the great 28 ends

alright, so julie's been asking for a final tally on the great 28. i really thought about not doing this. i've realized that setting a big list of goals at the beginning of the year is problematic for several reasons. A - it's just a lot of goals to set all at once, so some of them tend to be silly. and 2 - a lot changes in the course of a year, so some of the goals tend to be a lot less important or a lot less achievable than originally thought. so i'm currently mulling over the concept of doing a big "the year before 30" list. i might do one, i might not. maybe i'll set a few goals now & then plan to set others as the year goes along. like set 5 big goals that will cover the year ... and then each month i could set 2 smaller goals. that way i'm setting attainable goals throughout the year instead of hitting october & realizing there's no stinkin' way i'm going to have time to make a halloween costume.

regardless, here's the skinny on the great 28 ...

1. visit 3 places i've never been before. mel & dan's new house. jennie rae's restuarant. texas. the smoky mountains. 100%

2. lose 40 pounds. yeah, not so successful. i did lose about 15 pounds this year ... but i gained those 15 plus a few more back. i'm not terribly distressed by it though. actually, my weight watchers group is starting up again tomorrow. in fact, i should totally search out my books ... 0%

3. have a booth at a local craft fair. popcorn festival - sept. 8. lake central holiday craft fair - dec. 8. 100%

4. take 2000 photos. i took 2338 photos this year. plus a few that i shot at work. 100%

5. eat a gallon of mustard in one week. i mentioned that setting a huge list of goals all at once led to some ridiculous goals, right? 0%

6. enter 3 items in the county fair. i actually entered nine items. five photos, a single glass bead, jewelry made from glass beads, jewelry made from pop caps (recycled category) and my coconut jalapeno lime cookies. i even won some ribbons. yay! 100%

7. finish 3 quilts. two done. and i've got 3 more in the works. i'm so not interested in quilting right now it's a little scary. 66%

8. take an art class. nope. 0%

9. be able to play Christmas Rhapsody on the piano by Christmas. i don't think i've touched the piano since march. 0%

10. be able to play a song on my accordion. the accordion hasn't been out of the closet all year. i did just realize, however, that i've had the word "accordion" misspelled on the list all year & never noticed. 0%

11. bake something new once a month. february - triple-chocolate peanut butter cookies & jalapeno lime coconut sugar cookies. march - nothing. april - lemon coconut oatmeal cookies. may - okay, it's wasn't new, but i made another flourless chocolate cake & it was really yummy. june - nothing. july - frosty french silk, it wasn't baked but i'm still counting it :). august - luau brownies. september - nothing. october - nothing. november - mixed nut chocolate pie. december - blueberry biscotti. january - miniature peppermint truffle french silk pies. 58%

12. update my portfolio. nope. 0%

13. make my halloween costume. nope. 0%

14. cook dinner once a month. in january i made green pork burritos with cilantro rice & black beans. february was baked macaroni & cheese (patti labelle's recipe). march was pretzel chicken & homemade potato chips for girls night. april was baked chicaken parmasan. may was garlic pasta with chicken & veggies for mother's day. june - i don't remember. july - lasagna. august - terryaki chicken, hawaiian potatoes (yay for girls night!) and a yummy ham & potato casserole from the leftovers. september - crockpot pork chops with cream of mushroom soup. october - thai chicken pasta. november - chicken stir fry. december - vegetable soup. 92%

15. redesign my online portfolio. done! and actually, i just learned about a really cool site a few days ago - so i might move my stuff over there. 100%

16. hang out with old friends. check! not as in "accomplished, so i don't have to do it anymore", but as in "being accomplished on a regular basis ... and i LOVE it!" 100%

17. learn to use my screen printing supplies. i tried & have some ideas on how to be more successful next time. 50%

18. catch up my thumbnails. caught up through dec. 2. 85%

19. read 3 new books. 1 - bob greene's total body makeover. 2 - the aquariums of pyongyang. 3 - a lifetime of secrets. 100%

20. eat breakfast at lynn's paradise cafe. twice! 100%

21. finish bob greene's total body make over. i didn't finish. but i bet if i paired this up with my weight watchers, i'd see some results. 75%

22. take a trip by myself. the smoky mountains in october. 100%

23. finish the plastic purse. i didn't crochet a single stitch on this. 0%

24. files my taxes early. DONE! 100%

25. work on a scrapbook. nope. 0%

26. send Christmas cards. i made Christmas cards. unfortunately that wasn't the goal. 0%

27. homemade Christmas presents. done! kristie got a quilt and other family folks got calendars. 100%

28. secret. this was totally going to be a surprise 35th anniversary party for my parents, but my mom was totally against the idea. it's not much fun surprising someone if they're not going to enjoy it. 0%

so if you just go by the numbers, i'm at 52% for the year. doesn't that sound pathetic? i mean, i feel like i had a pretty good year, really. this is why i think i might not do a big list next year. i mean, this year was totally worth a passing grade. 52%. hmph.