Starting Fresh.
I’ve thought a lot about what to do with this space in 2013, considering that, for the most part, my posts dropped off after I completed the Tough Mudder in December 2012. In so many, many ways, 2012 was a watershed year for me. It began with that piece of paper I stuck on my fridge titled “Goals for 2012” — Give more. Smile more. Forgive more quickly. That list, whose red and blue Sharpie words have nearly faded to grayscale, still hangs in my kitchen, but it means less now because for the most part, I’ve integrated all of those reminders into my daily existence. I don’t need to see them written down to remember to eat good food, to sleep 8 hours a night, to cook for friends, to read more, to work hard but know when to take a break.
In 2012, I broke out of a whole host of shells I’d been keeping myself in. I set, and exceeded, goals for myself. I let go of unhealthy relationships and forged new, wonderful ones. I started moving around every day, working up a sweat, and I started thinking harder about what I consume. I paid closer attention to the people who matter the most, and I paid closer attention to my own needs. I treated myself to a number of adventures, I watched the first of my college friends get married, and I traveled solo just for fun.
So where does that put me in 2013? I’ve been less inclined to write in here because rather than revelation after revelation, I’m instead simply deepening the roots I started putting in the ground last year. The craving for adventures continues unabated — in 2013 so far, I’ve Sweetlifed, skied, road-tripped, scavenger hunted, and half-marathoned. Later this summer, I’ll visit Charleston, go camping and white water rafting, see Paul McCartney in concert, spend a long weekend at the beach with a whole host of friends, and travel solo to San Francisco for a week of exploring – all before moving up to Cambridge, MA in the fall to start work on my Masters degree! I can’t begin to express how lucky I feel to be in this special time of life right now: that harried, busy, 20-something existence that’s all whirlwinds with friends, quiet nights when I want them, and an overstuffed calendar of pure awesome.
Simply put, the good times just keep on rolling.
Which brings me, in this ridiculously roundabout way, to where I’ve decided to take this blog. Kaleshot started out just as a record of my gym foibles and attempts at Zumba. To be sure, there will continue to be more of that, and in fact, I’m inspired to go try out some new variations of exercise just so I can report back.
But I also plan to spend more time on what I’m beginning to realize is my evolving philosophy — where I place my values, why I do what I do, what kind of person I want to be and am becoming. To that end, I’ve created 4 new concrete categories in which every post will be stored: Philosophy, Food, Fitness, and Fun. (And um, General, because WordPress won’t seem to let me delete that one.)
Regarding the first category, I am, I’ve realized, actively, in-this-very-moment in the midst of a process of immense self-discovery that began with that list on my fridge and has continued to mature and strengthen in the year and a half since. And I know what I’m shooting for: a good life, a big life, a life of peace and joy, a life of success and motivation, and a life of laughter and simplicity. How I get there is where this story starts.











