"New year, new me,” the aphorism goes. Does this mean, “new semester, new Alligator” holds equally true?
Welcome to the first issue of the Spring 2016 Independent Florida Alligator. We’re hoping if you’ve made it this far into the paper — a whopping six pages — it’s because you enjoy compelling, honest reporting and uncompromised opinions from the best young journalists and writers Gainesville has to offer. If you skipped this far ahead to get to the cartoon or you’re reading this online, well, we’ll take what we can get.
Since we’re still basking in the warm, optimistic glow of a new year and the inevitable onset of Spring semester stress has not taken its hold (yet), it can become easy to forget just why the phrase “new year, new me” is regarded with such derision and dismissal. By the time week three of the new year rolls around, and all of the inconveniences and demands that comprise non-Winter Break life make a reappearance, the idea of “new year, new anything” becomes a distant dream. Trying to lose weight? Not going to happen while stocking up on sweets and sugars to stay awake for late-night study sessions. That instrument you’ve been dying to learn? Sounds nice, but passing your foreign language requirement definitely seems like a more pressing priority.
With the seemingly negative attitude of the above paragraph in mind, we’d like to offer the following counterpoint: New Year’s resolutions don’t have to follow the conventional “inevitable failure” script. It’s a tired and well-worn one, with nothing interesting left to say. Take that drunken and enthused energy you may or may not have legally had during New Year’s Eve and make it last for the rest of the year. MAKE time to lose weight. PLAN when you’ll sneak away to strum strings and learn new chords. Cling for dear life to the notion that, yes, this WILL be the year that you change your life irrevocably.
Is it likely to pan out exactly that way? Hell no. As Steinbeck (or rather, Burns) would tell you, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. However, the musings of an 18th-century Scottish poet and a 20th-century American author are no excuse for not trying.
Just as many of you have hopes and ambitions of self-improvement in the coming year, so too does the Alligator. We will continue to work to shine light on the compelling stories, news and lives that populate our fine city and university. Speaking for the opinions section, we don’t plan on abandoning our commitment to providing a platform for diverse and original voices any time soon. If you’d like to actualize your journalistic ambitions, or you secretly wish to become a part of a loving, dysfunctional family, we will be hosting an open house at our office Friday from noon to 5 p.m. We cannot wait to see what the year ahead holds, and we look forward to sharing it with you all.
