Bound and determined.

Superbowl is today. I wouldn’t care at all, except that it means there’ll be a crowd of friends. I would still skip that in favor of anything outdoors on this gorgeous day, except that I realized that I should bring homemade mac and cheese. And that means I can keep one of my New Year’s resolutions.

I only ever make New Year’s resolutions that will make my life funner or better. I have no patience for resolutions that require sacrifice or willpower. In the past few years I’ve resolved to wear cute shoes, spend more time at the river, sing more, say nice things to people and wear my hair down. I often pick a dish I want to work into my repertoire (biscotti - 2003, pie crust – 2004, mac and cheese – 2006); I’ll have fulfilled the resolution when it turns out consistently without thought on my part.

Last year I picked a very successful resolution: to drink more. Yeah, like drink alcohol. I didn’t start drinking until I was 28, and I feel like I have years to make up for. I made a lot of good progress last year. I found two drinks I like and am not embarrassed to order (I used to have to ask the bartender for “anything really girly, you know, with an umbrella?”). But even better, I learned to drink alone! Yay! Cleaning the house all day? Hour left before people show up for the party? Just one couldn’t hurt anyone.

Since ‘drink more’ worked so well for me last year, I renewed the resolution this year. There are so many drinking milestones I haven’t accomplished. Drunken dialing? Throwing up in a friend’s car? Those are pretty advanced. They may have to wait another year. This year I am working my way up to ‘morning eye-opener’ and ‘one for the road’. They’re ambitious goals, but it is only February. My mac and cheese is tasting pretty good and I am feeling confident.