January 7, 2025 • 11 mins
Reflecting on the new year, this week I'm exploring the tensions between personal aspirations and familial responsibilities. The conversation delves into themes of identity, sacrifices, and strategies for prioritizing self-care while embracing the new year’s possibilities.
• Personal productivity during the holiday season
• Cultural expectations tied to the new year
• Insights from the film "Night Bitch" on women's sacrifices
• Evaluating life goals to avoid future regrets
• The struggle for health and fitness in a busy lifestyle
• Importance of balancing family needs with personal dreams
• A hopeful outlook for a fulfilling and healthy new year
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Tracy (00:00):
My husband ended up being absolutely traumatized by it.
Welcome to the Only ChildDiaries podcast.
I'm your host, Tracy Wallace.
Have you ever felt like youdidn't receive the how-to
brochure on life, that youdidn't get enough guidance about
major life issues?
So did I.
(00:20):
You don't have to be an onlychild to feel this way.
In my podcast, we'll exploresome of the best ways to better
navigate adulting, while doingso with humor and light.
Welcome everyone to the OnlyChild Diaries podcast.
(00:45):
Today I'm going to talk about,well, the new year.
Happy new year everyone.
You know there's always a lotto think about, right, and I
hope everyone had a good holidayholiday.
I was really busy andproductive over my days off over
(01:08):
Christmas and New Year's, whichis different for me.
Usually, I'm very lazy and thenI end up getting sick but I was
(01:28):
very productive.
I did a lot of things aroundthe house.
There's never enough time to doeverything that I want to do,
of course, but I did get a lotaccomplished and I'm happy about
that.
I feel good about that.
I hope you've had a goodholiday.
I know a lot of people are sickthis time of year and it just
goes without saying with theweather changes and the stress
and whatnot.
So, anyway, but I've been doinga lot of thinking about, well,
(01:50):
the new year.
It's hard not to, becauseeveryone talks about it.
Here we are in 2025, right theother night, my husband and I
(02:21):
watched a film called NightBitch yes, night Bitch and it
stars one of our favoriteactresses, amy Adams.
And society, especially amother, which I'm not and giving
up or taking back yourindividual identity, identity
(02:41):
and I'm always reevaluatingwhere I am, because there's so
many things that I want to do.
Right, I want to work on fixingup my house, repairing things.
I want to work on the garden, Iwant to go through and purge in
(03:05):
the house, which I didn't getto do very much.
I did do some, if you listened,last week I did do some, but
mostly I've worked outsidebecause there's always a lot to
do everywhere.
I haven't been able to doanything on the repair side.
I could live to be 200 and Idon't know that I would ever get
done with everything that needsto be done here.
(03:25):
I've made some of the calls andappointments that I've had to
make, but these last two weeksI've also been incredibly busy
with work, with work, work.
I've had a big deadline that'scoming up next week that I've
had to work on.
That's very important.
I had to give myself a lot oftime for that, dedicate a lot of
(03:50):
time for that, and just restingright that's very important too
.
Try to take a little time foryourself, but there's always so
much to do, always so much to do.
And, oh, the exciting thing thatI did was, you know, every year
(04:13):
with the Rose Parade it's righthere, and I did get to see the
flyover of the stealth bomber,which was absolutely incredible.
It was better than I would haveanticipated.
It was a little stressfulbecause I had to walk up a hill
and I didn't realize how out ofshape I am to do that.
(04:33):
My knees, my knee replacements,have left me with not the best
balance.
I can go upstairs, but goingdownstairs is a little difficult
, and whoever did this in theside of the hill put, you know,
makeshift stairs with railroadties, which is very helpful.
(04:56):
It's better than sliding downthe hill and trying to find a
spot to put your foot, butthere's no railing to hold onto.
So I was able to make it up thefirst leg because there's a
fence, a chain link fence there,there, and I was able to stand
(05:23):
there at the kind of the landingspot between the two levels and
see the bomber fly over, and itwasn't too high and I got a
really incredible video so I'llpost that for you.
