New Year's Part 2: Revenge of the Resolutions!!

This year, I’ve decided against making a New Year’s Resolution. Instead, I intend to make several. Sometimes when people don’t follow through on their resolution, they’re like “Fuck it. I’m gonna eat me some whip-cream covered chili and try to lose the weight next year…” I find that if I should fail one resolution, I still have others to fall back on and maybe I won’t beat myself up as much. Why put all my eggs in one theoretical basket if I don’t have to. That basket can go to hell! Besides, I do fairly well at multitasking so why not?

1. I really want to get in shape. See that? I wrote “want” instead of “need”. Progress already! If there’s one thing every movie based on sports has taught me, it’s that you gotta want it, and I do. I’ll be “getting-my-wedding-on” next year, so now’s a good time to start getting into shape.

2. Be more creative. This was actually my resolution for last year. I didn’t really get as many projects out there as I would’ve liked to, but there were a few things where I look back on it and kind of go “wow”. This year, I plan on doing more. A whole lot more. And I’ve already started off with quite a few new tasks which should keep me busy for quite some time. This should be good, as I’m usually more at peace with myself the busier I am creatively. Also, this year I’m prepared to fail. Last year, I kind of petrified myself into a real non-creative place by being afraid to create something that’s shit. I’ve since learned, however, that it’s better to create shit and learn from it, than create nothing at all. Deep…

3. Be more accepting of other people’s opinions. I’m pretty laid back in my approach to life, though there are things that people say that I might let get under my skin, and frankly, most of it's pretty stupid and causes myself unwarranted stress. Example: This girl I've recently met just so happens to have grown up in the same town I did. She loves the place, while I moved away as soon as I graduated High School to get away from it. We got to talking about it a little bit, and I immediately started hating on the whole town. I’m not sure if she was offended or not, as I was so blinded by my rage. I just kept going on and on why I hated the place. I never really stopped to consider her feelings towards our hometown, and really take in why she likes it. Now I feel like an asshole about the whole thing. I’ve learned my lesson, though, and will take other’s views into consideration before jumping into a diatribe about something. Especially when it comes to arts and entertainment. I feel like I’ve painted my self into a corner a bit, as some people think I only value metal as musical genre and comics as a storytelling vehicle, which isn’t really true. I truly believe art is subjective and, even though I might not get what someone likes, that doesn’t make it bad, just like they may not dig something I'm into. They get enjoyment from it and that’s really all that matters. The more happy people on Earth, the better.

4. Take better care of my vehicle. I’ve really been lax on my vehicle maintenance. She’s getting old, and that means she might kick the bucket sooner than later if I’m not careful. She’s been a good car and it’s time I started putting a little TLC for her in my routine. She may not be perfect, but neither am I. I mean, we all have our flaws, right? Plus, I hear cars are expensive to replace. Like, more than twenty bucks or something…

5. Get my fiancé to read comics. I’ve had her read a few comics here and there, but she hasn’t really read anything she was excited about or really made her think. The only comics she read willingly were the few Ghost Whisperer comics I bought her, and that’s only because they were tied to a TV series she already watches. I’ve really been researching indy comics to find stuff she might like (non-superhero, with compelling characters) and have stumbled upon a few things. Only time will tell. This is a big part of my life that I feel like I'm failing to properly share with her, but I'm determined! I have a feeling this will be the hardest resolution of all…

6. Be better educated about politics. There are so many big issues out there right now, that I really need to pay close attention so I can make sure I’m making the right decisions for myself and forming my opinions properly. My fiancé isn’t really into politics, but from time to time she will ask me why I feel a certain way about something. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes…not so much. It’s not always easy for me to articulate why I feel a certain way about a political issue, and it’s even more difficult to present straight facts about politics without throwing my two cents in. Telling someone to “Just do the opposite of what Bill O’Reilly or Ann Coulter says” isn’t really enough for most people…unfortunately.

This is a good portion of my resolutions for 2009, or at least the big ones. What about you? Have you made any resolutions for this year? Regardless, I hope your year is as awesome as I’m determined to make mine!