Norman Ralph

I was surfing the blogosphere when I came across this post on Will’s site.

In the post, Will argues that the idea of selecting an arbitrary period of time – in this case the year – is a somwehat pointless exercise and in fact, in the case of moving from one year to another, actually does harm in certain circumstances. The example he gives is that of expecting a different outcome to an event based on the changing of an arbitrary number – ie the year 2008 to 2009.

Now whilst I agree in part to this sentiment – I am often drawn to the idea that the definition of a fool is someone that repeats the same action over and over and expects a different outcome – I find the rejection of the need to quantify time in arbitrary units a step too far.

It is true that there is almost no difference between 2008 and 2009 as the terrestrial year is based on an orbit – so the cosmos looks virtually the same in any two corresponding months (ie March 2004 and March 2008). This is not the whole story though. The cosmos is different. It is a year different. The universe will be bigger, the background radiation ever so slightly cooler, the sun ever so slightly depleted in material for nuclear fusion, the universe is different. This suggests that the definition of being a fool is not so easily applied here. March 2004 may have seen an outcome of one event that changes when repeated in March 2009 due to one of those variables (and the countless others) being important. The cosmological differences may seem a little abstract, so a few variables from the practical world down here on earth – the financial and economic differences will mean that the result of a monetary action last year will not be the same result as the same monetary action this year, the change in administration in the US may mean that the results of two politcal actions may differ from last year to next.

The 1st January is not significant, it is no more the start of one year than any other day, or midnight being any more significant that any other hour for that matter. The day and time do not matter, we could decide that Octber 23rd is the start of the new year and it would make no difference in terms of the universe, but the universe does get older second by second. So, whilst we may scoff at the idea of picking a day to celebrate new beginnings it does not take away from the fact that things can turn out differently if we try again.

The Christmas festivities are over, the New Year hangovers have subsided and 2008 is nearly a week old. This seems like the perfect opportunity to take a look back at 2007 and the people, events and ideas that made it.

Christmas and New Year are always a time for reflection and nostalgia and this year was no different. My family was all together for the first time in a while, including some of the new additions. I had an enjoyable time with several highlights – firstly, I caught up with some old friends and relived some of those moments from my youth that I miss. I also had a good time Christmas Day as I actually felt part of the family for the first time in many years. The end of December was also a good time for me, I spent it with Liz and her family and really felt accepted.

Anyway, back to my review of the year.

January
January was an interesting month, fisrt it saw the blossoming of a new friendship, one that would lead to something quite special – although i didn’t know that at the time of course. This month saw the final plans for the new academic year’s housing plans and all the arguments that surrounded that decision. This is probably the time that I cemented my friendship with a number of people whom I now consider my closest allies.

January’s exam period was hard for me, not just for the obvious reasons, but because it saw the dawning in my mind that I had lost my passion in Materials Engineering, that the course was no longer the inspiration I required. I began to toy with the idea of leaving university, or at least changing course.

February
I don’t remember much of February apart from starting at McDonald’s and buying a new car. I also went to Langdale in the Lake District with my mum.

March
March was an interesting month, I saw Barenaked Ladies in concert in Leeds which was amazing, visited Sarann in the Lakes and most importantly I started this blog.

April
Now here is the definition of a rollercoaster ride. I reached some of the lowest points of my life but also touched some of the highest highs. I ran Rationalist Week, spent a week in a self-destructive spiral of drinking, partying and depression, I met a girl and fell in love.

May
May was a busy month. Liz and my relationship went from strength to strength, went to see Soweto Kinch and The Who live in concert and Blackpool won in the League One play-offs and got themselves promoted to the Championship.

June
Festivals were the order of the day/month for June. I went to Sunrise and Farmyard Party to work in a chip van with Sarann. I had a great time but it meant not seeing Liz for a lot of the month – the first real test for our relationship. I think we ended up stronger than ever! Chris ended up in hospital with a serious bout of appendicitis and I spent a lot of time helping Matt sort out his car.

July
July was quite boring compared to the surrounding months.I went to Workhouse in Wales, had minor computing issues and moved in with my new housemates – Sarann, Michelle, B and Chris.

August
Always a quiet month, with uni still a month away and the excitement of breaking up long since faded away. I spent most of the month taking stock and seeing what was what in my life. I did go to Solfest, however, which was definitely a personal highlight of the year!

September
I made only seven blog posts in September, which gives a good indication of how little I did. I did start a new course at university though and turned twenty-three – which also explains the lack of blogging! The combination of Fresher’s week and birthday celebrations will do that to a man.

October
A difficult month for me. A lot of things happened in my private life that left me somewhat adrift. I did get a new computer though, which is always nice!

November
November saw things pick up a bit with the A-Soc London trip, Atheist Week and the discovery of the Lancashire Hotpots! London was worth all the effort that I put into it, it turned out better than anyone had predicted and nothing really bad happened. Liz and I went from strength to strength and I even managed to find time to do some uni work!

December
A month of WoW and family. Not a lot to report on really, except what is already included at the top of this post. It was a good festive period all in all. I think it set me up for 2008 quite nicely.