2023 Intentions – How’d I Do? 

The theme was simple: Do more of what I enjoy and less of what I don’t. This permission slip was incredibly effective in motivating me to do things that I love doing but for whatever reason put off. Not this year!   

There were only 3 Intentions for 2023

#1 Bake more, cook less. 

Oh, how I loved this one! I started off in January baking a LOT! My favorite coffee cake and banana nut bread weren’t just for special occasions but becoming regulars in our home. It didn’t take too long before I could feel my jeans getting tighter. I had to cut back on my urge to bake because I was eating more than I promised to give away. 

Then summer came and it was so hot! Can’t heat up an oven when it’s already sweltering so baking took a back seat until fall. Then I got reinvigorated and started copying ideas from Instagram that looked easy enough. Baked apple rings were delish, though not as beautiful as the video on my first try. I slowed down and tried harder the second time and they turned out gorgeous! I also made other things for the first time like apple turnovers, which for some reason I had never thought of making myself. The puff pastry did come from the store though and it was a game changer. I don’t know why I waited so long to try it! It has opened up a whole host of baking possibilities! 

#2 Watch more movies, less news. This was the easiest one to do and increased my happiness immensely! I didn’t second guess whether I should see a movie. It was one of my intentions to do more movie watching so I cut out the internal back and forth: Go or don’t go? Yes or no? It’s a yes, just do it! 

And even when I didn’t end up loving a movie, I loved anticipating the movie, going to the theatre or snuggling up on the sofa with a cozy blanket and watching the movie. I counted movies I watched at home (Netflix, Amazon) and at the cinema (two local movie theaters in Valencia – Cines Lys & Cines Babel). I counted ones I watched when traveling and movies I had seen before. I’ve watched or rewatched 50 movies this year. I wasn’t going for a round number, or even one a week. I just watched when the mood struck me. Whoo hoo!

I’ve never before kept track of how many movies I watched in a year (see list below), but I’d guess this was a healthy increase, maybe as much as doubling 2022. I also noted the date (most of the time) and what day of the week it was. I did this because I think I tend to save movies for the weekend, but there’s absolutely no reason Monday can’t be movie night.

I didn’t rate the movies individually, but I do have a few awards to give out: 

Favorite Movie of 2023 

“Air” 

Totally my jam with 80’s music, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Viola Davis, and Jason Bateman. Easily the most fun I had at the movies in 2023.  

Favorite Movie I Rewatched 

“Splash” 

So many fun scenes and some I had forgotten – Tom Hanks, Daryl Hannah, John Candy, Eugene Levy. Definitely worth revisiting.

Most Fun Movie No One is Talking About  

“Jerry and Marge Go Large”

Why hasn’t this film hasn’t gotten more attention? Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening! I love this type of movie where the protagonist notices something no one else has, makes life better for others and brings us along on the adventure. #41 “Dumb Money” has this quality too. Put them on your TBW list!

Movie I Was Afraid to Watch But LOVED! 

“Cocaine Bear” 

After I listened to my nephew’s hilarious review on his podcast, Talking With Words, I couldn’t wait to see it! I did wait though to watch it when I visited the U.S. My sister commented “Fun to watch, especially with others.”  

Movie I Didn’t Expect to Like But Really Did

“Fun with Dick & Jane” 

Téa Leoni, Jim Carrey –  A random pick I thought I’d give a try and was surprised how much I enjoyed it.  

Movies I Can Rewatch Countless Times 

“Money Ball” and “All the President’s Men”

I have a lot more, but these are the ones I rewatched in 2023, and will most definitely watch again at some point. 

