Friday, December 28, 2018

2019 Challenges and Resolutions


Hi everyone! Welcome to the last week of 2018! Can you believe another year has come and is almost gone? It's true that time goes by faster as you get older. I was kind of hoping my parents had lied about that one! Today I'm sharing the reading challenges I'm participating in for 2019 as well as my non-bookish resolutions.


READING CHALLENGES

RETELLINGS CHALLENGE


This year I'm back to hosting after taking a year off from responsibilities. I am so excited to have a Retellings Challenge going again! This is my absolute favorite genre and there are a ton of them being released in 2019! My goal for this year is going to be High Fae, which is 16-20 retellings.

Top 3 TBR: Stain, Echo North, Wild Savage Stars


AUDIOBOOK CHALLENGE


I've participated in the Audiobook Challenge every year since I started blogging (I'm pretty sure) and it is one of my favorite parts of the year! Of course, I'd listen to a lot of audiobooks regardless, but I there's something great about marking goals off a list. It definitely pushes me to get to more audiobooks as well.  


BACKLIST READER CHALLENGE


This is something I've been needing to do for awhile! I have SO MANY backlist books on my physical shelves and my Goodreads TBR that I feel like I'll never get around to reading. This year I'm going to tackle this challenge and make a real effort to mark some off my list. My goal is to read 10 backlist books in 2019.

Top 3 TBR: Finnikin of the Rock, Alone, The Glass Arrow


POPSUGAR CHALLENGE


I'm doing it again!! This year I shocked myself by completing the PopSugar Reading Challenge and I'm going to attempt it again for 2019! I was able to read tons of books I wouldn't have ever read otherwise and it was by far the most difficult challenge of the year. I can't wait to see what I'll have to read for this year's topics!


GOODREADS CHALLENGE

I hate, hate, hate that Goodreads won't let you set goals early! Regardless, this year I'll be pledging to read 80 books. Two years ago my goal was 100 and I failed miserably due to some personal circumstances. For 2018 I decided to set my goal to 75 and surpassed it. In 2019 I'm going to take a slightly larger step towards getting back to where I was.


OFF-BLOG RESOLUTIONS
  1. Run a "real" 5K and 10K, and log 500 miles - Last year I resolved to run(ish) a 5K with Hogwarts Running Club. I met that goal and then a lot! My very first race with them was a 9 3/4 K, which I completed by mostly walking. That was in January and now I've run more 5Ks than I can count on my own, not in "real" races. I've also run/walked a few 10Ks, which I never thought I'd be able to do when I wrote my goal post last year! This year I'd love to complete a 5K and a 10K in a "real" race. I'm already signed up for Star Wars Rival Run 5K! The other part of this goal is that I want to run 500 miles in 2019. I started logging my 2018 miles in March and logged just over 400, so I think I can do it! 
  2. Get Perfect Prefect with HRC - Although I really want to push myself to run IRL races in 2019, I still want to run with HRC! Last year I made Perfect Prefect by registering for every race event, but I did not run the half marathon. I still hope to finish it and haven't put the medal on my wall yet! But I'd love to make Prefect for 2019. I want to start a pin collection!
  3. Join (or start) a real life book club - So real talk, I need actual, tangible, in real life friends. It isn't that I don't adore all of you! I've made some amazing friends through blogging, many of which I've met in person and expect to be friends with for many years to come! But I don't get to hang out with you guys often and I desperately need to meet some local book nerds. I managed to locate an adult YA book club about 30 minutes from my house, but it's only made up of a few people and who knows if it will take off. I'm planning to go to the first meeting and hopefully it'll be amazing, but if not I'm going to attempt to start my own in my town because we NEED more book clubs! 
  4. Get back to volunteering - Back in the day I used to volunteer a lot. Of course, everyone needs those extracurriculars for college applications, then I was voluntold to do a lot of things during my time in the Air Force. I even tried to get back to volunteering since moving to my current town, but was really surprised at how difficult it can be to do! There are applications, background checks, sometimes interviews. It's basically like getting a job! But I'm determined to do it this year. I'm feeling good again and I want to give back even if it's in a minor way. 
  5. Visit all the museums - This one is really just about fun. There are so many museums in the big cities on either side of me that I've never been to! I'd really love to find a great science museum and go to a planetarium. I did recently visit our local art museum and, although it was tiny, it was a fun afternoon. I'm definitely vowing to check out as many museums as possible in the new year! 



That's it for 2019! In 2018 year I made five non-bookish resolutions and managed to pull off three of them. Let's see if I can beat that in the year to come!

Are you signed up for any challenges?
Do you make New Year's resolutions?
Let me know in the comments!