Resolutions

Greetings, all. A Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and a joyous whatever-other-holiday I might overlook. Welcome also the new followers of this blog as well. Glad you have found a warm cave in the otherwise cold expanse that is the internets.

Looking at the last check-in date, you'll notice I have been away from writing for a fair bit. No big surprise given the chaotic schedule that Advent and Christmas engenders. Not that the firestorm is largely over, with only Epiphany and Baptism of the Lord to go, I am getting out of my tired mode right before I have to plow into Lent.

The other issue though is that I haven't felt like writing. Not to worry, faithful reader; it isn't a cancellation notice. It's more of an acknowledgment. Coming back to blogging after the break neck pace I have maintained just isn't going to happen. Whatever has changed in me in the last several months, this is a big thing: I am slowing down. More things that occur to me seem important only to me and really not for public consumption. I find myself mulling on things, trying to see the event or the interaction for what it is and understanding it. Usually, this means that when I get whipped into a frenzy, it has been building (last night, visiting with some brother priests for example).

With all that said, it is a new year and time to get back to business. After I straighten up the rectory and hit the treadmill, I'll run down, if you are interested the sequence of homilies I have offered to my parishes over the Christmastide. I might also regale you with tales of interest concerning an upcoming appearance in OKC and my book which continues marching with the insistence of the Little Engine that Could while not having the punctuality of a Mussolini project. To tide you over, here are my New Year's Resolutions. Think of them as a natural order Examination of Conscience.

1. Read for at least an hour a day.
I am working my way through Steve Martin's analysis of his career as a stand-up and if you think his performances are funny, you have a treat waiting for you in Martin the writer. Spare and almost angular in the style, it treats his career to a vetting that allows the casual observer to understand what and why his career went the ways it did. I was surprised to find out about his association with the Smothers Brothers and Sonny and Cher. Free from gossip, Martin gives the back stage glimpse that many long for. I hope that he will follow up with a treatment of his film career up to present.

2. Go to Confession more regularly.
Don't let this one surprise you. The intent here is to be deliberate and planned in my confessions. Normally I go as part of spiritual direction but then there are times (Advent and Lent) where I get off the beam. Not good for my growth in the Spiritual Life.

3. Get to my goal weight and stay there.
This is an ongoing battle for me and thanks to Weight Watchers, I am getting there. So many good things have come from my association with this program that I can barely list them. I can't recommend it too highly. I am currently about 40 lbs. from goal and I have lost 145 lbs. to date. This week hasn't been good, but that's okay because it's just one week. Hopefully, I will be at goal by May before my trip to the Holy Land and then I can work on staying between 188-192 lbs. until this time next year. Who knows? Maybe I'll try to get ripped and get a part time job on the UK version of American Gladiators as "Crusader."

4. Spend more time with my brother priests.
Here's a place where I have really missed the boat. I need to work on building bonds of friendship or at minimum "collegue"ness with the men of my Archdiocese. Probably wouldn't hurt to extend some time to the guys in Tulsa as well.

And that's it for now. (That's enough personally.) Check back later for more info.