Not for the faint of art. |
Well, here we are at the end of another trip around the sun (or close enough), at a purely arbitrary date on a purely arbitrary calendar. I had what I consider to be the beginning of the new cycle ten days ago, on the solstice. If anything should mark a transition on what's really a continuum, let it be something real and measurable. But, most of the world uses the Gregorian calendar for recordkeeping and consistency (it is, I'll grant, remarkably good at calculating solar returns), and it's one of the few things most of us share. So we want to impose meaning on December 31 / January 1, fine. Impose it. At least it's usually celebrated with two of my favorite activities: Drinking, and staying up late. Now, I don't usually make resolutions. I think they're artificial, and set the resolutor (or whatever) up for failure. Besides, it's a bandwagon thing, and I hate bandwagon things. Another bandwagon thing is the concept of Dry January: the idea of abstaining from ethanol during that calendar month, perhaps in penance for December's overindulgence. This concept legitimately offends me, and I don't get offended easily. In past years, I've simply ignored it and gone on doing what I usually do. Thing is, contrary to popular belief (that I promote), I don't actually drink every day. Usually once or twice a week. More, perhaps, when I'm on a trip, but only if I'm not subsequently driving. But this New Year's, I've decided to throw personal tradition into the trash and actually make a (gasp) resolution: Be it hereby resolved that, in protest of the abominable concept of Dry January, Waltz is determined to drink an alcoholic beverage every day during the calendar month of January. This could be a cocktail, a shot of tequila, a dram of scotch, a tot of rum, a bottle of beer, a glass of wine, or the equivalent. More than that is acceptable. Less is not. I do reserve the right to deliberately fail at the resolution in the case of illness or severe injury that requires painkillers, but apart from that, no excuses. Don't get me wrong: anyone who genuinely wants to stop drinking, temporarily or permanently, as a resolution or otherwise, I wish them well. This is for me. I just have major issues with following a crowd or participating in what's probably little more than abolitionist propaganda. We'll see how it goes. Knowing me, I'll fail at it like most of us fail at resolutions. |