Here we are a week into 2015.  If this year goes as quickly as the last one I can only think it’ll soon be Christmas again!

My younger daughter called today and we were talking about New Year resolutions.  She told me that her resolution this time is to “dress more fun”.  I heard the words and my mind dived around a bit to think what she might mean.  She meant quite simply that each day she would dress in a fun way, mixing clothes unusually to create a different impact.  It seems to have worked, as she has had a number of comments on her attire.  Now, my daughter has never been one to hold back when it comes to mixing and matching clothes, so I could only imagine that currently she is walking around wearing garish reds with lime greens, short things over long things and so on.  She assures me however that she is not being outlandish, and people are not just being polite with their comments.  And I can see that my daughter’s resolution is really fun for her.

As for my resolutions, I have none specifically.  I generally feel that resolutions are a means to create failure for oneself.  I prefer to wait until half way through January and then commence a new plan for something meaningful.  Two years ago on 11^th January I decided to stop smoking.  And I haven’t had a single cigarette since that day.  I don’t consider myself to be an ex smoker – I’m just having a holiday from it.  Thinking that way means I can have a cigarette if I want to.

I’d quite like to get fit.  But I’m not going to subscribe to a gym membership.  That would be like me buying a long rope with a noose on the end of it.  And sure as shot I’d hang myself.  Instead I reckon if I were to walk for at least an hour a day, at a fairly fast pace, then I’d feel much fitter as a result.  I walk regularly already, so it would just be an extension of that.  Do-able.

I have also resolved to take photographs every day.  Throughout last autumn I used my camera every day without fail, and had something to show for my efforts each time.  With the onset of winter and dark nights and dark mornings I have failed to achieve my initial aim.  And there’s the crux of the issue.  We tend to make resolutions without fully considering all the factors that might impact our daily routines.  In short, what New Year resolutions do is make us rashly set ourselves up for a fall.

So, for all of you who have set yourselves hurdles to leap over and hoops to jump through, don’t be too hard on yourselves if it’s proving to be particularly trying.  You may have simply got carried away with a daft New Year concept, only to realise that it’s not realistic in the long term.  And that’s OK.  It’s only the 9^th January.  Re-think, re-plan and resolve if you must resolve at all, to implement something that you will actually enjoy doing.  Make sure it’s a lovely crunchy carrot that you are going to chase.  That way you are more likely to get to taste it.

And hat’s off to dressing in mismatched clothes for fun or to trudging around for an hour a day with camera in hand.   I’ll report back this time next year to let you know if I’ve been successful in my quests.  Meantime, happy 2015 to you.  And there are 51 weeks still to go.