It is that time of year again.  The return of the post-holiday blues is upon us.  The first full week of work following those short, festive weeks just passed.

Against my own better judgment, I made some new year’s resolutions at the start of 2011.  (See post dated January 3, 2011.)  Now, with the calendar flipped to 2012, I feel compelled to take a look to see how I did.  If you wish, follow along with me so that I do not have to face the music alone:

1. Lose weight – Does staying the same count?  Can I at least say that I did better than Josh Beckett?
2. Go the gym more often – I stuck to that plan for about half the year, then fell (with a splat) off the wagon.  Does it count that I’m still paying a monthly fee?  It should.
3. Turn the treadmill into a treadmill instead of a clothing rack – Take a look at the current conditions:

 ‘Nuff said.

4.   Finish some of the many quilts I started –  I did!  And yet, I managed to start a few more.  It is a never-ending battle and one I hope I never win.

5.  Quote:  “I will stop thinking of the Bruins as the ugly step-children of the Boston sports scene (but only if the Bruins stop thinking of themselves as such).”  No problem there!  What a difference a year makes as the Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins have continued to be hot, hot, hot.  Black and Yellow, baby!

6.  Celtics — I think I improved on this one.  I am a step above being a fair-weather fan despite the fact that they crashed and burned last year and got off to 2011 Red Sox-type of start this year.  I will keep working on this one.  With the help of the new, young, exciting to watch Celtics that joined the team, I think I may conquer this one in 2012.

7.  Tom Brady is God — Yes, I get it now.  Long hair, short hair, fancy-pants wife, stupid hat, Uggs.  Doesn’t matter.  He’s God.  Period.

8.  Big Papi – There was no need to get all over David Ortiz last spring.  There was no slow start for him in sight.  Thanks for making this an easy one for me, David.

9.  Patience with Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford – As I recall, there were no worries about Gonzo until after that blasted Home Run Derby at the All-Star break.  Did I remain patient with him?  I did until September when he couldn’t hit the darn ball past the infield and couldn’t run if he was on fire and a lake was 10 feet in front of him.  But for his performance the beginning of last year, he mostly got a pass.  As for Mr. Carl Crawford….I tried.  I really did.  I was nice about it long past the time my friends were ready to trade him for a bucket of Bazooka.  Then, when I got mad, I really got mad.  (I can’t help it — I’m half Irish and half Italian.  A combustible mixture.)  A couple of times, I had all I could do not to jump on the field and slap him silly.  Like Cher slapping Nicholas Cage in the movie, Moonlighting — “SNAP OUT OF IT!!!”  WHACK!  It would have made me feel so good.  Like I was helping, you know?  Patience ran short.  Soon after the season, I started reading things about how bad he felt, how embarrassed and ashamed.  One minute, I would see him as a sad little boy with no self-worth and then I would feel bad that I ever said such awful things about him.  Then, the next minute, I wanted to slap him silly again.  I think I have a love/hate relationship with Carl.  (Do I love to hate him or hate to love him?)  Yes, Carl showed he was only human.  It’s all very confusing.  There’s Tampa Bay Carl and  then there’s Boston Carl.  Would the real Carl Crawford please stand up?  He just needs to stop it because I really do not have time to worry about him.  There are so many other things to worry and fret about — Like the starting pitching staff.  And the chicken.  And the beer.  And Bobby Valentine.

10.  Forgiveness for Theo Epstein for trading Victor Martinez — Once I got used to Saltalamacchia, I was over V-Mart.  (Fickle, I know.)  Little did I know what it was REALLY like to be angry at Theo.  That’s right — Theo the Defector.  Theo, who made all those deals for high-priced useless free agents like Lackey, Cameron, Jenks, etc.  Theo, who would burn John Henry’s money and fill up the roster with long-term contracts for players on the decline.  Theo, who would turn and run like a chicken — yes, I said CHICKEN as in FRIED CHICKEN — as soon as things started getting ugly in Red Sox Nation.  Theo, who now uses his knowledge about players in the Red Sox system but uses it for the Cubs!  That is the Theo that cannot be forgiven.  Yes, Theo helped to give us two world championships and we appreciate that.  But what have you done for us lately, Theo?  Goodbye.

11.  Gloating over the ol’ Yanks – It was not possible to gloat about a team that was consistently on top of the Red Sox all year in spite of the Yanks patchwork pitching staff.  In the end, who was the laughing-stock of the MLB in September?  Ouch.  I thank the New Yorkers in my family who never uttered a word.  Not a word.  Some day, I hope to return the favor.

12.  I made it to Spring Training in 2011!  It was a grand trip to take with my sister.  We grew up Boston sports fans (thanks to my father) and have always shared a passion for the game.  (See my first post, “Confessions of a Red Sox Fan”.)  It was the perfect Sisters’ Excellent Adventure! Little did we know that all the losses the Red Sox would endure in spring training would actually be a hint of things to come.  Sort of like that 0 and 6 start to the season last April.  This March when they tell you that spring training games don’t matter — don’t believe them!

Well, that’s my sad-but-true report card of my 2011 resolutions.  The only resolution I have made this year is to keep creating in words and in fabric, and to keep sharing both with you, reader.  Thanks for checking in on my blog once in a while, and a special thanks to all those subscribers and people leaving comments (except the spammers…yuk).  This blog was born just over a year ago from an idea a quilter friend of mine had when we shared emails that were filled with passion about the Red Sox.  I found this place where I can indulge myself and have been surprised and humbled by the over 2,000 hits I have had since its inception.  QuiltedBaseball has become a member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance and that is pretty cool.

Have a wonderful 2012, folks.  Let’s stay in touch.