Brunansky's Blog

The year is officially over. It’s finally 2021. There’s plenty of advice out there that says you should move forward and not look back. If we took that advice there wouldn’t be retrospectives and no reason for me to be writing to you now. We will ignore the sages of our time this once. This once we’ll glance back on what many believed to be an exhausting and incredibly bizarre year. We can even explore possible reasons why. And, we will, absolutely, look at some of the highlights. Without further adieu, let’s dive back into 2020 once more and say hello now that we just said goodbye.

2021 Resolutions: Worth it or Nah?

The new year always ushers in feelings of empowerment for many people. According to this article from INC, “…about 60% of us make New Year’s resolutions but only 8% are successful in achieving them.” This indicates that a majority of people feel strongly that January is a month to initiate positive change in your life. Additionally, the concept of “Monday” continues to inspire people to consider initiating new habits. It’s the belief that “Monday” is a fresh start and with a fresh start people feel unencumbered by past failures or disappointments and begin anew with vigor and passion. New Years is that same clean slate, or fresh start, that invites us to look at what we want our lives to be and what our lives have been. Sadly, the reality of life (according to the INC article) is that only 8% of people are able to follow through which means that the majority of people are failures, in this regard. So, does this mean that New Years is nothing more than an illusion for potential success? If 92% of people fail at their resolutions, is the first of the year just an invitation to fail at something you believe will make your life better? Maybe.

How do you define failure? You don’t have to answer now. Suddenly blurting out an answer might make you look strange if you’re in a public space. Do think about how you define failure while you continue reading. American society places a standard of minimal success on the individual, couple or family, that works, pays their bills and has enough money to enjoy their life on their own terms. If you require help from the government, friends or family, you’re clearly doing (or have done) something wrong because in America it’s possible to achieve your life if you work hard. If you need help, you clearly aren’t working hard enough. However, our society is experiencing a curious paradigm shift in this mentality. I believe this mentality was born mostly out of our countries history of becoming through hard work. It was hard work to start a new country. It was hard work saving that country from itself during the civil war. It was hard work building an industrial empire during the industrial revolution. It was hard work defeating enemies abroad during World War 2. It was hard work to do all the drugs you wanted and have all the sex you can enjoy during the 60’s and 70’s. It was hard work to wear a fanny pack during the 80’s with a straight face. It was hard work to illegally download all the music and software you wanted during the 90’s. It was hard work letting our Federal Government steal our freedoms with the Patriot Act in the 2000’s. It was hard work allowing our capitalist government to create socialized healthcare in the 2010’s. It was hard work allowing a flu like virus to completely shut down the economy and force people to live in comfortable clothes at home. Ok, so our culture has been in a downward spiral since we won the second world war. Apparently, defeating the Nazi’s allowed us to become the laziest and most self indulgent aspect of ourselves. Who would’ve guessed? Let’s suggest, instead, we haven’t failed. Let’s look through the lens of life as one Thomas Edison, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

So, now, how do you define failure? Your answer will help you determine if you are or are not a failure. If you set a New Years resolution and don’t meet that resolution did you fail? Or, did you just realize that the manner in which you set your goal won’t work? Will you begin anew on a Monday with a fresh perspective on how to adapt to achieve your resolution? Or, will you say “meh” and wait until January of next year? And just as America continues to find ways that won’t work, I’m sure we all will continue learning throughout our lives. Or maybe you won’t? I don’t know. Some people just resign themselves to “meh” and that’s ok. It’s their life. I was fired from my job almost four years ago. You might define that as a failure. I’ve been unemployed/underemployed since that firing. You might also call that a failure. I’ve had to borrow money from my parents to get by. Again, probably defining that as failure. I’ve received countless job application rejection emails. That too, more failure. I’ve been single for longer than I’ve been unemployed. But, to be fair, I’ve applied zero effort in attempting to cultivate new relationships with women. Some might consider that a personal relationship failure. And, if there wasn’t enough failure already, I’ve been working on a project for almost four years that still hasn’t gotten me paid. So, yeah, you might continue to see my life as a failure. Through all this failure that continues to stack higher and higher into the sky like a tower, I don’t see it as a failure, per se. In that time, I’ve managed to write a book and make three short films which is a creative success story. I’ve also managed to get back into shape which is a success story for health. In the past year alone, I’ve read many books that cover myriad topics which is an intellectual success story. However, the basic, minimum, defining principles of American success aren’t there yet. Is it a failure? Am I a failure? I haven’t given up yet, so, no I’m not a failure. And if you haven’t given up on your life, you aren’t a failure either.

The years have been very gracious to us when it comes to quality entertainment. It doesn’t matter if it’s tv, movies, music, art, books, photography or sports. We continue to enjoy top caliber talent from countless individuals. A show like, “The Mandalorian” on Disney+ is a great example of what is now possible because of streaming. As a life long fan of “Star Wars” it’s been a delight watching this show this past year. Plus, with streaming I was able to enjoy films from Charlie Chaplin, Jean Renoir, Federico Fellini and Akira Kurosawa and (early) Alfred Hitchcock. Plus, we still had some entertaining films in theaters before they closed. Films like, “The Invisible Man,” “The Gentlemen,” “Wonder Woman 1984,” “Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey,” “Artemis Fowl” and “Bloodshot.”

When it came to music, I listened to many random playlists that brought me all sorts of sounds. Strictly albums, I enjoyed “Future Nostalgia” by Dua Lipa and “Man from the Future” by the Polyrhythmics. Both these albums can play from start to finish without interruption. Then we had pop stars, rock stars and more dropping single after single for us to enjoy all year. If we weren’t watching something we were definitely able to listen to some well produced tracks.

As far as the news is concerned, archeologists discovered the largest, well preserved, mammoth fossils near Mexico City. Scientists in the UK and Colorado discovered a new way to break down single use plastics for recycling. Space X, a private space exploration company, launched a successful crewed flight into space and it returned to earth safely. China working with the United Arab Emirates also launched a space ship to Mars. We had Brexit news, plus Prince Harry and his wife go to Hollywood and start a podcast. And the California fires plus the human exodus from California to more affordable states.

Some of the books I read weren’t published in 2020 but I did finish reading them in 2020. Books like, “The Moral Animal” by Robert Wright, “The Dead Zone” by Stephen King, “On Directing Film” by David Mamet, “Capitalism and Freedom” by Milton Friedman, “The Analects” by Confucius and more. There has been no shortage of good reads that explored history, psychology, philosophy, religion, film, good versus evil, personal journeys and beyond. From the truth in non-fiction to the world building of fiction, 2020 had plenty to explore and learn from.

That’s enough about 2020 from me. Let me know in the comments what you thought was a highlight of 2020 for you. What positive mentions do you have for the last year? I’m off to enjoy my morning with my new puppy and the brisk and inviting weather that is currently waiting for me outside. May you find success in 2021. May you find love in 2021. May you find whatever you are searching for this year and the years to come. I raise my glass to you and yours on this the first day of 2021. Happy New Year!

-JB

PS: Best of luck with your New Years resolutions!