2011 Things I Want From This Year

The obligatory New Year's Eve photo (this hug lasted 20 minutes). Compare and contrast with Allison's photo - you can see the Canuck is by far the more presentable.

Anyway - the title. Don't worry, I won't be listing 2011 of anything. It was just a cunning little ploy to lure you in (or scare you off?). I will, however, be talking about what I'd like the new year to bring, looking forward and not back - which for someone who spends his life looking over his shoulder is quite a big deal.

Due to some intense pressure from my colleagues, I've decided to make one resolution for 2011 - I usually don't make any. I would like (and this will require both forward planning and dedication on my part) to reconnect with some of the friends I've let slip away. People I've lived with, laughed with, spent hour after hour talking rubbish with. People who now live far away, whom I seldom see but think about often. I know that it's a fact of life that some friendships don't last - sometimes, there's little you can do to halt the decay as two friends grow apart and lose the things they held in common, that held them together. In times like these, there's little point in fighting it.

But there are others that can be salvaged, and should be. There are many people who have meant a great deal to me in the past - and still do - whom I haven't seen for years. And so, I aim to go and see at least 5 of them, wherever they may be. To reminisce, to reconnect and to reassure them that they aren't forgotten. As an added bonus, I will have an opportunity to visit other towns and cities. I know that I live on a tiny island, but I've hardly seen any of it and it's been so long since I left London, even for a weekend. I can't even remember the last time I headed north. This shall change in 2011.

I would also ask that 2011 brings with it a few other changes. 2010 was more or less stagnant - a long, hard uphill slog with precious little reward. I am in much the same position now as I was last January. Hopefully, with a bit of effort and hard work, I'll be able to break out of the rut I find myself in and embrace something new and exciting. I think I need to feel like I'm progressing, and, if I can just tackle my laziness, this is perfectly achievable.

So, in 2011 I shall rekindle old friendships and, in doing so, see somewhere other than the capital. I'll also be keeping my fingers crossed that, come January 2012, I'll be able to look back and see that my life has changed for the better - rather than having stayed exactly, and depressingly, the same. That's not too much to ask, is it?

In the back of mind however, I have a sneaking suspicion that 2011 will not be a good year. I know it's a pessimistic outlook, but sometimes you have to trust your instincts. But while I've decided my year will probably be rubbish, I've decided that your 2011's must be fantastic. They simply must. I won't have it any other way, you hear?