How I Fared: 2020 NYRs

Distressingly, though many an Instagram graphic told me not to worry about accomplishing tasks during a global pandemic, I stayed true to my brand and refused. In fact, I worried HARDER. Like a CHAMP. My results haven’t overly changed since my mid-year check in, but I’m a completionist. Let’s do it!

1. Take at least 2 actual vacations, where I don’t work (except for maybe on writing projects, but you’re on thin ice, kid), outside of New York. To quote myself this August…. Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha*sob*hahahahahahahahahahahahahaaaaaa
2. Write every week. Sadly this one’s only a partial completion. Partial because hey folks, it’s a global pandemic, gimme a break, but also I did make some decent progress and write and produce a new Sam and Pat episode in spite of it all, so I feel pretty alright.
3. Save $3500. Insanely, I saved more than this because in my abject panic over the pandemic and losing 30% of my day job income and moving next year, I took on a ton of freelancing. Did I work too much during a global pandemic? Yes. Did I work too much even if there wasn’t a global pandemic? Also yes. But a slight increase in financial security is a good symptom of this workaholism.
4. Make and stay consistent with a budget. I mean…. trial by fire, amirite?
5. Make one YouTube video a quarter. I genuinely don’t know why I keep putting this on my list. I don’t love making YouTube videos all that much? I did start a new podcast and continue my previous one which sort of feels like the evolution of what I would have otherwise done on YouTube.
6. Make a healthy choice twice a day. Global pandemic yadda yadda, I did…. ok. I was in therapy and made some breakthroughs, I tried to cook more and clean more and be better about work/life boundaries (which, in spite of overworking myself, actually was a thing. I’m better about not answering work emails after hours these days, etc)
7. Order out fewer than three times a week. Paaaaandeeeeeemic. Exhaustion. We did cook a hell of a lot more than we usually did, but y’all, our kitchen sucks. It sucks being in there. I can’t wait to move.
8. Read all the books I’ve bought but haven’t read prior to January 3rd, 2020. I read a lot of ’em, then I bought some more (read Axiom’s End by Lindsay Ellis twice, read the entirety of Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious series and Shades of London series in two weeks, have a few others I’m excited to get to in 2021). I have tried like eight times to get into Feed by Mira Grant which on paper (hah) seems perfect for me but I just can’t for some reason. I read a hell of a lot more this year than recent years, though, and I really enjoyed it. So partial success on the goal, complete success on rediscovering a treasured hobby.
9. Stop over-explaining. Apparently this might be an ADHD thing? I haven’t been diagnosed with ADHD…. yet…. though I have my suspicions. In any case, I did get a lot better at this, in part because now that I’m totally remote for most communication I have a chance to reread my typed thoughts and then revise to condense. But also I’m far more conscious of it in speaking. A lot of it is a confidence thing, trusting that whomever I’m speaking to knows I know what I’m talking about and will ask if they need more information.
10. Don’t go to your 10 Year High School Reunion. This was a throwaway goal so I could have an even, consistent 10, but…. success! It still counts even if no one went because of a global pandemic!

3 Failures

3 Partial Completions

4 Successes

Honestly, not bad. Unless I have a really great idea I’m gonna try to do my 2021 goals live at my work’s goal-setting workshop I’m co-leading, so won’t you join me?

Briefly, some other things that happened this year:

• My mom got a very cute dog named CJ who I love more than anything except for maybe…
• My fiance, who I have now instead of a boyfriend
• We started our move to LA at long, long last
• We made a quarantined Sam and Pat episode that’s one of the funniest scripts I’ve gotten to write in a long time (and that allowed Chris to canonically come out in show!)
• I directed another very cute episode of Rosalie, a web series by my former student
• I started a podcast with my friend Christina about filmmaking. We also started a Substack to go along with it!
• We successfully crowdfunded for Buy In with a very fun, silly campaign, and I was able to pay my collaborators (a few years late, but still) during the first few weeks of a global pandemic that saw many of them lose their jobs

This year sucked a lot. But like me and other insufferable people, it contained multitudes.

Before I go, if you voted for Trump, if you don’t believe that black lives matter or that the police should be defunded, please don’t interact with this blog! Go away! I’m leaving you behind and quite happy to do so. This year was a good reminder that sometimes absolutes are absolutely necessary.

Happy New Year everyone.