One Year, Many Goals

You know, it's almost embarrassing to set goals at the beginning of a new year. Who keeps these promises to themselves, anyway? Well, on January 2, 1996, I did set the goal to quit smoking. And -- except for that little lapse last September in Chicago -- I haven't smoked at all for the past twelve years.

This year, despite how cliche I find New Year's Resolutions, I am setting two goals:

1. I will lose 30 percent of my body weight this year. Yep, that's right. You heard me. 30 percent. Don't worry, I can afford to lose the 30 percent.
   
2. I will make my lifestyle a little bit greener every week this year.

The weight one's the tough one. The Centers for Disease Control web site has this animated map (http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/trend/maps/index.htm) that shows the growing trend of obesite among Americans. I live in Illinois. In 1985, less than 10% of Illinoisans were obese. Now 20-24% are. The worst states (for obesity, that is) are West Virginia and Mississippi. More than 30% of the people living in those two states are obese!

I don't know about the rest of Americans, but I don't want to die young -- let alone live a life in a physical state that doesn't allow me to enjoy life to the fullest. So that's goal #1. Wish me luck.

As for goal #2, my family and I already live pretty green. We live in a small house, I drive a fuel-efficient car, we use compact fluorescent bulbs, we buy local produce in the summer ... you get the picture. But there's lots of room for improvement.