It’s time for the new year, and time of course for the obligatory “New Year’s Resolutions”.
Except I’ve never been good at “Resolutions”. I’m better at “Goals to work toward” instead. There’s less pressure that way and less feeling of failure if as often happens, life gets in the way and I don’t get to be as diligent as I intended to be.
So my “Goals to Work Toward” for 2019 are:
- Get more exercise. I’m a frumpy middle-age woman – I am never going to be a gym rat. My joints hurt and my knee builds up fluid. But I can work more on aerobic exercise and upper body strength so that a day in the woods on my feet with a nine-pound rifle and thirteen-pound pack do not completely wear me out. To that end, the other week I made myself a redneck “gun weight” out of leftover PVC pipe and paving sand I had in the garage. Now I have a roughly ten pound, forty inch long weight I can heft around while I’m “stepping” in the living room. Hopefully that will help build some upper body shotgun and rifle strength. At least that’s the plan.
- Shoe myself properly. I need to invest in a good pair of high-quality waterproof hiking boots. This past year I spent a lot of time afoot in the woods – tracking turkey, tracking deer, hunting, berry picking, and getting to know the property. But it rains a lot up there. The hiking boots that I had and which were “supposed” to be waterproof leaked so badly during one such rainy excursion that my wool socks were literally squishing by the time I got back to the car. I am a tough shoe fit. I usually need men’s wide sizes due to my frankenfeet and my grandfather’s bunions. Women’s footwear is just too narrow for me. So I usually have to settle for whatever is leftover and available in my size, (Men’s 8.5 – 9 EE-EEEE). Usually the choices are slim. This year I want to do it right. Let the search begin.
- Take a class. Last year I was scheduled to take Melody Lauer’s Armed Parent/Guardian class, but carpal tunnel surgery got in the way and I had to cancel. I still want to do that this year. I also still want to get into some sort of Trauma class. I’m already signed up for a Stop the Bleed class in January through a friend’s A Girl and A Gun Club chapter, but I want to take something a little higher level in addition. I have also toyed with the idea of a carbine class, but I probably need to work on my upper body toning before I attempt an all-day long-gun class.
- Get over my fear of tree stands. I am afraid of heights. Tree stands give me the willies. But that might be the best deer hunting option for me if I ever want to bag my first buck. Thus, I need to get over myself. I have a friend who is willing to get me up in her tree stands over the summer to help me conquer my fear, so we shall see. I’ll also be looking at tree stands and safety equipment at SHOT 2019.
- Continue my turkey and deer education. I learned reams of new information this past year, but I am a “never stop learning” kind of gal.
- Practice more with the guns I ALREADY have instead of continually lusting after the next new thing. I know – what fun is THAT!!?? “New” is half the fun. Okay, maybe I’ll let myself have a Sig P365 … or maybe this will be the year that Benelli comes out with an 828u in 20 ga. I’ll let you know what I decide after I do some drooling at SHOT Show.
What are some of YOUR goals for 2019?
