Wednesday, September 12, 2012

New Year's Resolutions

My 2012 New Year's resolution was to read more. I set a goal of one book a month. I realize this isn't very lofty, but is a good bar for me. To date I have completed 11 books:


Vision in White (Nora Roberts)



The Monsters of Templeton (Lauren Groff- an Amherst friend)



Bond Girl (Erin Duffy)




The Descendants (Kaui Hart Hemmings)


The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)
The Hunger Games 2 (Suzanne Collins)
The Hunger Games 3 (Suzanne Collins)




Fifty Shades of Grey (E.L. James)
Fifty Shades of Grey 2 (E.L. James)
Fifty Shades of Grey 3 (E.L. James)


Twilight (Stephenie Meyer)

And currently I'm reading:


Twilight 2 (Stephenie Meyer)- 32% done




11/22/63 (Stephen King) - 41% done

Not exactly high literature, but all very enjoyable. I hope to expand to something a little more respectable (at least as my non-treadmill reading book- that will probably still be trashy). My favorites have been the Hunger Games series and 11/22/63 (so far).

I decided on next year's New Year's resolution, but figured there is no reason to wait until 2013. In fact I am not sure I will continue once I am back in the states, but I want to retroactively commit to a 2012 New Year's resolution. I want to provide at least 2 online reviews a month, or 24 for the year.

I buy at least half of my consumed goods online and often rely heavily on reviews, be it an Amazon book review, a yelp review to find a tailor, or banana republic customers reviewing fit. While I am a user of reviews, I am not a provider, so I want to give back to the community. Avoid the Tragedy of the Commons, not that it really applies.

The impetuous for this new resolution is a New York Times article talking about a new profession springing up: people who get paid to write positive online reviews. The article is specifically speaking of book reviews, but I am sure it is a matter of time before it spreads to all items- in fact I am sure a lot of positive reviews out there aren't from unbiased consumers.

I already have a few LinkedIn recommendations I want to provide, and promised a hairdresser I'd give a yelp review. After that I am not sure how I pick an item. I guess when I feel passionate about something I will go forth and review! Happy New Year 2012!!! 

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