Die Ole Habits!

1. Stop swearing

2. Be classy

3. Fall in love

4. Don't drink too much

5. Eat healthy

Over the course of my year of FUNemployment, I've made great strides in being healthier and improving my life. Or so I thought. The 5 items listed above are items that are close-ish to what would be on my present self-improvement list. Except I wrote this one when I was 17.

I was going through a drawer with lots of old pictures at my parent's house and found the list above. Today, I don't care about swearing as much and "be classy" would be phrased differently but the other three are spot on. 

At first I found the list amusing. And then alarming. I have been making lists like this for half my life. And yet the list never seems to change. I've been listing out improvements or really things that I believe are faults and defects. 4 out of 5 of these items are reminders to be better. Because my behavior or habits aren't deemed good enough. And the judge is me. Maybe, you're saying, I never seem to heed my own list. Well, maybe a leopard can't always change her spots to be something she's not.

Before I left for Thanksgiving, I was pretty sure that I had forgotten to take my trash out. Granted, I was picked up by the shuttle at 3am so it would have been understandable if I had made a mistake of leaving it behind. All vacation I was thinking about the trash and how disgusting the apartment would smell upon my return.

When I got home, there was no smell of decay at the door. No rats or roaches assaulting my kitchen. The trash was empty. There was even a new bag in the can. Of course I had taken care of it. I always do. 

So, what's my point? I don't give myself enough credit. I am who I am. There is always room for improvement but not constant improvement. And who I am is a reliable, responsible person who takes the trash out when necessary, tries to eat her vegetables, sometimes curses like a sailor and occasionally overimbibes. The love part is great to aspire to, but as we all know, it takes two to tango. It's not an item on a list that can necessarily be crossed off. I need to keep this top of mind as I'm moving forward full throttle on my job search.

So, die old habit of making lists of improvements/defects. Onward and upward job search (and if you know of any marketing or advertising opportunities in Los Angeles, let me know!)