• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The West Virginia Surf Report!

Jeff Kay's Ridiculous Adventures In Suburbia

  • Home
  • About
  • Best of
  • Books
  • Archives
  • Donate

Have You Ever Had Any Luck With New Year’s Resolutions? Me Either

January 2, 2013 By Jeff 43 Comments

NewYearsEveYou know what sucks?  When I’m living my regular everyday life, I crave something out of the ordinary.  Like a shitload of days off, or a trip somewhere.  But when “out of the ordinary” actually happens, it’s great for a while… then I start craving my regular everyday life again.

The universe is mocking me, isn’t it?

In any case, today is the first time I’ve felt normal in a couple of weeks.  The boys are back to school, Toney is back to work, and I’m sitting here listening to Thin Lizzy, drinking coffee, and writing this update — while dreading work like the dentist’s drill.  Yes, everything is right with the world again.

Not that I’m satisfied with it, mind you.  It’s all very complicated.  Or simple.  One or the other.

On New Year’s Eve I worked until 8, grabbed a Big Mac “value” meal at McDonald’s on my home, and drank a few Yuenglings while watching the first two episodes of The Walking Dead on Netflix.  I’m not sure…  Should I stick with it?  I’m already mildly bored.

I like that it’s set in a post-apocalyptic Atlanta, though.  Very cool.  Maybe it’s just because I was exhausted? Even Goodfellas probably would’ve felt a little flat to me, on Monday night.  My brain chemicals weren’t mixing well.  I should probably give it another chance.

I also worked yesterday, on New Year’s Day.  It felt like Saturday, and I was completely discombobulated.  So, it feels great to have my sea legs again.

My only New Year’s resolution is to try to be a bit more positive.  I’ve always been easily annoyed, but never pessimistic.  Over the past few years that’s changed, though.  And I don’t like it.  I need to adjust my shit.  It doesn’t do anybody any good.

What about you?  Are you using this annual reboot to try to make a fundamental change of any kind?  If you’re willing to share, please use the comments link below.

Also, have you ever had any luck with something like that?  I’ve been sucked into it in the past, and it never took.  I tried to lose weight, joined gyms, etc.  All ended in tears and a riffled ass.  What about you?  Any luck with resolutions, or big lifestyle changes, regardless of the date?  Please tell us about it.

And I’m going to work now.

Have a great day, my friends!  And thanks for sticking around for another year.

Now playing in the bunker
Treat yourself to something cool at Amazon

Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on Pinterest

Filed Under: Daily

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Dogberry says

    January 2, 2013 at 1:51 pm

    I’m going to read more books this year.

    Walking Dead sucks. The dialogue and the paper-thin characters were too bad to support what is a pretty cool idea.

    Reply
  2. Patty (In Cleveland) says

    January 2, 2013 at 1:51 pm

    Wow First-!

    Reply
  3. WB in OH says

    January 2, 2013 at 1:55 pm

    I haven’t done a New Years resolution for a few years so to make up for lost time I’m putting the two biggies on the table, quit smoking and lose 40 pounds. We’ll see.

    Reply
    • Dogberry says

      January 2, 2013 at 2:01 pm

      Good for you. Best of luck.

      Reply
      • WB in OH says

        January 2, 2013 at 2:08 pm

        Thanks!

        Reply
    • Fancy Pants Maguire says

      January 2, 2013 at 2:27 pm

      If you are really going to quit, make sure to avail yourself of all of the help that is out there these days (e.g., nicotine patches and/or lozenges, meds, counselling, etc). It really is a lot easier than it used to be when a smoker had to go it alone and cold turkey. You might want to start out by seeing what sort of help your doctor can provide you with.

      Good luck!

      Reply
    • madz1962 says

      January 2, 2013 at 2:36 pm

      Good luck! Those really are 2 biggies but we’re pulling for you!

      Reply
  4. The Qweezy Mark says

    January 2, 2013 at 2:01 pm

    I’ve become much angrier and drunker. Now, why would I change anything?

