Last summer I was given the opportunity to attend All-Star Sunday at Yankee Stadium for FREE. I’m not the most super duperest baseball fan, but it was really a great day, number one – because it was FREE, number two – because I got to see lots of cool mascots (I secretly want  to be a mascot – oops, secret’s out … contact me if you have a mascot job available), number three – because I got to see celebrities like Whoopi Goldberg and Billy Crystal be silly and play softball, number four – because I got to go to the “old” Yankee Stadium one more time (for FREE), and number five – because I got to spend a great day with my friend Denise setting goals and plotting out the future while the Futures game was being played (hey, we did something constructive while waiting for the celebs to take the field).

Sometimes, in order for things to happen ya gotta write ’em down. Like the vision board concept, or to respect the kind-of-baseball-theme of this post, like the famous line from Field of Dreams says, “If you build it, he will come.” If you write it down, it will happen. The idea was to write down 10 things we wanted to accomplish within the next year. So, where do I stand a little more than a year later?

1. Redo 1st floor of house: Done and (almost done)! The kitchen has about a week left of work, and not only was the first floor redone, the floors throughout the entire house were refinished, all rooms painted and all closets lined with cedar and fixed up to be more functional.
2. Finish yard: Thanks to a referral from a friend on Facebook for an affordable landscaper and my accountant for getting me a tax refund, I had the front yard gutted of all grass, mulched and new shrubs planted and the backyard cleaned up as well for easier maintenance, AND it looks much prettier!
3. Lose 50 pounds: Not quite … but 43 pounds ‘aint to shabby! And I have my fabulous, butt-kickin’ trainer Jeanette Fischetto from Pure Physique (Shrub Oak, NY) to thank and bow to!  If you live in the area you should try one of her boot camp classes, or as I like to call them shake your bootay classes. One-on-one training sessions and regular cardio workouts along with a new way of eating and treating my body good has made a tremendous difference for me both physically and emotionally.
4. Hawaii: Haven’t gotten there yet. Because of money spent on making numbers 1,2 & 3 happen, which were totally worth it, this one had to be put on the back burner.
5. Start riding bike again: I did go for a few rides on the North County Trail, but now that I can’t really afford to go to the trainer on a regular basis, the bike I already own and the FREE trail will most probably become regulars in my life.
6. See Wicked: Tried to get discount tickets but it didn’t happen. Still working on it.
7. Start a blog: Well, if you’re reading this, you know I did it!
8. Read more books: Sadly, this has not happened. I’ve read a lot of Facebook statuses, tweets, blogs, online articles and magazines, but not as many books as I’d like to. However, now that the house is almost finished and I don’t have a very big line item in the budget for entertainment, I see a lot of book reading in my near future. Any favorites to recommend, contact me.
9. Take salsa lessons: This one has not happened. I took salsa lessons a few years back and loved it. Have been trying to get to a Zumba class but it just hasn’t been in the cards.
10. DATE: Denise made me write this one down. And I’m glad she did. I haven’t really been dating, but I’m coming around. After my mom passed away last year, dating and men were about as enticing to me as liver and onions. But since the pieces of my life have been slowly coming together I’m back in it to win it! (Okay, so, kinda, sorta, but not all-the-way back in it really … dating and finding decent men = not so easy). If you have any recommendations or referrals of the male nature, contact me.

So now that it’s been more than a year, I suppose I should make another list of goals for the next year. No time like the present …

1. Make more money (if you have recommendation on this one, contact me)
2. Lose 20 pounds
3. Unpack all the boxes in the house and purge, purge, purge (wanna help? contact me)
4. Clean out basement and attic (ditto on this one)
5. See Wicked
6. Go Kayaking
7. Explore new biking and hiking trails
8. Read more books
9. Update blog regularly
10. DATE

Batter up! What’s your list? You can’t strike out … nothing to lose by writing it down, only the chance to gain – gain a sense of fulfillment, empowerment, accomplishment! It’s bound to be a grand slam! And you don’t have to put it out there for the whole world to see like silly ‘ol me. I’m out of baseball terms … so, until next time my friends … happy goal setting!

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Just a random but interesting note for you. In case you couldn’t tell, I’m not so baseball savvy. I played little league and hit the ball once I think. I realized years later that closing my eyes while swinging was probably where I went wrong. Okay, but none of that is this interesting note … this is the interesting note … I actually have baseball in my blood! Shocker – right? My mother’s cousin Sam Mele played for the Boston Red Sox and managed the Minnesota Twins, and her Uncles Tony and Al Cuccinello also played professionally for several teams. Al also went on to become a scout for the Yankees.