happy new year

This blog needs a new header, perhaps a new name. It needs a lot of things, but for today I'm just going to sit and play my Flea, still in its party hat from last night.

We had our usual New Year's Eve party. It has changed shape greatly over the years, from the first year playing board games with friends all night long to last night's more lively rounds of team trivia and group singing. This morning I looked at the piece of butcher paper we taped to the wall.

The kids went to town with it, but amongst all the silliness are some genuine resolutions: a couple about learning ukulele (we had all the ukes out last night, just as we did last year when the idea of an uke group first hatched), others about pets, reading, sports goals, travel and having fun. And one very sweet: "Not be so shy." I have no idea who wrote any of them, although I have guesses at a few.

My resolutions are not on the paper, and I can't think of any I would write. When I start the New Year with friends, it's hard to want to change much. Instead, what I want is to remember to be grateful for the days I have and the people around me. With any success at that, I believe it could be a very good year indeed. I hope yours is, too.