    Reply
  5. Henderson says

    January 2, 2013 at 2:09 pm

    I was a Walking Dead skeptic too, but then I got sucked in. Who really cares about character development and plot when you’ve got all the graphic zombie killing?

    No New Year’s resolutions for me. Making a commitment because of a calendar is silly. I make my personal changes based on real events.. like being arrested, getting divorced, the rabbit dying….

    Reply
  6. Fancy Pants Maguire says

    January 2, 2013 at 2:19 pm

    I hereby resolve to increase my increase my penis size while also reducing my carbon footprint in 2013.

    We’ll see……

    Reply
  7. icecycle66 says

    January 2, 2013 at 2:29 pm

    I hate out of the ordinary. I never crave such a thing. it is damaging to my life. I exist in a chaos of patterns obscuring each other, commonality is a rare commodity which requires extreme care once obtained.

    For instance, I need five days of work and two days off. That’s it. If I am gone from work form more thatn four consecutive days, each day after double the difficulty of me going back. Until the day I quit, I need a steady keel to maintain my way.

    Otherwise i would either destroy the world or myself, maybe both.

    Today is my first day back to work in four days. I feel an aura of dispare and have a taste for murder on tongue. I do not like coming back to work.

    The Walking dead seems good at first, but you will be dissapointed if you watch it all the way through then look back at what you’ve done. It might even feel good while you are doing it. The first season stuck to the comic books really well, after that it falls into the same faulty charachter arcs everything else does.

    I don’t do well with life changing things. When I was 15 I made a life plan. I’ve stuck to it so far and it’s working out pretty good. My next move doesn’t happen until I’m 35, so I still have 5 years or so to change it if need be. however, i doubt there will be need.

    Reply
    • Ed says

      January 2, 2013 at 5:52 pm

      I felt the aura of despair etc. myself today – very good description.

      Reply
    • bikerchick says

      January 2, 2013 at 6:07 pm

      “I feel an aura of dispare and a taste of murder on my tongue”. ….. I need that on a bumper sticker for my truck. Excellent!

      Reply
      • madz1962 says

        January 3, 2013 at 10:03 am

        I’m putting this on a plaque and displaying it on my desk at work!

        Reply
  8. madz1962 says

    January 2, 2013 at 2:35 pm

    I never make resolutions. Who the hell needs that kind of pressure? “Lose 10 pounds by (insert date)” has the exact opposite effect on me and I’ll start cramming in pizza and chips while sobbing on my scale. Funk dat!

    However, this year I AM going to try to keep an ongoing journal. Or diary. Or whatever – I’ll decide as it progresses. (yeah, I haven’t strated that yet either). But it WILL be in notebooks and in longhand. I already have the notebooks. Now I need to search for a smooth writing pen.

    Reply
    • caveboy says

      January 2, 2013 at 3:15 pm

      I kept the only resolution I made last year, not to get the clap. Go for the journal. I’ve been at it five years. Do I write every day? Hell no. Just don’t quit. Write down everything. Good luck.

      Reply
    • bikerchick says

      January 2, 2013 at 6:11 pm

      I have thought of doing the very same, madz. I know I wouldn’t write everyday, but I like the idea of putting my thoughts on paper…even just for me.

      Reply
    • Bum says

      January 2, 2013 at 7:03 pm

      I’ve been filling in squares of Hallmark Datebooks since I was 15 in 1980. Just started my 34th straight year of doing it- haven’t had a blank square since mid-’83! Just the basics of what I did that day condensed into shorthand and printed small enough to fit into a one-square-inch box. Better than a diary, because not much work is required each day, which keeps me motivated to keep on doing it. Yes, I am an uber-geek, but my datebooks have come in handy for me [and friends who want me to go back and look up when a particular event happened].

      Reply
      • Greg says

        January 2, 2013 at 7:09 pm

        I’ve been doing the same thing on my calendars. It’s the only way I know what I’ve done for the past 10 years.

        Reply
      • madz1962 says

        January 3, 2013 at 8:51 am

        Bum, wow- have you taken me back! I still have some of those Hallmark calendars – filled in! I’m going to dig them out this weekend and take a stroll down Memory Lane. This should be hilarious.

