The possibilities of a new year can inspire us to (re)ignite passions, set new goals or send the mind raveling in wild flights of fancy. In the grand scheme, the heavens do not notice that a rock has hurtled through the cosmos to retrace its steps once more, but on that rock, we humans take notice every January.
It’s customary to celebrate in one of three ways. It used to be four, but we no longer have checkbooks (as late as the mid-00s, it was still common in North America to write paper checks to pay for groceries or the electric bill, and we often wrote the wrong date for weeks at the start of a new year).
You can take the tried and true action of making a New Year’s resolution or the equally tried and true action of loudly rejecting resolutions.
You can choose to sign up for a gym membership that you’ll use a handful of times and then try to cancel for six months.
Or, you can play the prediction game. That’s the route I’m choosing today. We can’t see into the future, but why not try anyway? Here are my predictions (best guesses) for 2024.
A brief diversion before we get started. These predictions are meant as a little fun with tongue firmly in cheek. Some serious, some not-so-serious, some wishes and dreams, but on some level, I’m aiming to be plausible and based on some truth. In other words, if I’m right, it’s «I told you so,» and if I’m wrong, «just kidding.» Enjoy!