As the crow flies.
We're not very far from thestart of the Rose Parade and
I've never been actually to theparade itself because you have
to get there ridiculously earlyand it's ridiculously cold.
(05:44):
But I have seen a lot of thefloats in person.
I volunteered to put flowers onone year when I was in high
school with my friend andalthough it looks like a lot of
fun, and it is a lot of fun, theglue that they used at that
time I don't know if it's anydifferent now, but the glue that
they used at that time supersticky and so if you go to wipe
(06:10):
your nose or your forehead orsomething, it gets in your hair
and it gets on your clothes andyou're screwed.
Anyway, back to the film.
So we were watching this filmand my husband ended up being
absolutely traumatized by it.
But it talks a lot about and itdeals with the subject of what
(06:31):
a woman gives up in her life totake care of others, and this is
such a fascinating concept formost women, right?
Even if you haven't hadchildren, you end up giving up
sacrificing for others.
And it started me thinkingabout, you know, my comedy
(06:53):
career and when I was going outdoing standup in person, and
that was a really exciting timeand, anyway, food for thought.
And so I think it's a validtopic because, as your life goes
by, you start to think aboutthe things that you want to do
and the things that you can do,whether it's physical or
(07:17):
financial or time-wise.
And you know these are importantthings, because I don't think
you want to get to the end ofyour life and say, oh, I really
wish I had done that, or Ireally wish I could have gone
here.
And what do you want toaccomplish?
And for me the list is prettymuch endless.
(07:37):
I'd like to accomplisheverything, but I know I'm not
going to be able to do that.
So I have to think about what'simportant and what's best for
my family.
What's important and what'sbest for my family, right, does
that make you sad?
Does that make me sad in a way?
But I have to prioritize and Ithink that's what we all have to
(07:59):
do in this life, and I know menhave to do that as well.
So there goes.
The trade-off between beingsingle and being with someone in
a marriage or a relationship isthat you do have to trade off,
and even a trade-off having pets.
You have to sacrifice thingswhen you have animals that you
(08:22):
love.
Anyway, I'm rambling a bit, butjust some thoughts for the new
year.
I know I've thought a lot aboutmy health.
I always think about my health,but this year in January it's
always easier to think about itbecause everybody's talking
about it on the news, becausethey're trying to tie in the
(08:44):
resolutions and what everybody'sdoing to lose weight or get
healthier or get fitter, so it'shard not to think about it.
Again, I try not to makeresolutions, but I do like to
try to reinvigorate myselfhealth-wise.
I still am carrying more weightthan I'd like to be carrying,
(09:05):
but that's a tough thing for meto be caring, but that's a tough
thing for me.
But I do need to be more active.
I know because I get up and Ihave something to eat and I sit
here and I work, and I'm verygrateful to work at home.
It's very convenient.
I can take care of everybodyduring the day and keep a
watchful eye out on my husbandand my pets and my house, and I
(09:30):
don't have to travel back andforth to an office, which saves
me a lot of time and energy.
So I'm very grateful for that.
But it's very sedentary, so Ihave to remind myself to get up
and walk around and go outsideand breathe some fresh air, if
it's fresh.
(09:50):
Right now we're on a no burnwarning, so people are not
supposed to use their fireplacesbecause the air quality is bad.
I'm not sure why it's bad, butanyway it is bad.
You can feel it in the air.
So I just want to wisheverybody a very happy new year,
a safe and healthy new year.
There's a lot going on in theworld these days and we have to
(10:20):
be mindful of ourselves and ourfamilies and our jobs and our
finances and everything.
But we'll get through it.
That's all I've got for today,folks, but next week we'll
tackle another topic together.
I hope you'll join me.
If you like this episode, pleasefollow the Only Child Diaries
podcast on Apple Podcasts orother platforms you might listen
(10:44):
on and consider rating OnlyChild Diaries and writing a
review.
