Ringing in the New Year with a Look Back

The new year is actually a pretty important day in Japan, so here's a little something Japanese I found to ring it in.

The new year is upon us (on this calendar anyway), and so to follow up my awkward introduction post, I thought I'd some up some past resolutions of mine and reminisce on my subsequent success/failure at achieving them. Perhaps someone out there will be more successful.

• Plant a garden - This is officially graduated from "New Years Resolution" to "Before I Die." I still don't have a garden. I think it's because we moved around a lot and were mostly in apartments or rental places where you don't really get to have a private garden. On the bright side, it made me appreciate nature and flowers much more. You take silly sentimental stuff like that for granted until you're going crazy in industrial Florida where the only thing outside your door is an ugly palm tree and electric cables.

• Go to college - Yeah, I got one! But I'm a scholarly perfectionist, so maybe this was an easy out for a new years resolution for me.

• Write a novel - Another "I have friends who do this" one. I may study literature, but I'm not a writer (she says while blogging). I hate to say it, but I've never been creative enough to finish any creative writing pieces, mainly because it's too personal and I'm afraid of criticism. I mean, someone can critique my grammar or organization in a formal analytical paper, but to criticize my imagination--well, I'm a coward when it comes to that. So this resolution pretty much a gone-er (it's also been a "recurring resolution" if you get my meaning).

• Lose fifteen pounds - Yep (and then you gain it back, then you lose it again). Actually, I've lost a great deal of weight, but never from a new years resolution. I think with life changes like that it takes a bit more commitment than what one might associate with new years. (After all, it's a day many people celebrate by kissing strangers at drunken parties while a giant shiny ball drops. It's clearly a time to make important decisions, lol.)
  

• Finish the whatsitcalled book series - This one was actually pretty fun for me. I finished the Chronicles of Narnia as young girl and all of the American Doll books this way, but I think a lot of serial literature or even various books with one author can be completed in this manner. It's probably the easiest resolution to stick to as well, and you can replace a book series with comics/manga or a tv/film series. I usually tack this one onto the end of a more problematic resolution ("This year, I'm going to do a full yoga routine every morning at 6:00!.....and I'm gonna watch the rest of the new Doctor Who!).

Truth is, I'm not really that into the whole "new years resolution" thing. I think it should be like Monopoly where everybody gets $200 for passing "GO." Resolutions, however, I do like in general. And this year I happen to be resolved to blog.