It's the time of year to start thinking about resolutions. If you're like some of us, you have already settled on one thing you'd like to change for the upcoming year. And if you're like others, you throw out the resolution idea altogether. For those of us at jb and me, we're all about self-improvement. Whether it's something big that we would like to work on, change, accept, or focus on, or even if it's something little, we've all decided to resolve something for 2015! We encourage you to join us in reflecting on the past year, and envisioning what the future looks like for you. Here's a little inspiration for your journey into 2015 with what some of our staff members are resolving! Tell us what you're resolving in the COMMENTS!
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This is my big 3-0 year... So I have a few! I plan on paying off my debt (before October) and REALLY learning to play my guitar (with intentions of participating in an open mic before my birthday) EEEE! ;)
My New Years resolution is to treat myself more kindly. Cut myself some slack, embrace who I am and accept that I cannot control everything. The aging process is going to happen, life happens and it's all okay!
My New Year's Resolution is to find my vocation and vision for my personal and professional future. As I look forward to graduating from Hope College in May, I must discern where God-given gifts and passions are best put to work. Starting a meaningful career, building fruitful relationships, and keeping Jesus my number one priority are my goals for the 2015!
My New Year's resolution is to train my puppy to not chew on furniture and learn a new hobby (possibly the piano)...and as always eat a little healthier!
Although I try to be a kind person all the time, often I find myself angry & hurt at those who are unkind to me. It is easier to be nice to those who are kind; obviously it is harder to be nice to those who are unkind. I've come to realize that the people who are unkind are the ones who need me MOST to be kind to them. Therefore, my New Years resolution is to return kindness to those who are unkind to me.
My resolution is to call my friends more often, especially the ones who live far away. I am notoriously bad with phone calls, and need to make a point to call the dear friends I love more regularly, just to check in. One of my favorite authors, Shauna Niequist, touches on this in her book, Bittersweet, and it really resonated with me. She writes, "Get up, make a phone call, buy a cheap ticket, open your front door. Because there really is nothing like good friends, like the sounds of their laughter and the tones of their voices and the things they teach us in the quietest, smallest moments."
As cliche as this sounds, my new years resolution is to eat healthier with help from my friend and fellow jb and me stylist Suzy! :) I have been eating way too many oreos in 2014!
My resolution is to make more time for the things that I enjoy doing, such as, spending more quality time with my friends, remodeling my house, playing with my puppies, etc.! It's easy to want to just relax after a long day at work, but I want to focus on reenergizing once I get home!
I am not one for resolutions. Instead, all year long I strive to improve on how I live life. I strive to humbly consider others better than myself, looking not only to my interests, but to the interests of others (Phil. 2:3-4).
My resolution is to simply not "sweat the small stuff." I want to focus on enjoying my last semester of college and embracing all the changes in my life that will occur this coming year!
Virtually every land use requires a seipcal exception permit. To get a rezoning requires multiple engineering studies: drainage plan, soils map with samples taken every ten feet, traffic study, archeological survey, enevironmental studies, flora and fauna studies, etc. Simply to fill out an application for rezoning, which is sure to be turned down, can easily cost over $100k.This is supposed to keep out the “big developers” but of course, only the biggest developers can afford to playin that game, so all of the small local builders (that used to make much of their trade off the so called family or administrative lots) are either out of business or work outside the county.Overall it is a case of environmental consiousness run amok. Nor is the birthday party situation the first such case. A few years ago a man was operating kiddy horse shows, where children cold come and show off their skills competing for a small trophy. He was shut down for causing too much traffic and operating a commercial business.County officials have stated publicly, on numerous occasions, that any new home valued at less that $710,000 does not pay enough in real estate taxes to cover the county services it requires. Since the average home in the county is only areound $230,000, one wonders how the bills get paid. The trick to this argument, of course,is that real estate taxes are oly about one third of the county revenue, and so it is unfair to demand that new houses pull their full weight on real estate taxes alone. There are a bunch of other problems with that argument too,although it is one that is widely used n the 2700 counties that have some kind of anti-growth ordinance.At the end of the day, I could easily make more money selling hay rides than selling hay, but that is considered a comercial eneterprise, so it is forbidden. If i was allowed to put up a modest rental property, to rent out to some fireman or teacher, they could live quite nicely, and the income from that rental would be ten times what the rest of the farm makes.If I was allowed to build something like that every 20 years, then in 200 years 95% of the farm would still be in agriculture, or forest. But that is not good enough for the local conservationists, who would prefer that virually all of the county be placed under permanent conservaton easement.One of the methods the county uses to prevent development is super restrictions for things like septic fields. The requirements are so stiff that it takes many acres to comply. No alternative septic systems are allowed. when the state over rode the county on this there was a collective gasp of horror, that the county had lost some of its control.The county had a flood plain ordinance, and they increased the size of the required floodplain set backs twice. The flodplain designation is supposed to protect the streams and water supply, which is a reasonable goal. But when the county tried to create another kind of setback – a floodplain protection zone to protect the land in the floodplain, that wsas finally too much. Thosusands showed up at the hearing to protest and the supervisors backed down.As it is, the flood plain designation includes dry stream beds, so it is entirely possibe in some parts of the county to have much of your farm listed as off limits for use, if you have several dry creek beds with a 400ft setback, you can run out of usable land pretty quick.
By Danilo on October 23, 2015