Christmas is over, only the new year to get out of the way and things can get back to relative normality.

Mark

Normal. I'm afraid I don't understand the concept.

Since 2009 has been such a generally sh!t year, ending a generally sh!t decade, I hope that next year will be the start if something better.

It's a shame that the start of the 21st century has been so rubbish, really. Still, onwards and sideways. Actually, I think I'll adopt the more usual version in the future. The first couple of months of 2010 promise to be an interesting, if not somewhat scary, adventure.

As long as it stops raining I dont care.

As long as the ferries keep running I don't care. Been a very, very mixed 2009 for me.

It's been a rubbish one for me and it just keeps on letting me know that it's not quite over yet.

Mark

Yeah, I know (8-(). Only a week to go. And the year-end is fairly arbitrary anyhoo, so why not start your new year today?

Tell me about it, but I'm not letting the frakker get me yet...

I read that as "fairies", which made me wonder which part of the world you were in

Here's hoping next year doesn't bring any particular calamities. Whatever life throws, hopefully I can make something decent out of it.

I'd really like some fairies though

Hey people, don't get hung up on 'bad year' notions, they're made up in your own head. We only have years because it's easier to keep track of things. Tomorrow is a new day, no matter what year it is.

Get hung up on a 'bad year' and you're stuck with it until the next.

I like your attitude. I wish I could be as positive.

Not wishing to dwell on stuff, the past 12 months from a personal perspective were crap of the first water. It got worse during the year, too. I'm hoping our new business venture will take wings and fly, but if it doesn't we'll be just as badly off as we were before we started.

So, I'm trying to be positive about the next few weeks for now. We'll see how we get on from there.

Ah don't get me wrong Heather, I've had some tough times. I just try not to tie them all together in a big block of time, be it a week, month, year or whatever. None of us have a crystal ball, and I'm sure we're all going to have more bad times in the future to deal with, but we don't have to drag them around with us until new years eve to unload them in a big heap. Drop them as soon as they're passed.

I know it sounds over simplified, but it's just a state of mind.

Oh really?

</mystic Meg>

I'd usually agree with you Stu but this year has just seen my dad in and out of hospital, constantly ill, then dead in October.

It then continued with Christmas as it meant nutty texts from his wife of 2 months and phonecalls from family members who only show themselves when they sniff that there may be a Will about, which I doubt because I think the "new" wife will nab whatever there is. Not that that keeps me awake at night.

At least next year I won't have that to worry about and there won't be any specific days in the near future that may encourage phonecalls.

Anyway, I agree with you in general. For me this is a year that is an exception that proves the rule.

As I say though, the frakker's not beat me yet.

I think it may well be new year before I feel hungry again.

Nope, you're quite right. Some of us carry them around with us for years and years and decades. (8+|

Mark