Smith Family Weblog

This post clearly violates Resolution 5, but…

I think there are probably only a few people who know that I almost always have a current theme song. My assistant does; Bryan’s probably figured it out since I go through phases of listening to the same song over and over. Olivia rides with me in the morning–she definitely knows, but seems to keeps secrets relatively well (at least so far).

Every once in a while, I just hear a song that speaks to me–like it’s a soundtrack for that moment or phase or challenge–usually on the professional front.

Last month I was hooked on “Float On” by Modest Mouse. Essentially, things are rough, but it will work out.

Right now, things are going really well. As such, my new (though probably temporary) theme song is “Big Casino” by Jimmy Eat World. It’s not a particularly new song (and not a particularly great band, at least in my book), but it’s just so…optimistic:

Get up, Get up
Turn my ignition
Get up, Get up
Fire up the system
Play my little part in something big

I’ll accept with poise with grace
When they draw my name from the lottery
And they’ll say all the salt in the world couldn’t melt that ice
I’m the one who gets away
I’m a New Jersey success story
And they’ll say Lord give me the chance to shake that hand

And yet, it’s realistic. My favorite part comes at the end:

I have one last wish
And it’s from the heart
Just let me down
Just let me down easy

It’s just perfect right now.Of course, this kind of optimism lands me in trouble. When I’m in over my head, I can always go back to this.

I can’t be alone. Is anyone else willing to share their theme song?

Like most of you, I have a few resolutions this new year. I always have resolutions, and oddly enough, they’re usually the same ones. Perhaps my first resolution should be FINISH WHAT YOU START, but whatever. Also, be less snarky.

Anyway:

1. Under promise, over deliver. I seem to have a problem with over commitment, which leaves me tired and crabby, especially when it comes to the people to whom I should be the nicest. And, speaking of…
2. Be nicer to Bryan. Spend more time playing with the kids. Be a better wife and mom. (So much for that whole “under promise, over deliver” business.)
3. Keep a more organized home. And car. And office. Sure, they look neat on the surface, but you’d better duck for cover when you open a cabinet or closet. To this end, I have a three-page list of all the nooks and crannies around the house that need to be organized. And, just because I spend an hour or more a day in my car, it doesn’t need to look like I actually live there.
4. Lose 25 pounds. I lost 30 last year, so this seems somewhat manageable. To make this work, I need a follow-up resolution: Do not get pregnant. Still thinking about that one.
5. Stop sharing so much personal information with the world at large.
6. Read more books. And not the kind with pictures (sorry, Ava). Read four–just four, for crying out loud–actual, real books that have at least some literary merit. Try to convince Bryan to read them, too, so we have something to discuss besides the Forbes cover story and the current state of Olivia’s ears.
7. Spend less time online. Or at least cut back on celebrity gossip. As Katie said, TMZ is not the news. She makes a good point.
8. Make more time for real hobbies, like quilting and cooking.

The irony here is that to really achieve my first resolution (and my fifth, seventh and eighth, too), I shouldn’t have posted any of these.

What a rocky start!

And, as I noted over on the THOH, together these resolutions can be summed up in one: Be someone else. Maybe next year I’ll resolve to be at peace with who I am.