13 New Year’s Resolutions for 2013 – “This Time, It’s Personal!”

I’ll make a better man out of me.

In the spirit of New Year’s, and this blog, I thought I would come up with 13 New Year’s resolutions for 2013.

The “tl;dr” version:

1. Strength train 3 times a week, cardio 5 times a week.
2. Get at least an “A-” in every one of my university courses.
3. Train in martial arts everyday.
4. Find my “Vesper Lynd”.
5. Actively watch/play/read at least: one animated/live action series, one video game, and one book at all times.
6. “James Bond Will Return” .
7. “I guess you guys aren’t ready for that yet. But your kids are gonna love it.”
8. Don’t give Dalhousie University a single extra dime.
9. Have up $4000.00 in my savings account this year.
10. Develop my “Bond Sense” and “Bond Skills” .
11. Eliminate “Blofeld”.
12. Go on a mission.
13. Continue writing this blog.

You can probably get a rough idea of what my resolutions are from that tl;dr version. If you aren’t at all interest in reading more, feel free to leave it at that. Otherwise, please do continue.

1. Strength train 3 times a week, cardio 5 times a week.

Out of all the resolutions, this is probably one of the most important. Residence life and university in general has made me lose the “eye of the tiger”, so to speak. So now, it’s time to build some hurting bombs! I feel that a 3-day, full body training routine, while not as preferable as a body part split routine, works better with my schedule, goals, ability, and patience. This resolution is more about my physical health and ability, less so about my physical appearance, although it is also a motivating factor. I do not expect to look like a bodybuilder or “ab model”, nor do I wish to look like one. However, I would like to have a toned, lean physique, a kin to Daniel Craig’s physique in Casino Royale. I feel, based on my frame and size, this will be a challenging, but plausible goal.

2. Get at least an “A-” in every one of my university courses, especially in my computer science courses.

Having finished “1.5 years” of university so far, I’ve come to the realization that getting perfect marks (A+ / 4.30 marks) in all my courses isn’t always possible, practical, or worth wild. However, it’s my belief, that with the right amount of work and dedication, an A- in any course is possible and achievable. I’m still waiting on final marks for a couple of courses for the previous semester, but so far, this looks like a realistic goal. It is especially a priority to get A- marks in my CS courses, so I can obtain a “first class honours” distinction on my degree when I graduate. While I may not like university or my program a lot, it is an important phase of my life, and something I need to dedicate myself (at least partially towards) in the years to come.

3. Train in martial arts everyday.

To be specific, Muay Thai (for my striking and stand-up game) and Judo (for grappling and ground game) classes, as well as Kenjutsu/Kendo kata study, on the side. From a young age, I’ve always be interested in martial arts. Jackie Chan was the first famous Asian face I ever laid eyes on, and ever since, it’s be my dream (well, one of them) to join the elite circle that men like Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, and more recently, Tony Jaa, are members of. The “Next Dragon” club, a group of men who become martial arts heroes, even legends, on and off the screen. While I may never be half as good or as famous as any of these men, I feel that a “modern-day warrior” exists, deep within. I plan on attending somewhere between three to five classes a week, depending on my workload and other activities. The rest of the week will be spend training independently, or if I’m lucky, with a partner.

4. Find my “Vesper Lynd” (Or my “Adrian Pennino”. Or my “Kagome Higurashi”. Blah, blah, blah, [insert name of girlfriend/wife/special someone of my favourite fictional characters here], you get the idea).

I know, I know, this directly contradicts my statements from last night about there not being a “happily ever after”, but what can I say. Despite my largely pessimistic outlook on romance, I believe, somewhere out there, there is a woman who is the right fit for me. If I were to pick on resolution that I have the least faith in, it would have to be this one. But, maybe, just maybe, this is my year. I’ve always viewed these situations as being up to chance and coincidence, so anything is possible.

5. Actively watch/play/read at least: one animated/live action series, one video game, and one book at all times of 2013.

During the my most recent semester of university, I began re-watching episodes of “Inuyasha”, usually two episodes a day (since so many of the episodes end in a cliffhanger or are two part-ers). I was surprised by how I was able to fit it in my day. In the past, I would have come up with so many excuses why I couldn’t dedicate myself to regularly watching an anime series, or any series for that matter. I’ve decided, in an effort to experience more of the media I enjoy, I will regularly choose one television series to watch, one video game to play, and one book to read. Since I’m only on episode 53 (out of 192, yikes) of Inuyasha, it will be my first TV series of 2013. My first video game of 2013 will be Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (which I will be replaying). My first book of 2013 will be Casino Royale, since I’ve been dying to read all of the Ian Fleming Bond novels. The variety of genre of these three choices will likely help keep things interesting and fresh.

6. “James Bond Will Return”

If the 6 year development hell delay between Quantum of Solace and Skyfall has proved anything, it is that no matter what happens, no matter how long it takes, Bond always comes back. And this, I believe, is my independent film making career’s future. The difficulty of working with new, less interested actors, the stress of my school work, the draining nature of my summer job, the disorganization of my personal life, these were all reasons that I have not made any new videos yet. Although there has been quite the long hiatus (a year) since my last video, I believe there has never been a better time to launch a comeback. I’ve still got loads of ideas and concepts to work with, and I don’t feel done yet. So like 007, Thomas Li will return.

7.  “I guess you guys aren’t ready for that yet. But your kids are gonna love it.”