It helps others to find us.
Please share it with a friendyou think might like it as well.
Visit my Instagram page OnlyChild Diaries or Facebook Only
Child Diaries Podcast.
Thanks for listening.
(11:04):
I'm Tracy Wallace and these arethe Only Child Diaries.
My husband ended up being absolutely traumatized by it.
Welcome to the Only ChildDiaries podcast.
I'm your host, Tracy Wallace.
Have you ever felt like youdidn't receive the how-to
brochure on life, that youdidn't get enough guidance about
major life issues?
So did I.
(00:20):
You don't have to be an onlychild to feel this way.
In my podcast, we'll exploresome of the best ways to better
navigate adulting, while doingso with humor and light.
Welcome everyone to the OnlyChild Diaries podcast.
(00:45):
Today I'm going to talk about,well, the new year.
Happy new year everyone.
You know there's always a lotto think about, right, and I
hope everyone had a good holidayholiday.
I was really busy andproductive over my days off over
(01:08):
Christmas and New Year's, whichis different for me.
Usually, I'm very lazy and thenI end up getting sick but I was
(01:28):
very productive.
I did a lot of things aroundthe house.
There's never enough time to doeverything that I want to do,
of course, but I did get a lotaccomplished and I'm happy about
that.
I feel good about that.
I hope you've had a goodholiday.
I know a lot of people are sickthis time of year and it just
goes without saying with theweather changes and the stress
and whatnot.
So, anyway, but I've been doinga lot of thinking about, well,
(01:50):
the new year.
It's hard not to, becauseeveryone talks about it.
Here we are in 2025, right theother night, my husband and I
(02:21):
watched a film called NightBitch yes, night Bitch and it
stars one of our favoriteactresses, amy Adams.
And society, especially amother, which I'm not and giving
up or taking back yourindividual identity, identity
(02:41):
and I'm always reevaluatingwhere I am, because there's so
many things that I want to do.
Right, I want to work on fixingup my house, repairing things.
I want to work on the garden, Iwant to go through and purge in
(03:05):
the house, which I didn't getto do very much.
I did do some, if you listened,last week I did do some, but
mostly I've worked outsidebecause there's always a lot to
do everywhere.
I haven't been able to doanything on the repair side.
I could live to be 200 and Idon't know that I would ever get
done with everything that needsto be done here.
(03:25):
I've made some of the calls andappointments that I've had to
make, but these last two weeksI've also been incredibly busy
with work, with work, work.
I've had a big deadline that'scoming up next week that I've
had to work on.
That's very important.
I had to give myself a lot oftime for that, dedicate a lot of
(03:50):
time for that, and just restingright that's very important too
.
Try to take a little time foryourself, but there's always so
much to do, always so much to do.
And, oh, the exciting thing thatI did was, you know, every year
(04:13):
with the Rose Parade it's righthere, and I did get to see the
flyover of the stealth bomber,which was absolutely incredible.
It was better than I would haveanticipated.
It was a little stressfulbecause I had to walk up a hill
and I didn't realize how out ofshape I am to do that.
(04:33):
My knees, my knee replacements,have left me with not the best
balance.
I can go upstairs, but goingdownstairs is a little difficult
, and whoever did this in theside of the hill put, you know,
makeshift stairs with railroadties, which is very helpful.
(04:56):
It's better than sliding downthe hill and trying to find a
spot to put your foot, butthere's no railing to hold onto.
So I was able to make it up thefirst leg because there's a
fence, a chain link fence there,there, and I was able to stand
(05:23):
there at the kind of the landingspot between the two levels and
see the bomber fly over, and itwasn't too high and I got a
really incredible video so I'llpost that for you.
As the crow flies.
We're not very far from thestart of the Rose Parade and
I've never been actually to theparade itself because you have
to get there ridiculously earlyand it's ridiculously cold.
(05:44):
But I have seen a lot of thefloats in person.
