Accountability 2014: Last Year's Goals and My General Awesomeness Rating

It is the first day of January, and I am in a blanket fort on the couch desperately trying to forget how sick I've been over the past week. You know that epic stomach bug that's been terrorizing North America? It. Is. Really. Awful. Lots of handwashing ok guys? I'm fine now, but super tired. Luckily, I can blog from my blankets!
I take a perverse enjoyment in rehashing the last year's goals to see how I measured up. Come join me as I crow about my successes, wallow in my failures, and spew word vomit onto the screen. Be grateful that's the only kind of vomit I'm producing now. Stupid Norovirus.
2013's Crafty Goals:

• Knit 15km.

Oh hell yes. 16.1km. That is so much knitting I can't even contain my smugness.

• Spin 9km.

I lost my spinning mojo towards the end of the year, which is unfortunate as I really could have made this goal. I clocked in at 7.6km, which is not too shabby. In other news I'm going to be doing away with my knitmeter widget in favour of a spreadsheet that doesn't get all cranky with me. Maybe a more pleasant inputting experience would make this meterage measuring less of a chore.

• Finish one of the three cross stitched Christmas stockings.

Yeah, no. Stupid fucking stockings. They are going to be worth it. They are going to be beautiful. I bought a snap frame to replace my traditional embroidery hoop and the stitching has picked up again over the past few months.

• Make a patchwork quilt.

I did! It's beautiful! I made my parents a nautical themed quilt for Christmas, and I loved the whole experience. I am planning future quilts as I type.

The back is simple unbleached cotton flannel. Isn't it cute?

• Knit the Evenstar Shawl.

I tried. I really did. I got out the yarn and pattern and needles, went to swatch, and then realized I'd done something I have never done before. I bought the wrong amount of yarn. I was short by nearly 200 yards. I knit a sweater with it instead, and I have some fibre to spin for the next attempt at the shawl of my dreams.

• Release at least four patterns.

Almost! 3 patterns in a year is a lot less than I'd ideally like, but still. They're good patterns.

• Slightly reduce yarn and fibre stash volumes.

Yarn: yes. Fibre: look I'm sure you have faults too. Why are we only talking about mine? It isn't all about me here.

• Don't buy more raw fibre, and work with what I have.

I didn't find myself even tempted to buy more, but I didn't use the fleeces nearly as much as I had hoped.

• Weave.

I am disappointed to say I failed this goal miserably. I'm feeling a bit stumped by my lack of weaving progress actually - I want to weave, I want woven things, but I just don't do it. I'll try harder this year.

• Knit sweaters.

Like a boss. I knit five in 2013, all of them for me. Sweaters for a lady of my signficance are no small commitment, so I am pleased with this.

• Knit selfishly and pursue other crafts if I prefer them over knitting at that moment.

I did! I got a little carried away with the Christmas crafting this year (OK, brag time. 4 pairs of socks, 3 of which were for man feet, 2 pairs of fingering weight mitts, a laceweight cowl, a hat, a cross stitched sampler, two handsewn neckties, and oh, just an entire quilt. Bask in my awesomeness, go on) but I did what made me happy, embraced crafts as they appealed to me, and was happily productive.

The aforementioned sampler

2013's Life Goals:

• Read.

While I am miles away from my pre-parenthood book-a-week status, I read almost a book a month this year (for comparison, last year I read a book. Like, one). I got a Kindle for Christmas, which has made reading while knitting possible by fixing the whole "paperbacks don't stay open if you're not actively holding them" problem. Also, I can read racy novels and nobody will ever know.

• Train the dog.

Loki has improved, for sure. Part of it comes down to the fact that he's (FINALLY) maturing. His leash manners are great, and he is extremely obedient if treats are involved. I taught him to roll over the other day, just for fun. He's a pest, but boy is he clever.

• Get my driver's licence.

I DID IT. My learner's licence has irritating restrictions aimed at a sixteen year old, but I'm working on getting ready for my first road test. I haven't even tried parallel parking yet.

• Improve my mental and physical health.

I was well on track with both, but a month of near inactivity due to bronchitis this fall has really set me back. I'm still very happy with my efforts, if not always with their results.

• Put more money in savings.

We moved into a bigger, more expensive home this year, and faced a number of unexpected expenses. Did you know that if your puppy's balls don't drop, a simple neuter turns into a $900 operation? Turns out the testicles had never worked after all, but hey. They're out now. No use crying over spilt testicles, amirite? I'm happy that we came out ahead, but I didn't meet my goal of saving 10% of our incomes.

• Better outward self care.

This goal was all about presentation - hair, makeup, clothes, cleanliness etc. I think I did a great job. I discovered the miracle of dresses, learned loads of new makeup techniques, and successfully transitioned my hair from black to platinum blonde without looking like a skunk in the meantime. Go me.

• Continue to grow my business.

Yes! I worked harder, sold more things, had more fun, got more exposure, and made more friends.

• Do fun things with family.

Not in the way I had originally planned, with camping trips and adorable Kodak moments, but we found a very pleasant groove in our family time.
When I do the (very official and quantitative) math, I earned a 61% in crafty goals, and a solid 81% in life goals. I'm pleased with me! Every time I feel like a failure in 2014 I'll remind myself that I'm more of a solid B minus. Yay?
I'll ponder and post this year's goals soon. Until then, dear readers, avoid touching strangers and sanitize everything!