It’s always been (another one) of my dreams to be able to play kick ass solos and rock out on an electric guitar. Unfortunately, I never seemed to be able to seriously take up guitar, nor did I ever have any aptitude for it. But this year, I feel like it’s time to give it another shot. I might not every be a good guitarist, but if I can work my way to point where I can feel happy for accomplishing something, being able to play music comfortably and effortlessly, then I will feel like I’ve final achieved my goal with rock music. So pardon my missed strings, awkward strumming, terrible renditions of songs, and whatever other travesties I might perform in my quest to achieve Rock n’ Roll enlightenment.

8. Don’t give Dalhousie University a single extra dime.

After being royally-fucked-over by housing services, being expected to pay a bullshit co-op fee (for a mediocre employment service, which really should by the university or faculty anyway), the multiple Dalhousie strikes that were narrowly avoid with eleventh hour solutions, rising tuition costs, as well as the fact that the university narrowly avoid missing massive debt payment, I think it’s fair to say that not only does the university not care about how it uses student’s (and more importantly, their parents’) money, it’s fairly crooked in its usage of policies and attempts to con it’s own students out of more money. So, I’ve decided this year, in an effort to both cut down personal spending, as well as take a personal stand against the university’s carelessness and greed, I will take several steps towards cutting down and eliminating my spending on campus. It’s important to first mention that my tuition and fees are completely covered (with money left over, usually) by an independent scholarship, funded by the generous family of Seymour Schulich, not Dalhousie. First off, I will not be buying a meal plan, since residence hall food is shitty and overpriced. I will pack my own lunches, or go off campus, to grab food. I will not be buying food or drinks at the universities various food services, since they are again, usually quite mediocre and overpriced. I will again choose to eat off campus, or bring my own food from home. I will not be buying any books from the university book store, since they are most certainly marked up, instead I will chose to purchase my books online via Amazon, or used from other students. I won’t buy and school supplies from the book store, because they are marked up school supplies even worse then the books. And, I will not donate to any of the university-run charities on campus, instead choosing to donate to organizations independent from my school, as well as through my dad’s workplace’s donation drives. The only thing I will have to pay this year is half of the one-time penalty fee for early residence move out, and my co-op services fee. In future years, my co-op fee will be covered by my renewable scholarship. Maybe individually this won’t really effect the university that much, but this resolution is more about principle then effect, and the more people stop giving the university money they don’t deserve, the better.

9. Save up $4000.00 in my savings account this year.

I saved up about 3500 dollars from my summer working at Staples. I will admit, I probably spent too much money last year on eating out, bars, and material objects. It’s safe to say I really “Nature Boy”d a lot (but thankfully, not all) of my money. This year however, since I will be partaking (hopefully) in my first co-op work term, I expect to save a large portion of my earnings in my high interest tax-free savings account. The initial goal behind starting my savings account was to save up enough money to pursue a dream after undergraduate school, like professional wrestling (It usually costs somewhere between 1500 to 3500 dollars for training at a pro wrestling school), or for acting (enough to cover a plane to ticket to somewhere like LA, or for acting lessons). This resolution is about further financing those dreams, and building wealth and security. I plan on developing a concrete monthly budget, and more closely monitoring my spending.

10. Develop my “Bond Sense” and “Bond Skills”

“Bond Sense” is a term, coined from the game 007: Blood Stone, which I have defined as being the knowledge, intuition, and senses that make James Bond the deadliest secret agent ever. “Bond Skills” is a term I’ve decided to use to refer to skills or abilities that James Bond knows or should know. So does this mean I expect to be a “00 agent”, who can operate any vehicle, ski, win poker and baccarat tournament, be an expert marksmen, differentiate champagnes by brand and year, seduce woman, etc, all by the end of the year. No, of course not. But I plan on dedicating some of my time towards learning about and possibly developing at least some of these skills, to a level where I feel comfortable about my own progress, through out 2013. Plus I hate skiing.

11. Eliminate “Blofeld”

In case you’ve never seen any of the Bond movies dealing with Blofeld, here’s the scoop. Ernest Stavro Blofeld is Bond’s archenemy, head of the evil organization SPECTRE, and responsible for killing Bond’s newly wed wife, Tracy. What a bastard. I’m happy to report a bald-headed, facially scared man in a Mao-collar suit has not ruined my life (yet). This resolution is really about facing the enemies and villains that I have and will encounter in 2013. In particular, there is a certain Amazonian dictator, limp-dick track star, and hipster hypocrite I’d love to kick in their asses with my size 11 boot. I’m tired of playing nice guy, I’m tired of being patient. “Arm yourself, because no else will save you. The odds will betray you, are you willing to die?” I will fuck up SMERSH, SPECTRE, QUANTUM, OCTOPUS (see the “From Russia With Love” EA video game), or whatever evil organization/ villian tries to get in my way.

12. Go on a mission

While I don’t plan or expect to be going to Fort Knox to save the supply of gold, join an army of French gangsters to raid Piz Gloria, sent into space, to the “Republic of Isthmus” to kill a drug lord, the Cuban jungles to destroy a Janus satellite, or Montenegro to play in a high stakes poker tournament, I would love to embark on at least one “mission”. A “mission” filled with Q-branch approved gadgets, that would take my to an exotic locale, where I would face thugs, seduce the “Bond girls”, kill the “super-villain”, and blow up the “evil lair”. Okay, back to reality. What I really want is to go on an adventure to a different part of the world, find romance, and kick some ass, if possible. I dunno where or when this could happen, but it will.

13. Continue writing this blog

Thank god I thought of this one, because I was running out of resolutions! The amount of fun and renewed passion I’ve felt writing for this blog these last couple of days has been excellent. I will definitely keep writing and updating this blog, so don’t go nowhere, now.