2018 was rough. You’re probably having trouble even remembering who I am (Hi, it’s Allie, nice to see you again!), it’s been so long. I spent most of 2018 in a depressive state — highly functioning, but only for what was necessary. I did my work — hey, I started 2 new part-time jobs [and got hired for a 3rd that will start later this month] on top of my full-time job. It’s like I took my stress and sadness and turned it into work work work. And because of this, my hobbies (among other things) were left in the dust.
I know the majority of us do this — take the new year to make a bunch of changes. It’s super cliche and doesn’t always feel heartfelt. I will say, for me, I am finishing my last day of 11 days off from my full-time work. And most of those days, I took off from the part-time jobs, as well. This gave me time to reflect and think about why it was so important for me to work so much.
I needed something I could control, something that didn’t require me thinking creatively. Something that didn’t use my logical and creative side. This, though, was emotionally draining. So the last thing I wanted to do was something, anything that required me to use my brain. Give me TV — Project Runway reruns, The Great British Baking Show. I bought a Nintendo Switch the end of November/beginning of December. Video games gave me something else to focus on. Gave me something new to bond with my husband. And I think it was a big help, along with my time off, with realizing what I was missing out on.
But hey — this is a book blog. You’re here for books, right?
I’ll be doing a few posts overviewing my 2018 reading. But for now, I want to focus on the future. I am excited about 2019. I am excited to work less and play more. Currently, I am most excited about my new planner: The Bookworm Life.
I will have a full review up on this planner later this week, featuring some pictures of what is inside. But for now, let’s talk about this page: My 2019 Goals.
When reflecting on my goals for this year, I knew I would first need an overall book goal. I fell short of my goal of 40 this year, but I knew I wanted to push myself more. So, I decided to go ahead and try for 50.
For the other goals, I wanted to think about what types of books I wanted to read. I know that I am super behind on my NetGalley books, so it is important that I don’t get any more until I get the majority of what I have read and reviewed. I have some great books on my Kindle that are overdue with my review.
I also wanted to think of the physical books I own. I bought a handful of nonfiction books last year, mostly true crime, to read along with a podcast’s book club. I haven’t picked any up yet. I knew I wanted to get some of those off my shelf, so I added the 5.
I also wanted to read 5 new to me authors, preferably from books I already own, and outside of the nonfiction and NetGalley books. I know I technically could make them count for more than one goal, but I wanted to make it a little bit more of a challenge.
It’s also important for me to get back into blogging. 3 posts a week is doable for me, especially since I am going to be trying to work a little less. I have my posts written out for January and started with February’s posts — thanks, planner!
And probably my weirdest one: I really want new shelves. We have three shelves that aren’t that great and don’t match. I would love to get a new set of shelves that are nicely made and, eventually, take up the length of one wall instead of just here and there. I’m planning on doing a low-to-no buy with my books (not a goal because of reasons haha) and would rather put that money I would have spent on books toward the shelves. Hopefully, we can find — or maybe make?? — a new set of matching, well-made shelves.
I have my 19 in 2019 books picked out. Expect that post sometime this weekend. And as I said, I will have my overview of 2018 up very soon.
Tell me — what are your reading goals for the new year? Any weird-but-still-book-adjacent goals on your list?
Let’s kick butt this year, everyone!
The Book Cover Judge 
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