I am a sucker for a good acronym. They have power, don't they? Who wants to participate in the National Basketball Association? It sounds like a trade association that meets up once a year with foldout tables at a Holiday Inn just off I-75 next to the Cracker Barrel. Beyond the heated discussions of the impact of rubber commodity trading, the only action at the event revolves around the strawberry jelly doughnuts.

Sometimes the acronym can have a larger meaning beyond the thing itself. The classic here is CPU. People will reference it erroneously for the entire desktop—that amalgamation of drives, a motherboard, cooling fans, a power supply, etc., instead of the central processing unit itself.

I wanted to be S.P.E.C.I.A.L. I thought I did anyway. Collectively, it felt greater. It gave me fuzzies. It wasn't special as in "I AM SPECIAL," the kind where it almost makes a fella wanna hug himself! No! I borrowed the acronym from Fallout 4. I felt the acronym could be a fun ride of self-improvement in areas of strength, perception, endurance, charisma, intelligence, agility and...luck? 7 areas. And I felt 3s were strong, so 3 in each category. This system, while COMPLETELY arbitrary, had just if not MORE power than the items themselves. If I had an idea for a 4th area to improve?

"Sorry, no room gotta cut it."

If I only had 2 ideas?

"Just make up one that feeds into the success of the other."

There are 21 items. Can I name them all? ...eventually. Are they substantive? Could I spend an hour at a coffeehouse with an ally to explain what needs to be done for their success and what new boon I will receive on achieving it?

Or, did I just make a clever checklist?

Shouldn't I do things that actually matter? Things I get excited about while sharing?

In a very real way, tonight is a new year's eve. I am over a couple of hours away from closing in on having been 45 years on this earth. Are these 21 items what I am gunning for as I begin my 46th year?