What resolutions did you make on New Year’s Eve? Quit smoking? Start hitting the gym? Or did you go down the spiritual route, by vowing to be kinder to the in laws/children/neighbours? However well conceived these ideas may be, you may as well forget about them. It’s a well-known fact that by the second week of January (or end of the month in the case of the most tenacious people) these resolutions are abandoned and forgotten about, the reason being that giving something up, or indeed attempting something new is pointless unless you really want to – there is no benefit in self-punishment, and it only results in half-arsed efforts. Why hire a personal trainer at £50 an hour only to lie about the carbs you had with last night’s dinner? If you really, really want to make a difference this year, do something you actually want to do or that will change the life of someone who really needs it, rather than cut down on the Kettle Chips because you feel you’re being a bit naughty (unless you’ve been advised by a doctor to cut down on the Kettle Chips, in which case you should definitely listen to him/her). \n\nHelp others
The debate rages on as to whether soup kitchens really do help the homeless or whether they merely encourage vagrancy, the latter point being argued by Westminster council and surprisingly enough by the founder of the Big Issue. If you disagree that offering a hot meal between 10am and 12am each day is enough for people to say no to a roof over their heads then consider volunteering at one of the few places left in the capital doing soup runs. The American Church in Tottenham Court Road needs three to four volunteers per day and the Muswell Hill Churches Soup Kitchen in north London operates in the evening from Sunday to Thursday. Alternatively you could give some of your time to help out at a charity shop. Those with a touch of misanthropy about them might prefer to work with animals by volunteering at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home or the RSPCA, or why not go one further and give an orphaned animal a home?
Helping out can be heaps of fun if you involve a favourite hobby. The Museum of London, British Museum and Natural History Museum are always on the lookout for volunteers to do anything from assisting visitors to cataloguing collections. If controlling crowds, serving drinks and getting trampled on are more your thing, consider volunteering at a music festival such as Lovebox in Victoria Park. As a steward you get to hear echoey music in the background and you might even catch a glimpse of Mark Ronson on his way to the VIP tent, shandy in hand.
Give something to someone who needs it
Did Santa bring you a monstrous jumper or a fluffy duster this Christmas? If that’s the case, first you might want to reflect on what hideous crime you committed to deserve such awful gifts. Second, if you want to get rid of them (along with any other old junk that’s taking up valuable space) join the Freecycle website. The website is categorised by postcode and goods are collection only, therefore you won’t even have to transport those old copies of Cosmo and the computer games that will only work on a ZX Spectrum. If you do fancy a trip down the high street and can’t be bothered to faff around online then donate your unwanted items to a second hand shop. One person’s clutter is another one’s prize, and this way that set of fluffy dusters might be going to someone whose home needs a spring clean and who is hard up for cash.
\n\nMake your own
With the rise of inflation, VAT and the pesky recession still very much present, DIY will soon become the norm. The reason knitting has become so trendy of late is not because Hoxtonites have unanimously decided it’s cooler to crochet on the tube than read Dazed and Confused but because making your own clothes is a fantastic way to save those pennies. I Knit, a shop based in Waterloo, sells all manner of knitting paraphernalia as well as offering classes and a heart-warming crocheting session every Sunday complete with roast dinner. Stripy socks, jumpers and polka dot woolly leggings will be making the fashion rounds next season, from austerity chic to the front cover of Vogue.
Have fun
When did New Year’s resolutions become about being ‘good’ in the doormat sense of the word? Why not resolve to make this year the most fun, debauched 12 months of your life rather than focussing on how to be a model citizen? Put up a shelf up in your living room and fill it will luscious liquors and spirits, throw lavish dinner parties and make a point of seeing your nearest and dearest more often, instead of spending extra time at the office. Have tea at The Wolseley and eat at one of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants – many fine dining eateries do lunchtime deals that won’t cost you a kidney. Go on a bar crawl through Soho, dance the night away at Fabric or at the dark and trendy The CAMP in the East End. Most of all, laugh as much as you can. Enjoyment does comes with certain realisations - this might also be the year when you decide you’re never going to fit into those tight jeans again without developing a hernia, so donate them to charity and tuck into the cheesecake. You only live once.
