By Lori Welch Brown

Look—I get it. December was a flippin’ blast. You ate the cookies, drank the nog, partied like it was ’99, and here you are again simultaneously cursing the concept of an ‘open’ bar and that new bathroom scale that calculates everything from your holiday spending to metric tons of refined sugar consumed since December 25 (a lot).

Things are not looking good.

You’re afraid to look at your Visa bill, climbing a flight of steps leaves you winded, and your ex just changed his profile picture to include his new “holidate”—apparently, she morphed into a girlfriend between Christmas and New Year’s. How convenient.

Don’t despair—this is your month! Tuck last year where it belongs—in your rearview mirror. Definitely not into your jeans—ain’t nothing fitting in there. Don’t despair. January is all about moving forward with a big, fat blank slate. And don’t worry if everything feels big and fat because that’s temporary. It’s winter—you’re supposed to bulk up (at least that’s what I keep telling myself).

So…pull out that new calendar and get to planning! I can practically smell the Sharpie! What day is the Mediterranean diet starting? Don’t want to start it January 1? That’s like setting yourself up for failure. Can’t do it next week—January birthdays and then the holiday weekend. Move it to February! But there are birthdays in February also, not to mention President’s Day weekend and Valentine’s Day. We’ll figure it out. Nothing goes better than summer with Mediterranean anything, am I right?

What about joining the gym? Absolutely! Nothing says commitment to health like a gym membership. It’s probably going to be crowded with all those nutty resolution people so should probably postpone that until February as well. But go ahead and sign up to take advantage of the decreased fees. Signing up is half the battle!

Of course, you’ll want to curb your spending after your holiday free-for-all (one present for them, two for me!). But what about the after-Christmas sales? Everyone knows the mark downs are huge. And besides—you have to get out of the house. Staying in is just depressing.

What about dry January? It would be a good idea to back off the booze a bit. The liquor cabinet is empty thanks to the New Year’s Day brunch and your wallet does need tightening. But God. Could January be any more depressing? (RIP Chandler). It’s dark by 5:00, cold by anyone’s standards, and BLEAK. Maybe just a few drinks once a week or maybe two short happy hours and an occasional brunch. You can’t just stop being social because it’s cold outside.

You know what you need? A vision board! That’s it. Every dream starts with a vision—and you can’t start planning without one. It’s like trying to find Disney World without a map—errr, I mean GPS. Anyhow, you have to know where you’re going in order to arrive. Now where are all those magazines? Oh right. No one reads magazines any more. What about catalogs? Sorry—cancelled those in last year’s purge. No worries—you can write your dreams and goals in your journal.

Now we’re talking. Where are all those beautiful journals you’ve been hoarding? You know—the ones too pretty to actually write in? Grab one of those—okay, maybe not that ONE—and get started. Close your eyes and think about what you want your life to look like in 2025. Where are you? Who are you with? Really nail down the specifics. What are you wearing? What do you smell? See? Are you at the beach? Mountains? Do you smell the ocean breeze? What are you doing for work? Are you sitting at a desk or spreading out your mat in a yoga studio? Are you in a conference room sharing ideas with colleagues or sitting at a laptop alone in a coffee shop? What did you drive to the coffee shop? A Jeep? Corvette? Ford F250?

What about travel? You know what they say about all work and no play? How will you recharge your batteries and where? Biking through the French countryside? Hiking the Alps? Remember—this is your DREAM, not your current reality. Let ‘er rip! No dream is too big! In reality, you may not be able to afford a plane ticket to Cleveland, but this isn’t reality so go for it! Are you eating a mouthwatering slice of pizza overlooking the Adriatic Sea? Drinking a perfectly drawn Guinness at a pub in Ireland? Or perhaps enjoying a chilled dirty martini before dining al fresco in Cannes?

The world is literally your oyster, and I don’t know about you, but all this planning is making me hungry and thirsty. Life is short. Drink the Prosecco and eat the tiramisu (in moderation). Dream big always, but be realistic about your goals. Don’t book the Caribbean cruise if it means skipping your rent. Work hard to achieve what you set out to do and reward yourself with some much deserved R&R—even if it’s from the comfort of your living room.

You’ve got a blank slate before you called the New Year. Do better than you did last year, but also go easy on yourself. When you make the occasional slip, show yourself some grace. Get back up, dust yourself off, and try again. Remember—the goal is to finish the marathon, not win the sprint.

Happy New Year from me to you. May your days be merry and bright and filled with peace, joy, and health. And hey—a little wealth wouldn’t hurt either.

About the Author: Lori is a local writer, painter and pet lover who loves to share her experiences and expertise with our readers. She has been penning a column for the OTC for over 20 years. Please follow Lori online on Medium for more missives like this.