Ch-Ch-Changes; January 3 2024

It’s hard to think of all the ‘bad’ when you’re watching a kitten lose his mind playing with a hoodie string.

Actually, it’s hard to think at all. Maybe I should take the string away. It’s very distracting.

But, for all the bad and good and moments that were just moments, we made it through to 2024 as a collective. The new year reminds us that it’s never too late for a fresh start, for ourselves or for the rest of the world. I’ve bought myself a yoga DVD to try some more pain-targeting exercise, and I’m going to try – try – to dive back into learning Korean.

Overall, I’m committing to being healthier. I think it’s easy for chronically ill people to shrug and say ‘why bother?’ when it comes to wrangling what we can – we’re still going to be sick at the end of the day, so why pour effort into things that are, honestly, unpleasant? I know some people really enjoy exercising, but it typically takes time to reach that point. In the meantime, it feels kind of like self-inflicted torture.

There’s also diet control, which… I don’t know, I have a complicated relationship with food. I would sustain off a nutrient pill if given the choice, to be honest. I don’t get as much joy from eating as I know most people do. But then it’s like, if I’m not going to be ‘healthy’ regardless, why not eat the things I enjoy the most?

I’ve shifted to a pescatarian diet, and it’s been almost a month since making that decision. Monday the 8th, specifically, will mark the one-month. Now, I’m not strict with it – if something’s flavoured with chicken stock, for example, I’m not going to waste food, but I’ll offer it to my roommates before ingesting it myself if no one wants it. That said, I don’t think I’ve broken the self-imposed rules of it yet, and it’s been… actually pretty good. I haven’t noticed any significant changes in my body, but from a purely psychological perspective, I feel better. Proactive. Like I’m doing something direct to get a handle on my high cholesterol and blood pressure.

Another big part of being healthier is cutting back (as much as possible) on food waste. I’ve inventoried most of the food in my household on a Google Doc I’ve shared with the other adults, and we’re going to try to update it when we grab a snack or make dinner. So much of our food waste before came from forgetting what we had, or buying groceries we already had in stock. This should help.

Now, it should be noted, none of these are resolutions. These were changes I discussed with my household, things we were going to do regardless. But the timing sure did fit, huh?

Did y’all make any New Years’ resolutions, or do you believe in them? Or is a resolution easier to break than a lifestyle change?