New Year's Resolutions...again

In one sense, I think resolutions made on January 1^st each year are a little silly. The common wisdom is that, by the end of the first month of the year, gym membership cards lie there wasted, diets go ignored, and the new, healthy habits are left by the wayside.

But even when you consider that most people fall back into their old routines pretty soon after giving up on their resolutions, it’s possible to see that resolutions can play an important and recurring role in our lives.

I myself need to be reminded regularly of things I want to do to make my life better. I make resolutions all the time, and it seems that picking a start date for new habits helps me stick with them longer. The start of a new year or a birthday may be the most significant dates on the calendar for beginning new habits—they’re a time of reflection and are also pretty easy dates to remember if you’re keeping track of how long you want to resolve to change your behavior.

This year’s resolutions are the same as they always are, and I hope to have success with them, if even for the short term. I want to spend more time at home (and I do NOT mean “the home office”). I want to get more organized at the bookshop and want to listen to more audiobooks as I take walks around my lovely neighborhood. I want to see my family and make more regular dates to hang out with friends. I want to have some relaxing travel time with Jim, who’s been so patient with me as I’ve been a (willing) slave to bookstore ownership! I want to do things that will make myself and my loved ones happier.

Cheers to you, and happy 2013. Let us know what you’re resolving to change in this new year.