New Years Day…Time to reflect

This year especially it’s a time to reflect. Not only are we leaving an old year behind but we are leaving an old decade behind. It’s time to check our compass and chart our direction for another year and another decade.

Resolutions can be any time of the year and we can set goals any time of the year but I do like the tradition of making “resolutions” for January 1^st.

A New Year, like an un-used piece of paper, is a time for fresh start. When I look at that blank page I can think of so many things to write. So many essays that aren’t full of “scratch out’s” , eraser smudges or white out. Life doesn’t give us “do-over’s” but in a sense, a new year is a fresh start.

The New Year is like that to me. It’s a time to take stock of where I am, what I did right and what I did wrong in the year that past. How can I do better in this pristine, untouched New Year and what do I want to accomplish?

I see an untouched blanket of snow spread out before me. Where will I put my first step.? When I look back where will my tracks go? Will they wander aimlessly, will there be a spot where I fell down? What about a snow angel on the side of the trail? What kind of pattern can I make as I step off into the uncharted territory of this 2011?

Some of my resolutions are very personal and I will keep those to myself.

Some have to do with my goals for this blog and those I will share, and some are sort of quasi personal but in a public way… I’m not sure about those yet. Should I toss them out for all to see? After all my theme for this blog was travel...”Sights, scenes, travel of an everyday person”. as opposed to a professional travel writer. The kind of experiences anyone could have for good or bad. I think that so far, for the most part, I have stuck to that goal. So I’m not at all sure I want to get too far off that track.

I will tell you that as a “Hobby” traveler it is hard to keep up with daily posts because there are only so many days a year I can travel. Like everyone else these days I have to put in at least my 40 hours each week , and often more than 40, so I will need to learn how to fill in and still keep it interesting.

There, now you have one of my goals for this space in 2011.. and here are the rest.

…Goals for “Sights, Scenes, Travel of an Everyday Person for 2011.

1. Post daily, even if just a brief thought, suggestion or photo.

2. Interview other travelers and post their experiences to add variety.

3. Name the Prairie Dog that is the site’s mascot. Any suggestions?

4. Once named, create a sidebar spot for quick tips and advice from the mascot.

5. Encourage comments and suggestions from you, my readers. What do you want to hear about? What places interest you?

6. Encourage more traffic. I would like to triple the number of hits to the site by
2012. You can help. Share the link, tell your friends!

7. Make a plan for each month so there will be enough material for interesting
Posts. Again comments and suggestions are welcome. I’m told by other bloggers
that some of their best posts come from suggestions and comments they get on
their blogs from their readers.

8. Do you have a travel story to share? Would you like to be a guest blogger?
Send me an email. Let’s see if we can work something out.

The more personal goals are like most people’s…lose weight (those tiny airline seats are much more comfortable when I’m thin), keep working on the financial challenges this economy has presented me, be a better friend that sort of thing.

I wish. everyone a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year filled with the love and warmth of family and friends. I pray for Peace and Understanding among us all so that maybe, someday, all peoples and nations will be able to live in harmony. As the saying goes “why can’t we all just get along?”

Happy New Year!