2011 in my rear view mirror

I'm ready for 2011 to be done.  It picked up 2010's bad karma, and ran with it like Vince Young in the Rose Bowl.  Now my work situation feels better than it has in far too long, I still have family and friends that make me laugh in even the crappiest weeks, and I will make 2012 better.  How so?  Here are the (hopeful) plans:

1. Climb a mountain.  Not scaling/rappelling or anything - gravity and I have an agreement to just not challenge each other - but hiking to a summit.  Preliminary plans point to Guadalupe Peak in the fall.
2. Swim in saltwater on a real beach.  I grew up in Hawaii, and want to get back to this at least occasionally.  I don't know if any of the Texas coast counts, but possibly Padre.
3. Read Wheel of Time.  All 15 books.  The author (well, second author - the first passed away after 12 books) live-tweeted finishing this series that's taken over 20 years, and I can't wait to devour the entire thing.  You may not see me much between July and September.  Some of you will note I've made this plan twice before - not my fault the author wants to "sleep" and "eat" and "see his family" instead of conforming to my schedule.
4. Do something new every month - reading new books won't count, nor will eating at a new place.  I'd thought about doing this last week, but too many out-of-town visitors and other great people filled up my schedule. If you have an idea for something I should do (Central Texas-accessible is most likely to make the list), let me know.
5. Write.  No reason not to have at least a few notes on any book I read or movie I see.  A few stories have been percolating, and I have a feeling politicians and others will make me mad enough to need to respond.  This won't all be blogging, but I'll try to make sure friends who are here, on Facebook, or on Twitter can find anything I make public.
6. Get involved.  I enjoyed being HOA Treasurer this year, and I will find a new organization to play with this year.  Friends of the Library?  A new church?  Tax-Aid?  Political campaign?

That's the plan - I'll try to update each of those goals each month.

To wrap up, a couple of lists for 2011 that I think are worth mentioning:

• Best Movies: 50/50, The Descendants, The Guard, Midnight In Paris, Muppets, Rise of the Planet of the Apes
• Worst Movies I Saw: Bad Teacher, Green Lantern, Our Idiot Brother
• Most Disappointing Movies: Bridesmaids, Everything Must Go, Hugo, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
• Best Books I Read: The Wise Man's Fear, Asimov's Robot/Foundation/Empire, Ready Player One
• Worst Books I Read: The Windup Girl, Eddings' The Dreamers (I get a sour taste in my mouth just typing the title)