No shame November

Some people like to do New Year’s resolutions. While those are good and fun, what most tend to miss is the practicality and efficiency of November resolutions.

That is, goals and restrictions you set for yourself and the month of Thanksgiving.

Here’s why: We all know New Year’s resolutions never go right, and when we fail, we end up disappointed in ourselves and ready to give up on anything that
follows.

So think of November resolutions as a kind of first pancake to a sharper list of goals you’ll make later on New Year’s Eve. So, your “floss everyday” and “no more diet coke” resolution didn’t go so well? Revise it. Redo it. It’s just November.

November is one of those months that has the tendency to yield awful things and confront you with all the dead skeletons and undone projects you neglected this semester.

It’s not yet Christmas, and you’re still hungover from October, dazed and unready to take on final projects or winterish commitments.

Just looking at our week, we’ve found an unprecedented amount of violence with the loss of one life, several other cases of gun threats and a bomb scare at the Monroe County Library.

All the rest of us are left scared and doubtful about the safety of this college town.
In the face of everything hitting the fan, it is November’s duty to confront what we’ve had to learn from the events leading up to it.

Transitional periods in weather create prompts to contemplate what we used to be and come to terms with who we are now.

November resolutions are about taking fears and turning them into challenges, accepting past errors in order to improve them. Aim at the worst mistakes you’ve made this semester and oppose them with the word “no.”

For example, I have a problem with punctuality. Last week, I showed up to work two hours late. Last week, my column didn’t even run because I couldn’t turn it in on time.
The resolution here would be “No-Late November.”

Don’t worry so much about the likeliness of these resolutions happening. They’re there to loom over you so you can implicitly improve, so tap into specificities.

“No-Hate November,” “No-Cake November,” “No-Fake November,” “No-Fear November,” “No-Fluff November,” “No-Cigarette November,” “No-Caffeine-at-Nighttime November,” “No-Cruising-Amazon-When-You’re-Drunk November,” “No-Texting-Your-Ex-Boyfriend-When-You’re-Lonely November.” The list goes on.

Now commence the get-yourself-together month. Make it your own. November is about telling yourself no and consequentially learning what it is we can and can’t handle for 2012.

Start resolving.

­—  ftirado@indiana.edu