50 Movies I Watched in 2023

1. Sully – Jan 22, Sunday
2. The Post- Netflix Jan 29, Sunday 
3. The Steal – Netflix Feb 4, Saturday
4. Moneyball – Netflix Feb 11, Saturday
5. The Fabelmans – Cines Babel Feb 12, Sunday
6. Splash – Feb 17, Friday
7. All the President’s Men – Feb 18, Saturday
8. The Rainmaker – Mar 4, Saturday
9. Amadeus – 1/2 on Mar 5 Sunday, 1/2 on Mar 6, Monday
10. We Have a Ghost – Feb or Mar?
11. Faraway – Mar 12, Sunday
12. Bad Seeds – March 14, Tuesday 
13. The Art of the Steal – March 16 & 17
14. Everything Everywhere All at Once, Cines Babel, March 20, Monday
15. Jerry & Marge Go Large – Netflix, April 5, Wednesday 
16. A Man Named Otto -April 9, Easter Sunday
17. Air – Cines Lys, April 10, Monday  – with John, LOVED IT!
18. Maybe I Do – Yelmo, April 23, Sunday
19. The Lost King – Cines Babel, May 7, Sunday
20. The Half of It – Netflix, May 7, Sunday 
21. Book Club: The Next Chapter – Cines  Lys, May 16, Tuesday
22. O Brother, Where Art Thou?  – Amazon Rental
23. Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation – Netflix
24. Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1 – Cines Lys, July 13 , Thursday
25. Wham documentary Netflix, July 14, Friday
26. Living, Cines Babel 
27. Oppenheimer, Cines Lys, opening night, July 20, Thursday
28. Johnny English, Netflix, July 21, Friday 
29. Johnny English Reborn, Netflix, July 22, Saturday
30. Johnny English Strikes Again, Netflix, July 23, Sunday
31. Paul Blart, Mall Cop, Netflix, July 24, Monday
32. Barbie, Cine Lys, July 27, Thursday
33. Bridget Jones’ Diary, Netflix July 31, Monday
34. Vacaciones sin Mamá, In Espanol, Cine Lys, Aug 12, Saturday
35. The Out-Laws, Netflix, August 15, Tuesday  
36. The Founder, Netflix, August 20, Sunday, 
37. My Name is Alfred Hitchcock, Cines Babel, Aug 27, Sunday
38. Mission impossible: Ghost Protocol, Netflix, Sept 3, Sunday
39. Bull Run – Blind Date at Cynes Lys in Espanol, Valencian Director, Creator,  Sept 19, Tuesday 
40. Chicago, Netflix Sept 24, Sunday
41. Margin Call, Amazon , Sept 30, Saturday
42. Dumb Money, Cines Babel, Oct 7, Saturday
43. Cocaine Bear 🐻- Oct 16, Monday in U.S .w/ fam
44. Mission Impossible, Dead Reckoning. (rewatched w/ fam in U.S. Oct 21, Saturday
45. The Lost City. Nov 1, Wednesday,
46. Fun with Dick & Jane, Netflix, November 24, Friday 
47. Wonka, Cines Babel, Dec 8, Friday 
48. Two Weeks Notice, Netflix, Dec 19, Tuesday
49. Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life, Netflix, Dec 23, Saturday 
50. The Holiday, Netflix, Dec 25 Christmas

Generally, the bigger the hype, the less I enjoy a movie. I was really looking forward to seeing Barbie, being a fan of Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie for years, and an even bigger fan for more years of Barbie, but with all the promotions and interviews before the movie opened, that was a lot of hype to live up to. I still enjoyed it.

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This year, I had possibly the oddest movie experience I’ve ever had – going on a movie blind date. Not the kind you’re thinking of. My local Valencian theater sent out a teaser email about a mystery movie to see for only 4 euros (a little more than $4.00). I liked the idea of not knowing what I was going to see. This was really fun and I wrote more about it and the movie, #38 Bull Run, in this blog post about doing random things. 

Overall, seeing lots more movies this past year was a fantastic intention! 

And now to my last 2023 Intention….

#3 Stay in better touch with friends and family. 

I did and I didn’t. This is where I could have done more. How can we ever feel we’ve done enough? 

My family of three went on a grand tour of The Balkans in June – 11 days, 5 countries, 7 cities. We had such a great time, I didn’t want it to end! Yes, I’m the only one who felt that way, but that just shows how much fun it was and how much I love to travel. 

I called up a longtime friend I hadn’t spoken with since moving to Spain and we’ve started keeping in touch again. It was so nice to rewire that connection! 

I built in extra time when I went back to the U. S. in October to meet my Houston gal pals in NYC for a girls weekend. The first time we’d all been to the Big Apple together! Thanks, girls!!!

On the same trip, it was nice to have extra days when visiting my family so in addition to seeing my mom everyday at her memory care and having lunch with her there several times, my sister and I had time to catch up, shop, visit a museum, eat at our favorite restaurants and watch Jeopardy & movies! I also went to my nephew’s annual birthday/costume party, got to be a spectator at my 5-year-old great niece’s gymnastics practice, and shared my new skill of finger knitting with her and her 7-year-old sister. So much fun! 

When you’ve chosen to live in another country, and though you feel very lucky to have that option, it can still be hard. Missing friends and family will always be a part of it. My intention to stay in better touch with friends and family was a particularly good choice for my theme for 2023 to “Do more of what I enjoy.”

To wrap up, I definitely feel like writing these intentions gave me a happier ending this year. Take some time to think about what you love doing and how to do more of it this year. Write it down. Keep it in view. Write yourself a happy ending.

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Have you Read My Book? If you enjoy my blog, maybe you’d like to read my memoir about the two years I lived in Rome. Times New Roman: How We Quit Our Jobs, Gave Away Our Stuff & Moved to Italy is available from libraries and bookstores everywhere. Just ask for it if you don’t see it on the shelf.