I Never Promised You a Rose Garden

Hooray for New Year! It’s dark and miserable outside, you are fat after Christmas munchies, everyone’s penniless and half of your friends refuse to go out because they are having a detox month. There’s only one thing that can save you from depression: the New Year’s resolutions.

I loooove New Year’s resolutions. Two years ago me and my friend Teemu travelled to Colombia for New Year (the best way to survive January is of course a two week holiday in Caribbean). When not lying on the beach drinking rum or "coco locos", we made resolutions for 2009. This is what was scribbled on my little red notebook.

Resolutions for 2009 (Lena)

Learn Spanish

Go to the gym A LOT

Lose 3 kilos

Drink less alcohol

Pay off my credit cards

Write a book

When going out, don’t always go to gay bars

Get a pay rise

Move house

Learn salsa (I was rather excited about salsa in Caribbean, now I have a triple CD with “300 best salsa songs” which I never ever listen)

Have more sex

Quit Smoking

Improve my Russian

Go to cinema every week

Teemu was perhaps a bit more realistic. His resolutions read:

Learn to whistle

Wear more boxers

Eat more healthy

Lose 3 kilos

Save money

Drink less beer

Get new friends and do interesting things with them

I found the notebook about year later and ticked off my achievements – 5 out of 14. Pretty good, I thought. How was I to predict the recession (no pay rise)? And going out in straight bars was a doomed idea from the start, because, you know, they are really really boring.  

We all know it’s not really about achieving everything on your list. It’s about looking into yourself, your life and finding out the little changes that would make you happier as a human being (like wearing more boxers - he did!). And just do your best.

If you need a little help with your resolutions this year, try hypnotherapy. It can help with quitting smoking, losing weight, social anxiety, phobias and bad habits such as nail biting. And to help you get started, Alphahypnotherapy is offering 30% off your treatment in January by quoting Blondie Ambitious. Cheers, for a better me! 

Life in Colombia was not that stressing until the New Year's resolutions kicked in.