The end of the year is as good a time as any to look back and see what, if anything, you would like to do differently in the future.
I have no doubt that many people will be doing things differently for a variety of reasons in January, and that’s certainly true in my case.
After 13 years I’m hanging up my weather jackets and putting my maps into storage. It’s often said – but not always meant – that it’s the people you work with that you will miss the most when you leave, but it’s honestly true in my case. Calendar is like a family and I have learned a lot from them. I dare say the reverse is also true – especially when it comes down to matters of noise pollution because I like to laugh... a lot!
Change, though, is good. It’s a time to look at your priorities and reject things that have not worked for you in the past. For example, I have resolved never to buy skinny-fit jeans ever again. It doesn’t matter how much the label promises they will stretch to fit and magazines tell me they look cool under jumpers, there is no way I can budge them up my legs any further than my knees. It also doesn’t help that when I walk past a full-length mirror I am reminded of Foghorn Leghorn – that is, skinny calves and massive middle bit. Skinny fit jeans are the devil; don’t go near them unless you have legs more like Barbie on a good day.
Clothes aside, one change I have decided to make is to try to eat more healthily. For far too long I have been relying on Jaffa Cakes for one of my five portions of fruit and veg a day; no more, I say. This rule also applies to Fruit and Nut Chocolate and Milky Bars.
So, what will I be doing in the new year? To be honest, I’m undecided, but I’m guessing it will involve a lot more ‘Mummy time’ with our four-year-old, which I am honestly looking forward to. It also means I can go trawling around ToysRUs without feeling guilty.
I still don’t know how Jon Mitchell is going to cope without me leaving my gym socks on his tie rack, and it’s going to take me a while to adjust to having to make my own lunchtime sandwiches without the option of pinching his. It also means I can escape without ever once being caught on camera wearing slippers or, on one memorable occasion, flip-flops.
And so, too, this is my final column. I’d like to be serious for a second and thank you for taking the time to read my work. Hopefully I’ve given you a bit of an insight into working in the media and shattered any illusions of it being glamorous!
Anyway, I’ve got more time now to concentrate on the best job in the world – being a Mum.
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