HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

So, we have officially said good bye to 2008 and all that it brought: the good, the bad and the ugly. I am lucky enough to say that there was WAY more good than the others in 2008 and I expect that 2009 will be a great year as well.

I do not believe in making “New Year’s Resolutions” so what I am going to do, is offer up some of my “goals for 2009.

1. LOVED ONES. Increase the amount of quality time spent with those closest to me. This is always extremely important but sometimes is stressed less than it should be.

2. TRAVEL, travel and then travel some more. Wow I cannot say enough about this one. This is a passion of ours but because we live and work in North America, vacations end up being difficult to take. Other countries start people out with a month+ of vacation and here it is as if you do not even deserve any. But I digress. So, for 2009, I think there will be a week somewhere in the Caribbean in January or February and then 2+ weeks in Thailand in November.

3. PHOTOGRAPHY. Learn my new Hobby. I am having a great time with my new Rebel XSi but it is painfully obvious that I am such an amateur to photography. I plan on dedicating time to this cause and allowing myself to learn to shoot better shots. Low light is an area that I know I need work. But, I am trying my hand at it and learning things as I go.

4. SCUBA. While my new hobby actually does rival Scuba Diving for the biggest obsession, I still love and could never give up Scuba Diving. So, My goal is to make sure that we get out diving as much as possible while travelling, and that my local dive buddy and I get out more this summer.

5. CAREER. I am going to make sure that in 2009, I make further advances at work. Hopefully these will be where I am today however I will never say I am against moving if where I am is not going to get me where I need to be. One way or the other, 2009 will be strong for my career.

So, that is what I am setting out to do this year (or the 30,000 foot view of what I plan). What are your plans? Bottom line is, may 2009 bring to you all that you need to be happy, and a then some more.