        Reply
  9. Phil Jett says

    January 2, 2013 at 2:46 pm

    Never made resolutions and not starting at 52.

    The daughter got me hooked on the Walking Dead. The first year started slow but I really enjoyed it by the end.

    Last season was a little bogged down but they more than made up for it this year. Killfest! I can’t wait for the second half of this season to start up.

    Reply
  10. Jason says

    January 2, 2013 at 2:53 pm

    I’ve never made resolutions. I’m the exact opposite of a creature of habit. I like it very random and fucked up and upsetting.

    I might try The Walking Dead.

    Reply
  11. Root 66 says

    January 2, 2013 at 3:54 pm

    I don’t make resolutions, mainly because I know what a cream puff I am!

    I’m already pretty set in my ways, anyhow!

    Reply
  12. kristin says

    January 2, 2013 at 3:54 pm

    I love Walking Dead. I like how each group of (live) people they run into are more psycho than the last. The complete break down of humanity and their justification for crazy-ass actions is interesting.

    Reply
  13. dto says

    January 2, 2013 at 4:29 pm

    Every year I make a resoultion to not get as drunk next New Years as I did this year. No pressure for 365 days and I just wait and see how things turned out on January 1st, next year.

    Reply
  14. bikerchick says

    January 2, 2013 at 6:20 pm

    Every year is the same ol’ bullshit…lose weight, get in shape. Well, last year I finally started. I lost 18 pounds. I’d like to shoot for at least another 20 this year. But it’s an ongoing battle for me.

    That’s the only resolution I make. Everything else ends up being a waste of time and energy. No use disappointing myself.

    Never watched Walking Dead. I don’t know why. I love that shit. American Horror Story starts up again tonight after being off for a few weeks over the holidays.

    Reply
  15. dto says

    January 2, 2013 at 7:25 pm

    Re: Further Evidence….Ok, First I read the whole story about the mystery kids. Interesting but I know that wasn’t your point. My eye caught the “Baby Jellyfish Paperweight’ ad. A glowing discription of the must have item including the statement, “Celebrate aquatic beauty while honoring the need for its preservation”. They just stuck a baby jellyfish in globe, aka killed the little thing, and then talk about the need for its preservation. WTF?

    Reply
    • dto says

      January 2, 2013 at 7:48 pm

      Apparently the ad is ramdom so hopfully I saved it so you guys can check it out here.

      http://www.smithsonianstore.com/baby-jellyfish-paperweight-78205.html?sourceCode=MAGAD12&utm_source=Smithsonianmag.com&utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=78205

      Reply
  16. getalife says

    January 2, 2013 at 8:28 pm

    Stick with Walking Dead. You’ll be hooked soon enough.

    I quit smoking 3 weeks ago. I never stick with New Year’s resolutions so I thought I’d try a December 10 resolution. So far so good. Chantix is amazing. I strongly recommend it if you don’t get the side effects. If not for the habit I wouldn’t even think about smoking now.

    WB in Ohio, do one or the other. I tried to do both two years ago thinking that if I was going to be miserable doing one, I might as well be completely miserable doing both. I failed at both after the 1st month. Now, once I’m sure I’ve beat the cigs I’ll work on adjusting the diet. And by then I should qualify for The Biggest Loser show and have a chance to win $1 million.

    Reply
  17. chill says

    January 2, 2013 at 9:05 pm

    No resolutions for me. I have enough unfinished projects without that shit.
    .

    Reply
  18. Jed says

    January 2, 2013 at 10:54 pm

    Is it me, or do the ” fresh starts” get a little less fresh as the years go by?
    Has anyone ever dared to visit a senior center on New Years, to see what resolutions have been made? I imagine it would be like when Gollum warns Bilbo Baggins not to make eye contact with the submerged corpses in the swamp, but he does anyway. And don’t those zombie fuckers pull him in the second he locks eyes. New Years resolutions are like gay attempts at forestalling the inevitable.

