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How I failed last year and how I want to fail again
I am all for New Year resolutions. I think this “idea” provides a safety blanket, a bravado, a ‘fake motivation’ that somehow spurs us to really fulfil our year like no other. Cliché as they may seem, paper filled with endless lists and top tens, how useful are they to us?
I for one like the belief and drive they instil in some people (myself included), and though some may mock people’s unachievable goals I think it is important to remember that having aims in life, or for the foreseeable months is never a bad thing.
Last year I over ambitiously set out to read 52 books in 52 weeks. I may have failed to read that number (due to some books being 700 pages) yet I still left 2014 with a sense of real accomplishment. It was not tainted by one of my friends continuously emphasising how I had totally failed this goal of mine.
However that should not have mattered to them and nor to me as I did succeed: I attempted my goal and reshaped it as I went through 2014 realising my page heavy books would slow me down and mean missing my ’52 target’.
This feeling of self-accomplishment isn’t necessarily one found at work or shared with others; it is an emotion felt at a very personal level.
A similar thinking blog caught my eye the other day as the author mentioned how she is focusing on one word to take her through 2015. This isn’t a new idea by any stretch of the imagination but it is another way to concentrate on your mental attitude. A way to feel ‘refreshed’ in your body, mind and attitude.
It can also be very therapeutic to list your dreams or aims no matter how farfetched and in turn, you can then plan how to meet these. I think the biggest obstacle in making changes, whether that is changing your diet or exercising more, is rewiring your mental state. Blocking out negative hurdles before the race starts.
Stop and think – how do you really feel about this goal? Is it one you really want to do – is your heart, mind and way of thinking in this one hundred per cent? It goes hand in hand with the saying, if you think it you can do it. It is without a doubt, our biggest strength and power is our mind. It goes further than even we know and is always two steps.
Do you have your own resolutions? How do you find they help you?
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Eastenders: storyline beyond belief?
Do we want to watch cot death and baby snatching on our television screens? Is that entertainment? With over 6000 complaints, has Eastenders gone too far?
The storyline that has caught the attention of thousands has caused uproar, fury and upset. Ronnie Mitchell and Kat Moon having given birth to baby boys within hours of each other. Little James Ronnie’s son dies from cot death and whilst wandering in the Square for help, she hears Tommy crying upstairs in The Queen Vic: she swaps her dead baby for Kat and Alfie Moon’s baby Tommy. Wow. Let me catch my breath. I did just say that two babies were born, one died and then they got switched. Sorry for any bluntness that may have caused offence. Did the scriptwriters think about the repercussions of this storyline?
Life and death are sensitive issues not to be taken lightly, in jest or to be ridiculed. In the case of child deaths our media, over the past few years, has been bombarded with children being abducted, abused or dying. Therefore this storyline caused outrage amongst many who found it offensive, disrespectful and all in all insensitive.
However, soaps are not meant to represent reality. They offer escapism, pleasure and food for thought. Theorists have argued that soaps tackle issues that we like to hide from society that do not fit into the “normal” family structure that people aspire to create in their lives.
The actress Samantha Womack (who plays Ronnie) is reported to be leaving the show and one of the reasons is the horrific storyline. The programme-makers already made last minute edits to the New Year’s Eve episode: a scene showing Ronnie touching the cold hand of her dead baby and Kat (in blood-soaked pyjamas) after Alfie Moon (her husband) finds her haemorrhaging in her bed.
The character Ronnie has suffered immensely throughout her character’s life: abused and raped by her father, having a baby when she was a teenager and her father led her to believe the baby was dead. Evidently many people have felt that this is a step too far for the character and completely over the top. Discussions have been raised about the believability: would you recognise your own baby? In addition most people feel this is the wrong time for such a tragic storyline. Christmas and New Year should be a joyous time and promoting self fulfilment for the year ahead, instead we find soaps competing for the craziest and most eccentric storyline. Is this the sad state of Britain’s soaps? Or is it a harsh portrayal of difficult issues? With the exception that baby swapping (in our culture and society) is very rare.
The last storyline in Eastenders to cause such a stir was only back in April 2009 when Danielle Jones (Ronnie’s daughter) was killed in a car crash. Is this the response of audiences saying enough is enough? How far will television producers and writers go to entertain the public? Is the BBC really conforming to the PSB format? Instead of seizing the opportunity to create happy memories with two strong, independent women in the script entering motherhood after storylines of tragedy and pain, Eastenders took the wrong turn. Through this controversial decision they have probably lost loyal fans as they have simply found the storyline too upsetting and devastating. The insensitive coverage of losing a baby did not consider viewers who have experienced this tragedy and underestimated the emotional trauma it has caused: who in their right mind would even contemplate swapping a dead baby for someone else’s living baby? Eastenders in the past has tackled issues in a thoughtful and responsible manner (story line) considering ethical, emotional and personal problems. Has the focus this time been too much on causing shock and gaining the highest ratings over the Christmas period? What do you think? Dun dun dun dun dunnnnnnn…..
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Cheap Christmas entertainment
The Christmas weekend is over. Most people have indulged over and over in the past few days and are probably frantically writing New Years resolutions already. Left over scraps, biscuits and nibbles still remain. Family visiting in the next few days. So how do you have a cheap fun-filled night suitable for all with little time left to prepare? Simple, horse racing indoors. Neeehh, I hear you say!
Well in fact, the horse racing night is a DVD, suitable for all ages and can be as competitive as you let it be! The horse racing DVD (race night) is a cost-effective night full of excitement and non-stop entertainment for guests. Each player has a limit of money and can bet a minimum of £25 on each horse. One person is in charge of all of the bets (the book-keeper) and once all bets have been placed guests view the race on the DVD. The footage on the DVD are from real races over the past few years which adds to the realism of the evening. Alongside beverages and food the evening is a guaranteed success.
Amazon also sells other interesting DVD’s for an evenings worth of entertainment. It is an evening for families to socialise and bond whilst also enjoying the thrills of gambling (safely). To make it even more fun, the host of the evening could supply prizes such as money, chocolate or drinks for 1st, 2nd or 3rd place. So take a gamble and it may just pay off!
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