I’m not one for making New Year’s Resolutions, possibly because I don’t trust myself to keep them. However, while on holiday at the end of 2004, a barista with whom I made friends over morning coffee fixes talked me into writing a list for 2005. And I recently found the list and my year-end review.

As we’ve just seen in New Year 2019, I thought it would be fun to reveal my January 2005 resolutions (in bold) and my December 2005 review (in italics). I’ve also added a few contemporary comments (in brackets).

Please note: The resolutions are listed in the order I wrote them in my 2005 diary. I don’t recall prioritising them, but I am pleased to see what I put at the top of my list.

My 2005 Resolutions

1. Be a good dad.
Who knows? Ask Jaiden. (My son was a three-year-old back then. He’s now sixteen, and when I showed him this goal, he laughed — is that a good sign?)

2. Launch Tall And True website by March.
What a joke! Still a pipe dream! (Dream on, younger me: About Tall And True.)

3. Shut down Tall And True if website not launched by June.
Yeah, yeah, but then I’d have to accept a financial loss. (The website “profit and loss” issue is still a work-in-progress!)

4. Establish an alternative income stream to solo-consultancy.
Stuck in a rut here. (Needed to launch Tall And True sooner!)

5. Finish kitchen cupboards by end of January.
Sort of done, by middle-of-year. (In 2013, we renovated our house and kitchen and demolished my DIY cupboards.)

6. Finish living room floors and skirting by February.
Erm, February 2006? (Long term blushes saved by 2013 renovations!)

7. Bookshelves in the living room by February.
Done, but not until middle-of-year.

8. Bookshelves in the home office room by January.
Not done, but my wife says I’ve got too many books, anyway.

9. Build a balcony or third bedroom upstairs.
I got a quote for plans. (Built balcony, bedroom and a bit more during 2013 renovations.)

10. Write my first novel by June.
Erm, June 2006?

11. Get published in 2005.
Had letter published in The Big Issue, does that count?

12. Practise guitar three times a week.
More like three times a month. (And nowadays, less than three times a year!)

13. Build a set of tunes for jamming with Elio.
Pass — see above. (Elio is a mate from Perth and an accomplished guitarist … unlike me!)

14. Ride my bike 2-3 times a week.
Achieved in the month of April, on Dubbo holidays. (We rode our bikes during a 3-day visit to the Western Plains Zoo.)

15. Buy a widescreen TV. 
Done. But wish I’d bought an HD TV instead of a cheaper standard definition set. (Still tortured by technology decisions!)

16. Buy a sailing boat.
Dream on! (I’m still dreaming of sailing!)

17. Walk Harry every morning and evening.
Done. At least I’m a good dog owner. (My black labrador, Harry, was the muse for much of my Writing on Dogs.)

18. Read every night.
At least 2-3 sentences, before aslee-zzzzz (I should have tried reading Large Print Editions sooner!)

19. Write in my diary every 2-3 days.
Done. The 2005 diary is my most complete ever. (And I’ve kept up the habit, writing a diary entry for every day since January 2005, as I wrote in 32 Years of Diaries.)

20. Curb my short temper — read a book on changing behaviour.
Erm, 2006? (I still haven’t read Change Your Thinking by Sarah Edelman on my bookshelf.)

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Three Resolutions

Never before and never again did I write such a long list of Resolutions. I may have set myself one or two goals for the coming year while sipping champagne at midnight, but I didn’t record them and I don’t recall them (the champagne probably didn’t help).

Looking back over my list from 2005, if I was to make New Year’s Resolutions for 2019, there would be only three:

1. Be a good dad
2. Be a good dog owner
3. And write!

And if I can achieve that, then it will be a Happy New Year.

© 2019 Robert Fairhead

N.B. This post also appears on Tall And True. You might be interested in another reflective blog post, Sixteen Xmas Memories (December 2018).