I volunteered to put flowers onone year when I was in high
school with my friend andalthough it looks like a lot of
fun, and it is a lot of fun, theglue that they used at that
time I don't know if it's anydifferent now, but the glue that
they used at that time supersticky and so if you go to wipe
(06:10):
your nose or your forehead orsomething, it gets in your hair
and it gets on your clothes andyou're screwed.
Anyway, back to the film.
So we were watching this filmand my husband ended up being
absolutely traumatized by it.
But it talks a lot about and itdeals with the subject of what
(06:31):
a woman gives up in her life totake care of others, and this is
such a fascinating concept formost women, right?
Even if you haven't hadchildren, you end up giving up
sacrificing for others.
And it started me thinkingabout, you know, my comedy
(06:53):
career and when I was going outdoing standup in person, and
that was a really exciting timeand, anyway, food for thought.
And so I think it's a validtopic because, as your life goes
by, you start to think aboutthe things that you want to do
and the things that you can do,whether it's physical or
(07:17):
financial or time-wise.
And you know these are importantthings, because I don't think
you want to get to the end ofyour life and say, oh, I really
wish I had done that, or Ireally wish I could have gone
here.
And what do you want toaccomplish?
And for me the list is prettymuch endless.
(07:37):
I'd like to accomplisheverything, but I know I'm not
going to be able to do that.
So I have to think about what'simportant and what's best for
my family.
What's important and what'sbest for my family, right, does
that make you sad?
Does that make me sad in a way?
But I have to prioritize and Ithink that's what we all have to
(07:59):
do in this life, and I know menhave to do that as well.
So there goes.
The trade-off between beingsingle and being with someone in
a marriage or a relationship isthat you do have to trade off,
and even a trade-off having pets.
You have to sacrifice thingswhen you have animals that you
(08:22):
love.
Anyway, I'm rambling a bit, butjust some thoughts for the new
year.
I know I've thought a lot aboutmy health.
I always think about my health,but this year in January it's
always easier to think about itbecause everybody's talking
about it on the news, becausethey're trying to tie in the
(08:44):
resolutions and what everybody'sdoing to lose weight or get
healthier or get fitter, so it'shard not to think about it.
Again, I try not to makeresolutions, but I do like to
try to reinvigorate myselfhealth-wise.
I still am carrying more weightthan I'd like to be carrying,
(09:05):
but that's a tough thing for meto be caring, but that's a tough
thing for me.
But I do need to be more active.
I know because I get up and Ihave something to eat and I sit
here and I work, and I'm verygrateful to work at home.
It's very convenient.
I can take care of everybodyduring the day and keep a
watchful eye out on my husbandand my pets and my house, and I
(09:30):
don't have to travel back andforth to an office, which saves
me a lot of time and energy.
So I'm very grateful for that.
But it's very sedentary, so Ihave to remind myself to get up
and walk around and go outsideand breathe some fresh air, if
it's fresh.
(09:50):
Right now we're on a no burnwarning, so people are not
supposed to use their fireplacesbecause the air quality is bad.
I'm not sure why it's bad, butanyway it is bad.
You can feel it in the air.
So I just want to wisheverybody a very happy new year,
a safe and healthy new year.
There's a lot going on in theworld these days and we have to
(10:20):
be mindful of ourselves and ourfamilies and our jobs and our
finances and everything.
But we'll get through it.
That's all I've got for today,folks, but next week we'll
tackle another topic together.
I hope you'll join me.
If you like this episode, pleasefollow the Only Child Diaries
podcast on Apple Podcasts orother platforms you might listen
(10:44):
on and consider rating OnlyChild Diaries and writing a
review.
It helps others to find us.
Please share it with a friendyou think might like it as well.
Visit my Instagram page OnlyChild Diaries or Facebook Only
Child Diaries Podcast.
Thanks for listening.
(11:04):
I'm Tracy Wallace and these arethe Only Child Diaries.
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