Good Day to You, 2013

I had very little in the way of demands for the beginning hours of 2013: my son not waking up until at least 8:00am, and a damn fine cup of coffee. Fortune apparently favored the meek, because my son bounded into the bedroom at 8:04am and that first cup of coffee bordered on the sublime.

Today will spent as it always is, with more people in my house than I think can possibly fit, cooking and eating more food than we could possibly ever need, and hopefully looking forward to a year with which to fill in with new experiences, new joys, and in my case, new words.

Normally at this point I would list out my various resolutions, things like dropping down to 200 pounds, documenting every movie and book I consume this year, getting a final draft done on the novel I've been working on since 2009, re-dedicating myself to zazen, and all the multitude of family things I want to accomplish.  But the reality is that all I want to is be at a place in my life where I can look around and be proud of the person I am.  Maybe some of those concrete things will help get me there.  Maybe something new will come along if I allow myself to be open to it that will put me on the right path.  So in lieu of a standard resolution list this year, I'll sum it all up in one:

1. I resolve to take the breaks off of 2013 and live it to the fullest I possibly can, making sure that I am ready to meet every challenge head on, grow stronger by it, and look back on those things that are most important to me and be comfortable in the belief that I did right by them.

Alright.  I've got about 20 Italian people cramming into a tiny house in Long Island expecting wine, cheese, meat, pasta, shrimp, fruit, breads, pastries, espresso, cappuccino and about 1,000 other things, including my presence.  

Good day to you, 2013. 

Let's do this thing.