to think about it.

Your thoughts?