Aon Making your resolutions work Why such pressure to make a change on January 1? By Trevor Doré, Opinions Editor 0 it’s been a month since you made S the big New Year’s Resolution. Have you been true to it? Are you still going hard at the gym? How about those cigarettes? If you’re still going strong, I give you props. Keep up the good work. If you have slowed down or even completely done away with the New Year’s resolution don’t feel so bad because chances are you’re not the only one. There are many reasons New Year’s resolutions don’t work. Many New Year’s resolutions are made at the very last minute and some after half a bottle of bubbly. They are simply thrown together in a fit of desperation to do the right thing. The first of January rolls around and you plan to start fresh. The problem here is that the cold turkey approach doesn’t work for everyone. We often make resolutions to stop doing things or change things that we don’t like about ourselves but most of the time don’t necessarily want to stop doing. Therefore, it’s important to ask yourself some questions when formulating a resolution. Why are you making this resolution? Is it because someone else thinks you should make it or do you truly believe that it will help you achieve your goals? Are you prepared to invest the energy to make it work? What do you want to get out of it? If there are multiple vague answers to these questions, chances 16 are your resolution needs some refining. It is crucial to ensure that your resolution lines up with your values. Writing your resolution down helps. Outline the details. Setting daily, weekly and monthly goals helps keep you on track. A resolution shouldn’t be a part-time change but more of a lifestyle change. Major lifestyle changes don’t happen over night and it is crucial to keep this in mind. A successful resolution will be reached on step at a time. Setting goals and rewarding yourself along the way will make the journey enjoyable. Get your friends and family in on it. If you have a friend who is looking to make the same change, work together. It will make the whole process easier, more successful and more enjoyable. In the end, if you have quit and are feeling poorly about, go back and review your resolution. Why did it fail? Perhaps it wasn’t accurate or refined enough? It’s always good to go back on your goals and make sure that they still line up with your overall direction in life. Just because it’s only one month later and you have already fallen off the wagon doesn’t mean you can’t pick yourself up and get back on. Really, what’s so special about January 1 anyways? There are 364 other equally qualified days. Just remember, set clear defined goals and take it one step at a time. Most importantly, focusing on a destination doesn’t mean you shouldn’t enjoy the journey. Streetcars make a very temporary comeback 7% By Trevor Doré, Opinions Editor Ss many may know, the City A Vancouver has partnered with Bombardier to bring two Streetcars to Vancouver for 60 days during the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. The City of Vancouver invested $8.5 million to update 1.8 kilometres of rail line between Granville Island and the Olympic Village. At the end of the sixty- day demonstration period, the line will be decommissioned and the trains, which are on loan from Brussels, will be sent back. As tempted as I am to go on a rant about this being the perfect example of how the Olympics are simply a big money-squandering sham, I’ll do my best not to. Streetcars are an appealing form of sustainable transportation, which is why they have been brought in to demonstrate sustainable transit development and to gauge the future potential of a streetcar line in Vancouver. I find this very ironic considering that it wasn’t so long ago that Vancouver had a fully functioning streetcar line. Unfortunately, in the 1950’s, the streetcars were retired to make way for cars and buses, “the future of transportation.” A streetcar line works in Vancouver—this has already been proven. There is absolutely no need for an $8.5 million demonstration to prove this. The city of Vancouver will no doubt have to eventually re-adopt a streetcar system in the future if it hopes to fill the shoes of “greenest city in the world;” however, an $8.5 billion demonstration that will cease to exits after the Olympics is a complete waste of money. Overall, public transit needs to be upgraded and improved throughout Metro Vancouver. While some may argue that $8.5 million is hardly enough money for any significant transit infrastructure, I am willing argue that given the current state of TransLink and our public transit system, any amount of money would help. Funding is needed in order to bring rapid transit to the suburbs and to the Fraser Valley. Of all the municipalities in Metro Vancouver, Vancouver is already the best served by public transit, this is obvious. Instead of spending money on a temporary 1.8 kilometre streetcar line, the money could have been used to expand and upgrade current transit projects in areas with less transit service. I guess that wouldn’t have had the same impact on all of the tourists. Hopefully when and if the streetcars ever become permanent, they will run from UBC all the way to Mission. Until then, we should focus on expanding Sky Train and developing a better transit system throughout Metro Vancouver and into the Valley.