1444: 2014 Arrives

…and it was with a bit of whimper, to be honest.

This isn’t any reflection on our gracious hosts Tim and Sophie, of course, who not only laid on a sausage-tasting session (no, that’s not a euphemism) for us, but also cooked an immense amount of beef and other goodies, but to the fact that we all, as a group, found the moment of that single digit changing on everyone’s calendars to be somewhat underwhelming.

Is it cynicism? Jadedness? World-weariness? I don’t know, really. Perhaps it’s the fact that staying up until midnight isn’t really a novelty as a “grown-up”, or the realisation we’ve all had at some point of the fact that a new year doesn’t magically mean a new beginning, a fresh start or anything like that.

I mean, sure, the first of January is as good a time as any to say “right, I’m going to get [x] sorted out” but I’d be interested to know just how many people do successfully manage to get [x] sorted out and who are quite happy to maintain the status quo, continuing to allow [x] to do its thing as it’s always done.

I don’t have many things I’d like to do massively differently this year. I’d like to pick up on the exercise again, even though every time I engage in it I feel like it’s an increasingly futile gesture. I’d like to start drawing a few stupid little cartoons on this blog again — not today, though, as it was a busy day; tomorrow perhaps. I’d like to pick up work on my game again. And I’d like to continue learning Japanese.

These are all relatively simple, small and attainable goals. I’m not going to make any grand gestures or promises that are impossible to keep — no “I will be thin in 2014!” bullshit, for example — but I would like my life to continue in a reasonably positive direction, even if my own messed-up brain occasionally gives me days of distressingly dark thoughts.

There’s plenty of possible good things to look forward to in 2014, at least, but I shall spare you enthusing about things that may or may not happen for now because… well, they may or may not happen. But we shall see. I’d like to be positive. I’d like for it to be a good year. But I’d settle for it simply to not be a bad one.

Happy new year, everyone; may your 2014 be adequate for your needs.