New Years Resolutions

Ah, the start of another year! In a groggy haze on New Years Eve, I promised someone or was it myself that I would be good this year. I said I would draw up my New Year�s Resolutions � particularly after the roller-coaster year I had last year. Well, a promise is a promise. I can�t very well start the New Year by breaking the resolution that I was going to write my New Year�s Resolutions, can I So, here it is, broken down into months being the control freak that I am.

JAN � Donate old PC to a Deserving Relative

After all, to give is more rewarding than to receive but not quite as rewarding as to buy. So I guess it�s au revoir to my X86 sitting in the corner of my study. Now, who should I give it to Who will appreciate my very first, very own PC My 91 year-old Gran so she can learn to type Or my 5 year-old niece so she, too, can fall in love with Frogger and Pacman I grew up with instead of playing with her PlayStation 2

FEB � Start RDO Rostered Day Out

Negotiate with The Boss to work offline, of course in the park one day a month. I want to feel the breeze in my hair, the green grass underfoot and the occasional bird droppings on my head. I want to feel free as I prepare my daily status report. I want to pretend I�m unshackled even if the price I have to pay is grass stains on my suit. Just for once, I want to live like the lucky b!@#$%^s on those TV ads.

MARCH � Test Drive a Hot Spot

I can be savvy. I can be cool. Just because I don�t have the latest 3G video bluetooth- enabled combined PDA/Phone yet doesn�t make me a techno geek. I am techno sleek! In the month of March, I shall borrow The Boss�s Centrino laptop and test drive a Hot Spot. I shall sit at the caf� downstairs from work, sip coffee, pick at my friand and surf the net to check my share portfolio performance yeah, as if. This will be the ultimate testament that I have lived � no, that I am really living - because I can work without being bound to power cables. I can say to the rest of the world, I have a WiFi lifestyle.

APRIL � Turn Multimedia PC into Karaoke Machine

In April, I shall make real use of my all-in-one multimedia PC. I won�t be content just using it to tape shows from TV, watch DVD with 7.1 channel output and play all my shoot �em up games. I will go one step further. I will transform it into a karaoke machine�in time for Australian Idol II. It used to life be in it. Now, it�s singing be in it. I even have proof. The Google 2003 Year-End Zeitgeist showed that Australian Idol was the most popular internet query in Australia www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html. See, I�ve right there with the in-crowd. I contributed to the incredible stats. Go, Cosima! You go, girl!

MAY � Clean Up Electronic Files From Network/CD/Floppies

Yes, like Autumn pruning, this housekeeping task is boring but necessary. Also, I can�t afford to wait until Spring to commence the electronic file Spring Clean. At the rate I�m archiving, triple backing up and ghosting my files, I�ll accumulate another filing cabinet full of CDs between Autumn and Spring�on top of the three cabinet fulls I already have. Maybe I�ll get a 200 GB external hard disk�

JUNE � Stop End of Financial Year Madness

Oh, how I�d love to hate June�but all those end-of-financial year bargains! �Buy something now for a final chance to claim tax deductions this year!� I can already see the advertisement headlines. This June, I will not succumb to temptation and buy/upgrade a mobile phone, PDA, laptop or digital camcorder. Must tell self: �contrary to self-imposed belief, I will not spontaneously combust from a mild dose of STAS Sensible Technology Adoption Syndrome�. I will sponsor a World Vision child instead. At $35 a month or $420 a year, it�s cheaper than a new PDA, laptop or camcorder. And tax-deductible too!

JULY � Expand My Horizons�Outdoors

There�s no reason to huddle myself in the house just because it�s cold. I must stop playing those video games. After all, it�s hardly healthy to pretend I am any of the following: James Bond, Lara Croft, Tony Hawke or Harry Potter. Go outdoors and enjoy the fresh, chilly air. I will ride a bike, bushwalk or hike. I will try bungy jumping, sky-diving, parasailing, absailing�Yeah, right! Who am I kidding

AUG � Take Time Out to�Organise Photo Album

Something tells me the extreme sports challenge from July will not take. So this month, in my winter of house-bound discontent, I shall take to organising my photo album. I still have photos from my 1998 trip to Europe in three different shoeboxes unsorted. I suppose that�s hardly surprising since I still have the 1999 Paris my favourite calendar hanging in the kitchen. So this month, I shall organise and scan all my photos from the last century�and take down the Paris calendar sob, sob.

SEPT � Install PC Security�Properly

Install the latest virus-protection, firewall, surge protection, backup software and vigilantly check for updates. I know I�ve been lucky so far�goodness knows I�ve committed too many �install and ignore� sins. Better not push my luck. After all, I wouldn�t want my 23 episodes of 24 to be wiped out in one foul swoop before I�ve had the time to indulge in my round-the-clock Kiefer-Sutherland-thon!

OCT � Subscribe to Something Useful

I will stop compulsively subscribing to sites offering the latest bargains. As we head into the last quarter, I need more motivational sites that give me tips, advice and quotes on how to feel better, work better and be better. I need inspiration delivered straight to my inbox since technology still can�t deliver it directly to my head. Inspirational messages like this Walt Disney quote: �If you can dream it, you can do it.� Hmm, fast-track promotion, here I come!

NOV � Get Rid of Techno Junkie Addiction

As the year starts to draw to a close, I must curb my addiction to all the techno gadgetry. Last year, I failed miserably and ended up with three mobile MP3 players: a standard 128MB MP3 player, an improved model with voice recording a feature I�ve not yet had the opportunity to use and a 1.5GB mobile juke box just because I need something to hold more songs to take on a planned 10 hour trip up the coast�which I still haven�t booked. This year, I must do better. I heard there�s no better way to cure an addiction than taking up a�hobby. Now, is there anything non-tech I want from eBAY

DEC � End of Year Appraisal

As with any good New Year�s resolution, we must track our progress and compare actuals to our plans. Month by month, I want to know whether I�ve kept to my word. For example, by 31 Dec 2004, I don�t want to see that X86 still sitting in the corner of my study. Wait, I seem to recall saying something about getting rid of that X86 last year, or was it the year before that, or was it 1994 Whatever. There�s always 2005.

I hope you�ve had a chance to draw up your New Year�s resolutions. All joke aside, a wise woman once told me: �A goal is a dream with a deadline!� So, what are you waiting for Get out your PDA, fire up Word, plug in the camcorder and set those goals. Most of all, enjoy the 2004 roller-coaster ride!