2010 in Review; Goals for 2011

I see that I haven't blogged in a few months. I'm probably moving in the direction of abandoning this thing altogether, since I've never really been able to hit on a theme or anything that I can do consistently. But I like doing these goals every year, so I'm making a return for that purpose.

First, I'll begin with a review of my goals for 2010 and see how I did at achieving them (spoiler: not well).

2010 - 1. To make the Dean's List for my second year at law school.

I know I'm smart, and my marks are above-average, but cracking the top 10% appears to remain out of my grasp, try as I might. I haven't let it bother me too much, due to my success in one of the later goals.

2010 - 2. Run an Olympic distance triathlon.

I did achieve this goal at the Alberta Challenge in August. My time was nothing impressive (other than the fact that I could push myself to keep moving for 3 hours, 23 minutes and 45 seconds), but completing that race was definitely one of the top moments of 2010. I probably chose the worst race to do it at, with a ridiculously hilly off-road running course and an extended bicycle course, but finishing the Alberta Challenge was an incredible feeling.

2010 - 3. Work out a minimum of 2 times every week.

This was actually a really bad goal to have. For the most part, it meant that I only worked out twice per week, which is not enough. And then once I missed a week due to exams, knowing that I'd failed this goal so early in the year made it really hard to get going again.

2010 - 4. Finish in the top 3 in my age group at a triathlon.

I did not achieve this goal. I finished 4th at Lacombe, that was the closest I got. I'm not too disappointed by this, though, as placement is not, ultimately, in my control. I can only do my best, and I can't have any impact on how well the other guys in my age group do on that particular day.

2010 - 5. Complete a sprint distance triathlon in under 1:20:00.

I did 2 official sprint distances this year: Lake Summerside (1:23) and Lacombe (1:27). I did not meet the mark I had set for myself, but I was pleased with my performances at both of those races.

2010 - 6. Watch as many films made between 2000 and 2009 as possible and create a personal "Best Films of the Decade" list that I feel is accurate due to the wide base of films from which it is drawn.

This list will be revealed in a series of posts over the next days and weeks. I watched around 80 films this year made in 2000-2009, and I'm excited to reveal my favourites. I revised this goal slightly as the year progressed, from "Best Films of the Decade" to "My Favourite Films of the Decade". That enabled me to rewatch films that I knew I liked and focus a little less on trying to watch everything that anybody said was good. So it won't be an exhaustive or definitive best-of list, but it will be drawn from a wide base (in all I've seen 376 films made in the last decade at least once), and it will be filled with good films.

2010 - 7. Reduce the "Jana needs to see" list to under 10.

We watched a handful of these, but not nearly enough to get it under 10. A lot of them are pretty mediocre films that Jana doesn't care to see and I don't care to see again, to be honest.

2010 - 8. Get a law-related summer job.

I did achieve this goal, which was very satisfying, getting hired to work for the Municipal Government Board. It didn't turn out to be quite as exciting as I'd hoped, as a legislation change meant we weren't as busy as anticipated, and the promised travel failed to materialize. But it provided me with some great experience, and I've been able to work on contract through the school year, which has been really great.

2010 - 9. Line up an articling position.

Achieving this goal was another one of the top moments of 2010, and the reason that I'm not too bothered about not making the Dean's List. I'll be starting in July 2011 at Alberta Justice as an articling student, which is where I really wanted to go. The whole process (all the firms do all their interviews in a one-week span) was incredibly stressful, but it worked out perfectly in the end.

2010 - 10. Read 20 new books.

I failed at this goal. I did read 10 new books, but I failed to reach the 20 mark for 2 reasons: first, one of the books I read this year was 100 Years of Solitude, which was a great book, but which took me way too long (3 or 4 months) to read, second, I re-read the entire Harry Potter series in preparation for the release for the movie this summer, and those didn't count as new books.

Since I mentioned a couple things as "top moments of 2010" above, I should also mention one more:

The 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics - even if I hadn't gone to Vancouver/Whistler to attend these in person, I think they would be a top moment. I had so much fun watching everything, and then it got ramped up to a new level by actually being at the events and in the crowds myself. This was an unforgettable experience, capped off perfectly by Canada beating the USA in the men's Gold Medal hockey game.

And now, what you've all been waiting for, my goals for 2011:

1. Replace the shingles on the roof.
2. Watch the remaining half of Jim Emerson's "102 Movies You Should Have Seen" list.
3. Watch 20 new Criterion Collection films.
4. Read 20 books.
5. Complete 3 triathlons.
6. Run 10 km in under 47:30.
7. Workout consistently through the year.
8. Take an online photography course.
9. Meet with a financial planner.
10. Go for a run in every city we spend a night in in Europe.

There are a few implied things in that list: first, because my job at Alberta Justice doesn't start until July, I have two months off after school ends in April. Jana and I are planning another trip to Europe. I'm also planning to do some renovations on the house, with the roof being the top priority. We're also planning to get a new camera through Air Miles in the near future, and I want to know how to use it properly before we travel. And then my new job means actually having an income for the first time in years, and we want to make sure we've got a good plan for paying off debts and saving for the future.

I have plans to check off 2 items from my list of Things to Do Before I Die:

- When we go to Europe, we're returning to Rome so that we can attend an AS Roma match against AC Milan.
- I purchased tickets for Brian Wilson's first-ever concert in Edmonton.

Attending those 2 events (an AS Roma match and a Brian Wilson concert) are on my list, and I am very excited to do them both.