TINTFA 2009

For those that read my end of year post for 2008, I made up an acronym that was my version of a New Year’s resolution: TINTFA. I briefly touched on what I wanted to accomplish in 2009 in that last post, but if I plan to actually complete any of those TINTFA’s, I need to be reminded of them again, and in their own blog post.

So without further delay, I give you my top 5 TINTFA’s for 2009:

1. Writing

If I listed each and every idea and writing project I want to do here, this would be a long-ass blog post. But at the top of the list, there are five stories, novels, screenplays and new web sites that I want/need to finish this year. One is almost 10 years in the making [a novel]. Some are just a few months to a year old. Making time for this is a priority for me. All of you that follow me on Twitter and this blog will know when I’m working on these because there will be announcements and links as I make significant progress.

2. Time Management

This really should be number one, but it’s not. But it’s just as important. As I’ve mentioned many times out here, I get distracted easily. I try to do too much at the same time and end up seeing my time just slip away. This doesn’t mean I’m going out and buying all of those “self-help” and “time management” books that make some of these authors rich and famous. Nope. I’m going to analyze the various things that cause me to manage my time poorly and make what changes I can to manage my time better. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? It does, but it’s a daunting task, sometimes on a much larger scale than I can imagine. If I can master this, I can accomplish pretty much any TINTFA on my list.

3. Reading Books

I’ve got a huge stack of books I want to read. I’ve started a couple already and just need to finish them [“Too Fat To Fish” by Artie Lange, “The God Delusion” by Richard Dawkins], but there’s tons of others that I’ve been itching to read for a long time. I’d like to get though a book a month. That’s 12 books. Not a lot to ask, except carving out dedicated and uninterrupted time to read. Piece of cake.

4. Blogger Events

Last year, I attended two (2) blogger events. Both with Dave from Blogography. But even though a blogger meet up with Dave is nothing short of awesome, I admit that I would like to meet some of these other bloggers I read. And while I will seek out some bloggers local to Salt Lake, I want to attend at least a couple of these “Star-Studded” bloggers events, starting with TequilaCon 09 in Santa Fe, NM on April 25, 2009.

5. Exercise

For those of you waiting for Part 3 of my WORKOUT blog post series, it’s coming soon [promises, promises]. I kind of ran into a snag in my exercise plans, which I blogged about here. I’m reworking my plan to make it something that will not only produce some results, but keep me exercising on a regular basis. I made a good dent into this from October to the middle of December last year. I just need to add some tweaks and kick it back into gear.

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The Bottom 5 TINTFA List

So you’ve read my top 5 list and are probably thinking, “That’s it? Aren’t there any other low-priority things Marty wants to accomplish in 2009?” So glad you asked. I give you my bottom-of-the-barrel list of TINTFA’s for 2009.

96. Buy Another Scooter

My wife and I have talked about getting her a scooter. That’s still in the works, but there’s other things that have pushed their way into being more important this year, like home improvements and paying off current bills. This one may have to roll over to 2010. No worries, my current scooter isn’t going anywhere.

97. Watch Every Monty Python Episode

My wife got the me the Complete Monty Python Collection for Christmas. 16 DVDs – every skit and episode in all of it’s searchable glory. Would be nice to watch each and every one, bringing back memories and making me laugh. For this, I may seek more than a sick day… more like a sick week.

98. Take Less Time To Poop

Ewwww…. TMI, dude. This is low on the list because it’s the only time I have to read the large number of articles from my stack of Vanity Fair and Playboy magazines I subscribe to. I figure if I’m not reading enough books, I might as well keep up on current affairs while sitting on the throne. But I guess I could work on tying things up a few minutes sooner in the new year.

99. Travel to England

My daughter wants to go to England… and bad. But even with finding some deal and discounts, it’s still a sizable chunk of change to make a trip across the pond. But, that doesn’t mean I can’t still look for deals and contests.

100. Learn How To Invest

Why is this last on my list? It’s not because I don’t have an interest in knowing how to buy stocks and bonds. I do and I think it’s a good way to plan for things like retirement and to add to one’s income. But it takes dedicated time to make this happen. I figure if I can complete the other 99 TINTFA’s, by the time I read #100, I’ll have enough time to learn the proper steps to investing my money in the right places. At least that’s the thought.

So wish me luck in 2009. I think I will need it.