Hello and Happy New Year.

I informed you in my December 18 post that I would be taking Christmas Day off blogging, and that is exactly what I did. I also informed you that I would be back on New Year’s Day, discussing my goals for 2023. I was not. This was because I was ill. I fell ill three days after Christmas with a wicked respiratory infection which quickly morphed into a severe case of bronchitis. (I am very prone to bronchitis and almost every single cold I get morphs into it very quickly.) Would you believe that after a week and a half, two doctor’s visits, tons of over-the-counter medicines and a round of antibiotics of which I am currently in the middle, I am still on the mend? The good news is that I feel better and have less symptoms every day now.

That’s enough explaining. So what are my goals for 2023?

1. I want to save up enough money to attend the EFA conference (EFACON) in Alexandria, Virginia in August. I know I recently lamented on this blog about not being able to attend the ACES Conference in Columbus, Ohio in March due to financial constraints. Since Alexandria is in my general metropolitan area, EFACON would be a good “starter conference” for me. There are many people in EFA whom I “know” from the organization’s communications, lists, and classes, and I would absolutely love to network with them.

• I want to have enough of a workflow to keep me editing every workday, with few or no “dry spells.” (Thankfully, this seems to have already begun to happen—right now I am working on two projects simultaneously.)

• (This is a more personal one.) I want to have enough courage to take people to task when they use the word “retarded” as a put-down. A lot of people think this is harmless. It’s not. Period.

Would you like to share your goals for 2023?