22 things in 2022: Fun goals and serious fun

I’ve been making these lists of fun goals and intentions for years now, following in the footsteps of one of my favourite authors, Gretchen Rubin – you can see my previous attempts in the links at the bottom of this post. It’s not about ticking everything off no matter what – it’s about sitting down each year to think about some stuff I’d really, really like to do, that I might otherwise not get around to (I’m very accountability-driven!).

And I’ve been sharing my lists right from the start too, both for accountability and because people often send me good suggestions connected to my list – or invite me for Thanksgiving dinner like a couple of years ago, so I could tick it off my list!

My list for 2022

So, here’s my 2022 list – it’s creeping up now, 22 things (I do worry about what I’ll do in, say, 2050!). Some are pure fun, some are quick and easy, some are really hard, there are all sorts. If I don’t get them all done there’ll be lots of reasons, and some I might just decide I don’t want to do! But I love having this list stuck to my fridge to remind me that there are lots of lovely things to do – even in these trickier times.

1. Get a book deal: of course, this is not entirely within my control. But I’m currently rewriting the non-fiction book that did have some interest amongst agents in its initial form and I’m hoping will be even more interesting in its new form. I’m also really, really excited about writing it. The book deal would, of course, be the icing on the cake.
2. Launch ‘Taking Off’: the pilot episode for our travel podcast for kids has been sitting out there for a while now, waiting for real episodes to join it. But Covid made my original plan (spending time in classrooms of teacher friends recording with kids) need a rethink, and I know now what I want to do with it – just need to do it!
3. Teach my son to cook two meals: he always says he’s ‘bad at kitchening’, and I want to improve that! This semester at school he even has cooking, so this should be easy (right?!).
4. Read six novels by Japanese authors: well, it’s only February as I type this and I’ve already read two, and have ordered a bunch more from the library. Japanese novelists are, I think, particularly unique and I really enjoy their take on the world.
5. Make an ice cream cake from scratch: when I was a kid I loved having an ice cream cake for my birthday and this birthday I’m going to make my own fancy one. Recipe suggestions welcome!
6. Stay overnight on Rottnest Island: it’s ridiculous that my son has never done this, and I will fix that this year.
7. Keep a ‘present tense journal’: I learned about this idea from a book I read over Christmas, Solo by Rebecca Seal, which talks about ways to effectively work as a sole trader. The journal thing is all about working towards your ideal working (and living) day.
8. Study French several times weekly: it’s the language my son learns at school and I’ve never studied, but want to keep up with him. I’m going to start with Duolingo (at time of writing in mid-Feb, I have a 30-day streak and have learned heaps!) and see how I go.
9. Cook a meal from a different cuisine monthly: this is a substitute for travelling, I guess! – and I mean a new meal, because obviously every month I always cook meals from a variety of cuisines. I’d like to go even broader!
10. Get Google-certified in digital marketing: there are a bunch of Google courses I could do and would find interesting and useful, but I need to make time to start.
11. Have a personal essay published: having got right back into writing in the last two years, I have so many ideas for this and really want to focus on submitting something this year.
12. Memorise three poems: there are still several poems I learned in childhood that skulk about in my brain. Last year I watched a great poetry Masterclass from Billy Collins, I gifted myself one of his books for Christmas, and he’s inspired me to think about reading (not writing) poetry again.
13. Make a vision board: my fabulous business coach Audrey has almost come to Perth to run workshops in vision boarding the last couple of years but the pandemic has cut those plans short so it’s time to just do it on my own!
14. Create 10 of my own GIFs: I use GIFs in messages (with particular friends) constantly – a good GIF can be worth a thousand words! But sometimes the available GIFs come up short, and I’d like to learn to make some of my own perfect ones.
15. Make a photo book from Denmark trip: long overdue, but I want to and will!
16. Try three new-to-me Japanese restaurants: there are a few Japanese restaurants not all that far from me that I’ve never tried and since I highly doubt I’ll get to Japan in 2022, this is a good substitute. And a delicious one!
17. Read Simplify magazine: I subscribe to this and rarely read it but whenever I do I feel calm – so, do more of this.
18. Do a drawing/sketching course: instead of just whinging that my son has all the artistic talent in our household, I’ve decided to have some fun extending mine a bit. It doesn’t matter if I’m terrible, it matters that I try and that I have fun.
19. Read two novels in German: I have kept up a decent knowledge of German through podcasts, music and TV but I haven’t read anything lengthy in German for ages and I have quite a few novels sitting on my shelves.
20. Consistently take soft plastics for recycling: the place I can drop these is not my most regular shopping spot so I’ve been slack, but it’s really not that hard and I want to do better.
21. Buy a new rug for the living room: our carpet is really on its last legs but I’m not ready to replace it all, but a lovely rug for the living room will solve this for a decent while.
22. Do some long hikes: I hope (fingers crossed) to get to walk the Cape to Cape track this year but whether I do or don’t, some long preparatory hikes are in order.

How did 2021 go?

2021 was such a weird nothing kind of year that I never even wrote a post about my plans, but I did have my list on the fridge all year! Now although I haven’t crossed off all that many in the image below, I did have quite a lot of success with many of these.

New walking shoes, a jigsaw, tracking podcast, crocheting a blanket, watching Masterclasses and trying new recipes all were very successful. Some of the others including going to Sydney were interrupted by circumstances beyond my control; we did try geocaching once but my son wasn’t enamoured and I didn’t have the energy to try again! I should have swum more but with a few lockdowns spread throughout the year I found it hard to get into a rhythm (excuses, excuses!). I technically did #19 … I picked up my guitar. I should have been more specific about actually playing it though!