I’ve made my one resolution for 2026. I will have no resolutions 

What’s the point? 

I’m just going to break them in one week 
or one month or somewhere around May 

when it begins to get L.A. weather lovely, 
and I just want to throw off all the burdens of winter 
and our crazy version of Spring 
and frolic on the beach 
and in the Pacific Ocean 

I’m lying, I haven’t been to the beach in years except to look out over the sand and water

Resolutions are defined as 
     “a firm decision to do or not do something”

Okay, so I did come up with one: 

lose weight—the perennial favorite of tens of millions of Americans including me

However, I’ve decided not to count that one because I’m either going to do it or not do it, 

and why would I place myself in a situation where 
I will have to feel guilty later on 
about not keeping the resolution to lose weight

I could just resolve not to lose weight

Then, if I lose the weight, 
I will have broken my resolution, 
but I won’t feel bad because I lost the weight

Got that?

Maybe, that’s the trick

Resolve not to do anything, 
and then if you break your resolution 
and it’s about something positive, 
you won’t feel bad about it

You’ll have reached a goal through the back door, 
and all you did was break a meaningless promise to yourself

It’s a win-lose situation but at least win is in the equation

You’ve heard the old saying about 
don’t make any promises you can’t keep, right? 

Well, that’s applicable here

At this time of the year, 
we make this long list 
of promises/resolutions 
about the future 
with never fully grasping 
the level of difficulty inherent 
in keeping those promises

Hell, 
we could get sick with COVID-19 
the day after we made the promise 
and be dead in a week afterward

Or we could find ourselves invited 
to a sibling’s or best friend’s wedding 
and realize that they’re serving the food
you love 
and you just can’t help yourself

The smell of pernil 
and Arroz con gandules overwhelms you, 
and you eat until it hurts, 
and they have to carry you
out of the wedding reception 
on a stretcher 
because you just didn’t have 
enough willpower 
to stick 
to your resolution 
to lose fifty pounds 
before your next birthday

Now, you’ve probably gained ten pounds 

fifteen if you count the wedding cake 
and the other desserts
that you stuffed down 
your greedy little mouth

Yeah, none of this is good for you 

You make resolutions, 
promise 
you’re going to stop cursing at home 
and in public 

M.F. has become my favorite word of all time, and I know it’s ugly, but it just slips out unconsciously

I know that on April 21, 2026, at approximately 7:30 p.m. 

I’m going to get pissed off 
at some news item on 
CNN 
or MSNOW
or some fool 
is going to make some stupid comment 
on my newsfeed about you know who 
and I’m going to M.F. them 
and the television set 

Boy, am I old

and then I’ll feel 
a little guilty afterward, 
and I will swear to my dead mother 
and father that I will never use 
that filthy word ever again

I’m lying

So why even go through the charade 
of making resolutions 
or promises 
only to end up repeating the resolution 
or promise after feeling like shit

another word I need to get rid of, 

and what does it get me? 

No, it’s just more inner conflict, 
and I’ll have to explain to my therapist 
that I once again broke a promise 
that I knew I couldn’t 
or wouldn’t keep

Isn’t that the root of the issue? 

It’s not just that we couldn’t keep it; 
we never really wanted 
to do it in the first place

We just went through the process 
because, well, 
that’s what we’ve been trained 
by tradition to do, 

make resolutions we know in our hearts 
and mind, 
we’re never going to keep

It’s sort of like a game of cards 
played with a cheat

You know they’re a cheat
They know you know 
they’re a cheat

But you still play the game, 
knowing how it’s going to turn out, 

but in the back of your mind, 
you think you’re smarter than them 
and that you are under the delusion 
that you could still win 
even when you know the truth

Wait what? That doesn’t even make sense

But we still do it 
because we’ve fooled ourselves

Once again

We go through life having unrealistic expectations 
of ourselves 
instead of taking a moment 
to take stock of where we are 
in that moment 
and decided yes, 

I can do that or no, I can’t do that

And if I can’t, then deciding 

okay, what do I have to do 
to get where I want to go 
or what do I have to learn 
to do what I would like to do

Look, 
I’ve always wanted to climb Mount Everest, 
but I know 
that's not going to happen 
at my age 

unless I do a whole series of tasks 
that I just don’t have time for, 

like you know, 
losing weight 
and maybe starting 
with a smaller mountain 
or hill 
before I decide 
to leap to the top of the world

Now, this doesn’t mean 
we shouldn’t dream big 
or make resolutions 
or promises to ourselves 
or others 

It just means 
that before you go climbing 
to the top of the world, 
you take a realistic moment 
and figure out 
what will it take to get there

It’s just about maybe taking a few mountain climbing lessons

It’s about looking at your body 
and mind 
and asking yourself 
if you have the ganas, the balls 

metaphorically speaking

to do what is necessary to do it

That’s why 
before you go all out 
and make that long list of resolutions 
to do this 
and to do that, 
you check yourself first. 

Do you have the ganas, 
the inner strength, 
and determination 
to make it happen? 

If you answer truthfully 
yes, then go for it. 

If you answer no, 
decide if you got the ganas to find yourself some ganas. 

Because life is always full of opportunities 
where ganas are necessary 
to make it through the day 
and life.

Good Ganas hunting 
and a Happy New Year.