My DGF and I had Christmas dinner this year with our good friends, C&D.  C is the butch buddy I sometimes reference in my posts; D is her wife.  Since I met her a few years ago, C has been a mentor to me in many ways.  She, too, used to be married to a man.  She, too, appreciates a well-cut men's shirt.  We even work in similar fields.  But on Christmas, I learned something about C that left me aghast: After she wears a particular tie, she takes it off over her head, leaving it knotted knotted, and hangs it in her closet like that.

If a butch's butch like C is engaging in this kind of sartorial tomfoolery, I bet some other readers can benefit from a little tie storage advice, too. 

There are two acceptable ways to store a tie.  The best way is to unknot it and drape it over a prong on a tie rack right after wearing it .  You don't need anything expensive; I use this one, which is perfectly serviceable ($6.99).  Skip your morning latte for two or three days and treat yourself to one of these.  I hang it on a wall in my bedroom.  (Here's a more attractive version.)  If you're short on wall space and need something that will fit in your closet, this is pretty functional ($4.50).  I avoid this kind because ties slip off too easily (and don't put your ties on regular hangers--they'll slip off).  If you want to be extra butchy, make your own!

Hanging your ties will keep them crisp.  After three days or so, most wrinkles will begin to fade.  Storing your tie in its knotted form will create long-lasting wrinkles that will shorten the life of your tie and eventually look sloppy.  Yeah, I know you don't like tying your tie.  Suck it up.

The second best way to store your ties is by rolling them loosely and putting them in a box or drawer.  You can even buy boxes designed for this purpose.  And actually, if you happen to have any knit ties, this is how you should always store them, since hanging can stretch them out. 

There you have it.  Two acceptable ways to store your ties.  Not tied and hung on the bedroom doorknob, not hastily flung onto the bathroom floor (although occasionally it may be necessary to hastily fling a tie onto the bedroom floor...), and not wadded at the back of your sock drawer.  If you don't yet know how to tie a tie (and don't have a DXH or butch buddy to show you), these videos + a bunch of practice should do the trick.

_Thus far, my 2012 has been characterized by two rounds of pancakes and four episodes of "Breaking Bad" (we're halfway through season 4).  This has  been typical of the past week (just add Bananagrams, cookies, and friends, and you'll get the picture).  And although I'm a tad embarrassed to own up to this orgy of gluttony and sloth, it's been a wonderful relief to give myself permission to take some time off.

I'm not much on New Year's resolutions.  I make resolutions all the time.  Sometimes I stick with them, sometimes not.  For example, I was once a vegetarian for a month and a vegan for a different month.  For three weeks, I wrote every day.  When my resolve peters out, I tend not to feel bad, but look at the resolutions more as experiments.  "Interesting that I no longer feel so compelled to keep vegan," I might think to myself while chowing down on a buffalo burger. 

Maybe my approach has been too forgiving.  In any case, I usually keep my resolutions to myself.  I don't want anyone bothering me about them, and to be totally honest, I don't want to be embarrassed in front of other people if I fail.  But this year, I've decided not only to make some resolutions for 2012, but to post them here.  Maybe y'all will help keep me honest (and maybe my attempt to stick to these will produce some interesting fodder for the blog).

RESOLUTION #1: Post something (basically) every day.  I love writing Butch Wonders and would love to reach more readers.  So I'm committing to writing 300 posts in 2012.  Sure, I may sometimes cop out and just post a sentence or two, but still.  300.  Big commitment.  Because I love you.

RESOLUTION #2: Finish various writing projects.  I won't bore you with the details, since it's not related to BW, but it includes some articles, a novel, and a creative nonfiction piece.  I've got my work cut out for me.

RESOLUTION #3: Support my DGF through the remaining five months of her new job's probationary period, even when it is hard and various circumstances compromise my support abilities.  My DGF had the courage to start a new career post-40 (she's a little older than me), and I really admire her for it.  Plus, she is awesome and totally worth it!

RESOLUTION #4: See my parents about once a month.  They only live two hours away from me, and I want to see them more, even if it's just to meet halfway for a quick lunch on a weekend.  My life is pretty different from theirs, and I think sometimes that makes it easier for people to grow apart.  But I'm committed to not letting that happen.

RESOLUTION #5: Lose 20 lbs, in part by trail running.  Being overweight zaps your energy and is bad for your heart.  My body hangs onto weight about as tightly as Marcus Bachmann hangs onto his heterosexuality.  Plus I'm not willing to completely give up Ben and Jerry's.  So this one will be a challenge.  I should probably lose more than 20, but it's a start.  (Also the least imaginative resolution ever.)  Trail running will help me with this goal.  It will also make my dog reeeeally happy.

Hm.  That's all I can think of now, though I'm sure there are others.  I'd like to list things that are wackier and more exciting: Climb Mt. Kilamanjaro!  Become a hand model!  Learn to play the Didgeridoo!  But I suppose this is a list of resolutions, not a bucket list, so I'm allowed to keep it pedestrian. 

Did you make any resolutions for 2012?