Talkin' Bout a Resolution

New year's resolutions rarely work. I usually say I'm going to eat well and exercise, nothing specific. I think I keep up with it enough to not gain a lot of weight. I think it's not so much a problem with motivation or determination, but timing. We wake up on new year's day, the first day to start the rest of our lives in some better way, and we are given one of the greatest days of entertainment of the year: College Football Bowl Day! If there is anything that keeps me from exercising and eating well, it's college football. They should not be blamed in any way, and I would never think to sue them like those overweight kids tried to sue McDonald's, but it brings out the worst in me when it comes to health. I would never go to the grocery store to buy the food that's in front of me, yet I so easily consider it to account for two of my three meals for the day. I can't go to the gym and watch a game while I'm on the treadmill, that's almost anti-American enough to get your phones tapped.

Could I overcome this, yes. Am I going to, no. I think the whole resolution idea should be reworked. People should make a post football season resolution. This way you don't have to give yourself unrealistic expectations leading into the playoffs for college and pro football. Sure, one could argue that there's always something like March Madness or summer vacations around the corner that will cause you to fail. But we could treat the Super Bowl like Mardi Gras. They say that to create a habit, you need to do something for 21 straight days. There would be enough of lull time between then and the next big thing to start one. And the days would be getting longer and the weather warmer, plenty of reason to get outside and do something active.

I can't say it would work and I have no success stories, but it's a thought. Next year is too far away to not think about anything, so maybe I'll give up something for lent. Next year will have to decide if it works. Happy Fat Tuesday!

The Good Samaritan – Happy 2007

It wasn't a typical new years. A friend had some drinks on an empty stomach and needed some help. I had been in the same situation myself once, and vividly remember needing all the help I could get to make the time pass.

As we sat in the storage hallway area, I couldn't exactly leave her to get paper towels or water. A bus boy passed by to get a box. I asked him for some napkins and water. He ignored me; I like to think it was because he didn't know English and not because he didn't care. Next, the manager passed by and I asked him the same thing. This is the person whom I'm padding his wallet by being there. He walked by, noticed the situation and kept walking. Desperate for a little help, I didn't care who was around, I just needed someone to care for a second about the well-being of someone else. That night we were graced by the presence of an 80's cover band – Metal Shop. They were quite good, and dressed perfectly to match the era. As I'm trying to help my friend, the guitarist walks through. I asked him the same thing, and without thinking he hands me his own FIJI water. A few minutes later he came by to check on us.

Maybe he had been in that situation before himself. It was just the simplest gesture to show some love for complete strangers and get nothing in return. Not long after that, the manager (the same one that didn't care before) kindly asked us to leave and escorted my friend and I to the door. I guess we were posing some kind of liability problem. It was before the clock struck 12 at that point. I didn't care that I had to leave before midnight, but I couldn't believe people were still standing in line to get in. It was cold for Houston that night and I didn't take a jacket. I wonder how I looked in my "wife-beater" shirt while my friend tried to stay warm in my button up shirt. I just wish I could have thanked that guy that helped us. It's those little things in life that count.