2011 Goals, part 2: Bookish Goals

2010 was all about spontaneous reading for me. I didn't think I could handle challenges with a new baby and all so I didn't sign up for many. I enjoyed the freedom, but missed my reference lists, so this year I want to do a bit of both.

In 2011, I want to:

1. Continue reading classics. I got into classics in the past few years and have been going through them slowly but surely. 2010 was the year I discovered Jane Austen and I definitely want to read more of her. There are several others on my list too, for example The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. And I'd like to re-read Jane Eyre at some point too, although I'm not sure I'll get around to it in 2011!
2. Read second books by authors I liked. Luckily, there's a challenge set up for this, so I'm all set.
3. Read more in Polish. I was disappointed to realise that I didn't read a single book in Polish in 2010. I think I need to include Polish books in a challenge format, otherwise I won't pick any up. Even though I'm Polish, I've been in English-speaking environments since I was 6 years old and reading in Polish is hard for me. I have to concentrate more than in English. But I do want to keep up with new Polish authors and also improve my vocabulary so I'd really like to include Polish reading in my life.
4. Keep up with series I'm reading. I seem to read a lot of series and I seem to constantly discover new ones. I want to keep track of where I am and continue with the series I've started.
5. Read e-books. I got a Kindle for my birthday and I want to use it - e-books, here I come!
6. Learn more about topics that interest me. This is why Alex and I set up the One, Two, Theme! challenge... my list of topics is here.
7. Read the books that Alex chose for me. We exchanged book recommendations and I really want to read the books she loved and thought I'd enjoy too.
8. Read off my shelves. I'm sure many of you will understand perfectly when I say that I have a book-buying problem. I love it. I can kind of control myself when buying new books, but whenever I go to a charity sale I end of with bags and bags of new books on my shelves. Some of those need to get read - see the list I made for the TBR challenge.
9. Re-read some favorites. There are a few books that I've been meaning to re-read because I enjoyed them so much, such as Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger and the Harry Potter series. Maybe I'll get around to doing this in 2011?
10. Knock a few books off my TBR list. Like Nymeth and probably loads of other bloggers, I have a huge list of books that I've been meaning to get to soon. I would like to read several of books from the list below in 2011 - not all, but definitely some:
1. The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
2. The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett
3. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
4. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
5. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
6. Wild Swans by Jung Chang
7. Watership Down by Richard Adams
8. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
9. Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
10. 1984 by George Orwell

Hmmmm.... that seems to be a lot of reading! :-)

2011 Goals, part 1: Non-Bookish Goals

I love the start of a new year. I love being able to leave behind what already happened and love being able to look forward. And I love making lists of what I'd like to accomplish. :-)

I expect that 2011 will be pretty busy. Here are a few things that I'd like to get done:

1. I'll be getting married in 2011 and I'd like things to go smoothly. If all goes well with documents, translations and other administrative things, our civil ceremony will take place in February. Our handfasting (a pagan wedding ceremony) will be in June, provided we can find someone to perform it - our party will celebrate that as well as Joe's 50th birthday. We're really looking forward to our marriage and to the related celebrations.
2. I'll be turning 35. This milestone won't happen until December, but I'd still like to keep it in mind throughout the year and mark it by growing, both spiritually and intellectually. To me, life makes sense as long as I'm learning something and sometimes that requires more of an effort than I like to admit. Also, I understand that spiritually 2011 will be the year of embracing those unique attributes that make you YOU. Learning more about myself and accepting what I find are definitely on my to-do list.
3. 2011 will be the second year of Baby S's life. I want to cherish the times we'll have together and stop whining. He's a baby and that means he acts like a baby. Seriously, I need to focus on the huge positives that he brought to my life. Sometimes I loose myself in the little things that don't matter and lose sight of what's important.
4. Get in shape. This has been a goal of mine for soooo long and I soooo want it to be done. I will eat healthy and I will excercise and I will be fit by the time 2012 rolls around.
5. Get finances in order. Even in these tougher times, I remain a big spender. I want to become better with money, there's no other way of saying it. Grocery shopping is my downfall so I guess that's where we'll start.
6. Travel. I already have a few trips planned, but I wan't more... I just want to take advantage of the holidays we get and make sure I start visiting some of the countries I've been wanting to go to. There's no time like the present, right?
7. Cook more. I love cooking and I have a about a million cookbooks. I want to make time on the weekends to cook meals for the week so we end up eating pizza less often!
8. Chill out. I want to be balanced and zen, not stressed out and crazy. Any tips on how to get to my goal?