So it’s a new year, apparently, and like nearly everyone in the “western world” I’ve succumbed to the temptation to evaluate my life, who I am and what I’m doing here, and as usual it’s mostly with a view towards doing things a little better this time around our favourite star. This perhaps could not be described as “noble”, exactly, but it surely does more good than harm. Unless, of course, you kick yourself (metaphorically speaking) when you almost-inevitably fail to live up to your own elevated expectations.
Which is why I like to spend the first weekend of the new year at home, drinking, smoking, watching TV and generally breaking every “resolution” I may have accidently made over Hogmanay. Once you’ve failed, the fear of failure is gone and you can get on with it; it’s your basic Bruce Lee “learn to be defeated” thing.
I did resist making “resolutions” — written down, carved in psychological stone — as much as I could, and I came through with some rather more general ideas about stuff I might want to try on, try out, take for a spin. It suits me that way, I think.
So I’m being healthier than I have been for a while, watching my calories and going to the gym. I’ve lost a couple of kilos excess baggage, which is nice, and I’m saving money by not buying my lunch everyday so it’s really win-win.
I’m also finally starting to listen to music again, thanks in no small part to my musically-focused Christmas presents: a pair of wireless Sennheiser headphones and a DAB radio. It feels like it’s been ages since I really listened to music, and I’d forgotten just how much I love it — I kick back with my “cans” on, streaming whatever I’ve downloaded from the web with Songbird, and just feel good. It’s especially good when it means I sit down with a book rather than the TV.
Thanks to the DAB, I’m also waking up to “modern” music; I hope it will eventually soak in and I’ll actually recognise tracks, although it’s a pretty diverse bunch of stuff I’m getting from Songbird so who knows? Finally, Deeji has got herself a fancy-pants new phone, so I’ve got unlimited use of her iPod nano … and the rockin’ in-ear headphones I found for her(Sennheiser, again — I really like their equipment!). Still need to copy all the “girly” music off and fill it with “my” stuff: indie rock and pop, electronica, some slow-ish angst-metal and anything obscure.
Of course, my own little MP3 player is a lanyard-bound Joybee, but I’ve now found that (once loaded up with heart-racing beats) it is absolutely perfect for the gym! It even looks a little like a digital stopwatch or something; you have to pretty fit and healthy to strap an iPod to your arm without looking a least a little like a complete tool, I think.
At the moment, I like Merit, by Cougar.