In 2017 I posted my first ever ‘New Years Resolutions’ post. It has been a weird yet extremely fun and eventful year for myself, and I am dying to see what 2018 has planned for me also! Click here to see the original 2017 resolutions post to familiarise yourself with the guidelines I outlined I would be living 2017 by. Below are my honest thoughts and feelings about how I got on in 2017.
Stop being sad about losing mates
“My first resolution of 2017 is to stick a smile on my face and get over the fact I only have four or five friends. The people I have in my life right now are seriously special, and I love them to pieces.”
Well, well, well, E Scott, it looks like you managed to stick to your guns and complete the first of your six resolutions for 2017. I started the year with a handful of close friends and I am exiting the year with a similar number – however some of the faces I counted as “seriously special” last year are no longer part of my pallet, and some beings who I did not even know existed have become part of my closely-knit gang of babes.
I strongly believe that many people slip in and out of your stream when they are needed and when they are not. Some friendships span ten strong years, while others have the sell by date of 6 only 6 months. Ding, ding – its time to exit stage left. It is nothing personal, it is just the universes’ way of letting you know gently that you and your friend have outgrown each other.
Due to this perspective, I have welcomed an influx of friendships with a pinch of salt, and have gently let-go again when it is time for them to be no longer in my life. I am calm within myself and I no longer moan down the phone to my mum that “nobody likes me!!” God, I would be making 2016 Ella proud right now.
Start going out sober
“I’m going to start going out sober. Am I crazy? Maybe, baby… But we’ll see whether my dancing shoes fit the same when I’m two bottles of wine lighter.”
So maybe I cannot confidently say I have succeeded at not getting paralytic on every moment possible this year, but there has definitely been some moments of pure ecstasy where I have been as sober as a bat. These moments are usually followed by me calling a cab home so I can make a Super Noodle sandwich… But I digress.
I have found this year that I have learnt the power of deduction. It is like a telepathic ability that I possess. At the beginning of the night, I know exactly whether it is worth getting four double vodka oranges in a row or if I should just have a pint of beer every couple of hours. Okay I am a fraud – it is not telepathy, it is just common sense.
If I am going out to get drunk, I will get intoxicated beyond belief (think Chloe Ferry G Shore style) however if I know I am going out for a food and a cheeky gossip then duh, I am going to go out and remain sober. One end of the spectrum to another, it is not so bad is it?
While most of my nights out have ended up with me stumbling to bed at 7am, these have been few and far between. I am keeping my head above water and I am almost always choosing two drinks over 7… I just have not got the whole ‘going out sober’ thing down to a T yet. YET I reiterate – there is still time 2017!
Experience live music once a week
“…by the time December 2017 shoots around I want to at least say I witnessed fifty-two acts live and in the flesh.”
According to my calculations, my artist count for 2017 lies at 56. This means I SMASHED IT. This includes my trips to Isle of Wight Festival, Liverpool sound City and Off The Record Festival, however the majority of acts I can proudly say I have seen this year come from This Feeling.
I am a gigantic advocate for This Feeling. A true rock and roll club night allowing bands to first cut their teeth in the music industry, while (arguably) the UK’s best promotion team hooks them into numerous opportunities and practically creates a fanbase for them. If you are Manchester based, like myself, then Jimmy’s bar in Northern Quarter is the new home of This Feeling in the city. They have also got some crazy lineups coming up in the New Year which you do NOT want to miss out on. Click here to see what This Feeling have got to tickle your fancy.
Here is to more live music in 2018!
Gimmie’ a little sparkle!
“I do not mean buy me a sequin mini-dress. I mean that episode of Parks and Recreation where the cupcakes come out depicting ‘treat yo self.’”
My aim for 2017 was to make the year about my self. Sometimes having a smidge of selfishness in your stride works wonders for your ambitions and allows you to really dig deep for the gold you need to fulfil your ambitions and expand your prospects.
I am well on my way to accepting that I will always have those bulging hamster cheeks, and I will probably never be deemed ‘sexy’ when the word cute is still in circulation, but that is totally okay with me. I have figured out what attributes flatter me and which materials look best upon my curves and you know what – I feel pretty damn fine.
4/4 Ella, how well are you doing? Pour yourself a pint you deserve it.
If you want it, get it
“If I want it then I need to get my name all over that shit. Nothing is getting half-arsed in 2017- If I want something I’m going to get it”
This post is bubbling with positivity isn’t it! Continuing the streak is the big resolution I made at the end of 2016 – be determined. I have always struggled with my confidence especially where my writing and blogging is concerned (can you believe I used to be embarrassed about Cigarette Sounds, and would only share posts to Twitter?) but this year I have really put some serious effort into my future career.
In the past month I have finally found the formula of posting a couple times a week, a regular Instagram update and the occasional relatable tweets, and I am onto a winner. I still need a lot of work in the social media game where this blog is concerned, but this year I really believe I have laid the foundations for the future in concrete. I have tackled topics out of my comfort zone (anything that is not music) and am ready for 2018 to be the year of Cigarette Sounds.
As well as my baby, at the beginning of this university term I was made Assistant Editor at Gigslutz. The website has seen me gaining skills in both artist and PR liaison, opening up a brand-new world of work that I had no idea how to survive in as well as writing over 130 articles for the site. Pheeeeew.
Again, I do not want to be stagnant. I am poised and prepared and 2018 is going to be the year that I continue my streak, and make leaps rather than steps. I still bloody want it, and I will get it. Mark my words. Mwaahahah.
Stick in at university
“I finish my first year at the University of Salford and will hopefully begin my second by the time September comes around. So, I really need to knuckle down; do the work to the best of my ability and actually show up at my lectures”
I wonder whether I will ever get good at attending university. At the beginning of every term I promise myself that this term, `this term will be the turning point. 2017 seen two university terms, my second and final term of first year and my first of second year. I passed first year with a safe 50 (a 2:2 equivalent) however this year I am aiming for nothing less than a 2:1. I am still rubbish at making it into my lectures, but I have submitted all my assignments for the year, passed with flying colours, sat a sports journalism exam and am now gearing up to sit an English exam in the new year. Maybe I will be carrying this resolution onto 2018…
This is the first year I have actually ever 1) remembered my New Years Resolutions and 2) stuck to almost all of them. Pitting myself against myself and keeping my goals in mind has been both rewarding and eye-opening. Maybe I am not an idiot after all?
Keep your eyes peeled for a 2018 New Years Resolution post coming your way ASAP!
Ells
ELLA LOUISE SCOTT 