New Year's Blues

At the end of the year, our society tells us to reflect on what we did over the last year, and highlight what we didn't accomplish, what we should have completed, where we should have gone, been, seen, eaten and so on. Instead we should be concentrating on how much we did accomplish; no matter how small or personal the achievements.

So you didn't usher in a new era of peace in the Middle East last year? Woah, you're pathetic, better make that your New Years Resolution (a topic I won't rant about, because I think Steve concisely covered that point).

While some people have the blues from their previous night's excessive drinking, most people get bogged down with moments they fell short. It should be a time to look forward; so don't let anyone get you down.

For me, I escaped the drudgery of Brussels and headed out to the sticks. Last year's New Years festivities in Brussels were depressingly mismanaged by Nostalgie (depressing golden-oldies radio), featuring a complete absence of the midnight count-down, and a dismal fireworks display that began several minutes late.

My quest for a quiet New Years didn't work out entirely this year, since torrential rain all night long made the midnight fireworks practically a wash out. Surprisingly, nobody stopped their plans out there in the sticks, so I suppose it worked out better than Liverpool!