    Reply
  19. t-storm says

    January 3, 2013 at 12:47 am

    I love the walking dead and am happy it is only loosely based on the comics. My only gripe is I don’t find the zombies consistent.

    Reply
  20. Rick in the UK says

    January 3, 2013 at 6:00 am

    +1 for the walking dead. I don’t expect it will win any awards, but then again neither should the other slop on the goggle box. Zombie killfest and main characters get knocked off, what’s not to like?!

    Reply
    • t-storm says

      January 3, 2013 at 6:12 am

      http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_awards_and_nominations_received_by_The_Walking_Dead

      Reply
      • Rick in the UK says

        January 4, 2013 at 11:29 am

        Well blow me down! Thanks t-storm!

        Reply
  21. Knucklehead says

    January 3, 2013 at 6:33 am

    No resolutions.

    I luvs me some zombies, so I am totally hooked on the Walking Dead.

    Reply
  22. Lucie in Tampa says

    January 3, 2013 at 8:34 am

    The Walking Dead is one of the best shows on TV lately. It gets way better & much more intense.
    Screw the resolutions gimmick. Only resolution I have had that stuck is the resolution of my camera.

    Reply
  23. Max says

    January 3, 2013 at 1:00 pm

    Definitely keep watching the Walking Dead, it’s fantastic.

    As far as resolutions go I’ve never had much success. I lost some weight at the beginning of last year but then gained it all back. Still trying to hit the gym a couple times a week, and I’ll continue to try and change up the diet a bit. Every bit helps.

    Reply
  24. Michelle says

    January 3, 2013 at 2:10 pm

    No resolutions, but I did quite smoking three months ago. It was shortly before my birthday, and I vowed that I would not be a 41-year-old smoking hag. I did it cold turkey. The smoking hag image is motivation enough.

    Reply
  25. CADude says

    January 3, 2013 at 3:13 pm

    My New Years resolution is to live to the ripe old age of 90. That’s another 30+ years (OK, so the plus is only a little more than 8 months, but it counts.) The only way that’s going to happen is if I do the diet/exercise thing, but it looks as though if I don’t do the diet/exercise thing I’ll only get another 10 years or so on this side of the sod. That’s pretty motivating, isn’t it?

    The only problem so far has been the food and booze that’s left over from the holidays. Once that’s gone (tonight’s the last of the prime rib, and the vodka’s getting pretty low), the rest of my life will begin.

    And that’s as personal as I’m going to get on the interwebs, thankyouverymuch.

    -Dude

    Reply
    • johnthebasket says

      January 3, 2013 at 5:07 pm

      By coincidence, my New Years resolution is also to help the Dude live ’till 90, so he can drive me up to the RMN library and be an unindicted co-conspirator in my attempt to balance history through analysis and micturition.

      -John

      Reply
      • chill says

        January 3, 2013 at 6:29 pm

        I remember the Micturition Pledge. Godspeed!
        .

        Reply
  26. veeka bennett says

    January 6, 2013 at 12:22 pm

    I never make New Year’s resolutions because it’s pointless (to me). If there’s something that I need to do to imrpove myself, I start doing it right then and there. Why hold onto a bad habit until January 1st?

    I did try to watch the Walking Dead, but I value nightmare-free sleeping.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Now With Podcast!

Support Jeff And His Projects

Latest Tweets

  • Fresh podcast action, available everywhere! From Milton to Madagascar. pic.twitter.com/V6M1cmQcSA

    November 3, 2022 5:46 am

  • Something new I'm trying: nonewjeffs.substack.com/p/im-n…

    December 2, 2021 4:11 pm

  • Only 182 days until Opening Day.

    September 30, 2021 2:37 pm

  • Check out this great story about a 16 year old Tom Bergeron talking to Moe and Larry on the phone during the early… twitter.com/i/web/status/14387…

    September 17, 2021 5:02 am

  • Dogs! surfreportpod.com/2021/09/16/e…

    September 16, 2021 4:07 pm

Facebook!

Footer

Get Social!

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Search The Surf Report

Copyright © 2023 · Smoking Fish Media