Maintaining Equlibrium or, Why the Word "Balance" Makes Me Want to Scream

Now is probably a good time to get all of the perfunctory holiday greetings that I so kindly skipped out of the way. Happy New Year and whatever religious-associated winter holiday you chose (or did not choose) to celebrate! I hope they were all glorious. I happen to be a Christmas celebrator myself, but that didn't limit me to accepting good will from whomever felt inclined to bestow it upon me. I wrote a whole post about that, actually, but then couldn't find just the right time to publish it. I also penned an essay entitled, "Why Rudolph is Ruining Our Children," but I never got it quite up to the standard to which I hold anything I put out on the interwebz. Then there are the  random thoughts clinging to my dashboard like half-dead bugs on a highway bumper -- for the moment, they are stuck, but I like to think that someday they'll fly again. 

Notice a trend here?

A few weeks ago, I wrote about how I was really going to buckle down and focus on getting back to a steady routine of making healthy choices. I feel like a lot of people out here in blog-land spout the same philosophy when it comes to this; if I have to read, "it's really all about balance!" one more time, I'm going to stab my eyes out with a raw kale stem.

Of course, all stupid sayings come from a kernel of truth. Healthy living is all about balance, but for most of us, that includes balancing not only the basics (food, water and nutrients) but also the social norms of our society (family, friends and happy hour) with the rigors of everyday life (work, exercise and a healthy dose of sloth). Helen Fielding knew her stuff; it really does seem that as soon as one part of your life starts going ok, another falls spectacularly to pieces. It's enough to drive one crazy, and by "one", I obviously mean, "me".

So it's a work in progress, this whole "balance" thing. I will say that, as cliche as it might sound, I was happy to wipe 2011 off the metaphorical books and have a good start to 2012. Over the past few years, I've noticed that how I spend my New Year's Eve tends to mirror the overall tone of the subsequent year. On Dec. 31st, 2007, I spent the night in downtown Boston in a sequined top. 2008 was, in a word, ridiculous. Last year, we spent NYE witnessing one of my bff's nuptials in upstate VT, sequestered from the rest of the world and ringing in 2011 with a handful of close friends and a bunch of virtual strangers. Last year, I kept my good friends close, but didn't go out of my way to make new friends or keep in touch with some of the ones I already have. This year, I want to be better at that. Starting with making more of an effort to keep up with all of my blog friends!

So consider this one of the first steps toward that goal -- hello to the oldies, welcome to the newbies, and here's hoping that in 2012, we all find that elusive equilibrium: balance!