John Lennon said that life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans. Those plans might include New Year’s resolutions. I never make any, knowing from experience that things will happen regardless. Not that I don’t intend to make an effort to sort out the more disorganised parts of my life – that’s work in progress – but there’s no reason why I should be any more successful if I start a list of things to do on 1st January than at any other time of the year. If I were to make a resolution, it might be to spend more time ticking off the things on my ‘to do’ list. The thing about the list is that if I leave things on it long enough, they eventually become so overdue that it’s not worth bothering. Anyway, to get back to what happens. Apart from the internet (portal to a world of rubbish as well as some very interesting stuff), I’m easily distracted. I’m a news addict who checks BBC News 24 at frequent intervals, to see if anything interesting happened while I was doing something else. The sun might shine, and it would be a pity to waste it by staying indoors, so I pick up my camera and take the dog for a walk. A friend calls round and I put the kettle on, so we spend the next half hour putting the world to rights. And so on. If I had a proper job, nine to five, it might be different. As it is, I can suit myself how, when and where I spend my time. I’m fortunate in that respect, but even nine to fivers have free time. As a child, like all children, I was oblivious to time passing. Absorbed in some game, a whole morning could drift by and the only thing that brought me out of my reverie was hunger. Come to think of it, that happens now. No, I’m not going to resolve to be sensible and stick to a timetable. Instead, I shall avoid doing anything I don’t want to do, if I don’t have to do it. Why feel that you’d much rather have been doing something else when you were doing something unnecessary that hardly anyone appreciated? Just one thing though; this philosophy doesn’t apply to sharing the chores or anything else that might help someone else feel appreciated. The things we have to do include being considerate towards other people. Otherwise, it’s amazing what you don’t have to do, if you think about it. Enjoy life while you can. It’s later than you think. If you’re wondering what I’ve been going on about for the last couple of minutes, I’m sorry I don’t have time to explain – things to do…

Tags: Radio, Thought+for+the+Day, Life