Alright, 2017. One more year has passed, it’s never been a big deal to me, but for some it is. Nothing around here has really changed except the calendar and now I have to get used to writing 2017 when I just got used to writing 2016. Mostly.

All day long I’ve been telling myself I should write something about the new year, or the old one . . . I did word searches all day instead though.

I don’t know what to say about last year, it was the best of times, it was the worst of times, I stole that from Dickens of course. It works. Just like last year and the year before that, there were ups and downs and in-betweens and I survived them all. I expect this new year will be the same because that’s life. We have to take the good with the bad and do what we can with it.

I’ve heard so many people saying this was the worst year ever, politically, socially, etc.. I don’t know about that. Historically there have been some pretty bad years. If we really want to compare, I think we came out fairly well. But that’s just me. I’ve been upset about elections before, saddened by world events, celebrity passings, and gotten my panties in a bunch over something or another my fellow humans have said or done. In the end, it is what it is and I either said or did something about it or I didn’t. None of it ruined my year.

If I were to sit down and make two lists, one for the good stuff that happened this year, and one for the bad, I think the good would likely outweigh the bad, unless I wanted to nit-pick, like, I stubbed my toes approximately 12 gazillion times, I spilled my coffee (one spill is too many when it comes to coffee), I had to interact with people more than I anticipated, and so on. But if I did that, I would have to include things on my good stuff list like the too many to count smiles I received from strangers, the serendipitous moments in life that always catch me by surprise, and all the coffee I didn’t spill.

I know it’s easier to focus on the negative sometimes, not sure why, human nature crap, the bad stuff just seems bigger if we don’t remember to hold on to the good stuff just as tightly. I almost hate to say it, actually, I don’t, I embrace my Disney Nerd, we need to learn to let it go, at least loosen our grip a little.

Too many people hold on to annoyances and anger and sorrow like treasures, while the real treasures, the ones that matter are scattered and forgotten. So maybe this year, let some of it go. Don’t even pick that shit up and add it to your collection. Look at things, examine them, maybe borrow them for a short while to see if they’re really worth keeping and if whatever it is, good or bad, doesn’t bring something positive into your life in some way, let it the frack go.

I’ve said something like this before and got blasted for it, some people don’t like being told to look at the good and walk away from the bad, those people get pissy and say mean things, those people are not adding enough things to their happy list.

I know there are some things we have to hold on to that aren’t wonderful. I know it. I fricking know it. I also know, we don’t have to carry those things with us everywhere we go, we don’t have to keep them on permanent display. That good stuff needs some room, it needs to shine.

So anyway, Happy New Year. God bless. Good luck. May the force be with you. Nanoo nanoo. Live long and prosper.