I’ve never quite understood the fuss over flipping our calendars to a new year; with the possible exception of a big round-number year, like 2000, when we all got to collectively freak out about how our computers might kill us, I mostly see the transition as a bookkeeping detail more than an occasion to become a different version of myself. If I habitually took all the “new year, new you!” marketing to heart, there would be so many versions of Anna Traverse stumbling around by now. No one needs that.
The New Year’s resolution-industrial complex focuses all its considerable marketing power on our individual yearnings — for optimization, for fulfillment, for self-esteem, for toned thighs. What if, instead, we thought about communal resolutions — revolutions in our ways of working, creating, and growing together? Good habits are easier kept if they’re followed with friends and family. I’m proposing that we focus on the following ten civic resolutions this year. I suspect we’ll see better results, if we work together, than most folks do with their individual plans come February.
1. Vote. Always vote, if you’re eligible to, and don’t just vote in the big national elections (but certainly show up for those, too). Only 55 percent of registered voters in Shelby County cast ballots last November, and that figure is much, much lower in midterm years and local elections. Just as importantly as voting itself, be aware about what and whom you’re voting for. Without naming elected officials’ names, our community could have avoided some fairly intractable problems if we had done our homework.
2. Consume a healthy news diet. Stay informed about our community — beyond the bubble of your social-media feed. Someone consuming only TV news will have a very different view of the city than someone reading only print journalism, or only following big local accounts on their social-media platform of choice. As with any diet, variety and balance are key.
3. If you’re a Grizzly or a Tiger hoopster, keep playing the selfless, creative, just plain fun basketball we’ve seen so far this winter. If, more likely, you’re a fan, go to a game or ten. Memphis basketball is a joy to watch, but too many seats are empty in FedExForum. I’ve seen tickets advertised for as little as $2. Don’t sleep on the Hustle, either.
4. Eat well, locally. Instead of overhauling your caloric intake, focus on shifting where your calories come from — geographically. Shopping at a farmers’ market will help you support local entrepreneurs, protect the environment (by avoiding long-distance shipping to big stores), and bring home more nutritious, fresh-picked produce. And choosing to dine at locally owned restaurants and cafes keeps your dollars local, too.
5. Drink more coffee. Instead of trying to cut back on your caffeine intake this New Year’s, avoid the literal headaches and choose instead to spend your coffee budget with local roasters and coffeeshops. The most gorgeously flavored beans I’ve ever brewed are from Memphis roaster Cxffeeblack, which you can find over on National St. or most Saturdays at the Cooper-Young farmers’ market.
6. Drink more (local) beer and liquor (if you imbibe). I’m not a drinker of alcohol, but if I were, you can bet that my alcohol intake would be sourced from as many local and regional distillers and brewers as possible. It wasn’t so many years ago that Memphis had only one or two breweries; now, a dozen or more places are mashing, lautering, boiling, chilling, and fermenting, not to mention the harder stuff being concocted at Old Dominick downtown.
7. Don’t just drink more water; protect our water. Keep demanding transparency from xAI and from local officials about how our local resources are being spent. Progress is all well and good, but only if it doesn’t come at the expense of our precious water and air. The construction of a greywater treatment facility to power Elon Musk’s supercomputer is good news, but if xAI intends to keep doubling the size of its output, we need more than promises. Further, if chipmakers Nvidia, Dell, and Super Micro are truly looking to expand into Memphis, we need to know what the environmental impacts will be, not just the financial investments.
8. Listen to and support local music. Memphis is a music town as much as it is anything, and that’s still very much true today — if you know where to listen. Not sure where to begin in finding current local artists? Tune into WYXR (91.7), where many of the DJs focus on local and regional tunes, or come to one of Music Export Memphis’ free live showcases.
9. Remember that the drivers of other vehicles are just as human as you are. Also, use a turn signal. Enough said.
10. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, work to develop in yourself and others a healthier sense of civic self-esteem. Memphis has a lot going for it, but I don’t always hear that reflected in Memphians’ views of our community. We shouldn’t ignore the negatives, and I don’t think many of us do. But we also shouldn’t ignore the positives. Memphis is not like the other places, and that’s worth celebrating.
Happy New Year, Memphis.
