Ten days into the New Year is refreshing. Maybe it’s the fresh air; or that I am riding my bike once again so that I can exercise; or that I have a 17 unit quarter this year; or that I have an opportunity to change my personality, my handshake and how I entertain myself.

College life in the apartments is much different than that of dormitory life. The distance between my apartment and the college campus makes meeting up inconvenient, which makes meeting people difficult. I can’t count the number of times I have rejected a few get-together events because of issues regarding time and distance. As a result, I turn to these virtual entities, you know, Facebook friends and AIM “Best Buddies” and “Miscellaneous Buddies.” The point is its convenience. But it misses that one key thing, the human touch.

Just yesterday, I asked my best friend what I lacked the most. He said that I lacked relational sensitivity and flexibility, and he’s right — even my Mom says this to me too. Perhaps my lack of humanity is connected to this virtual entity business, that is, I am being sucked into the convenience of being with people on a virtual level.

Hopefully, replacing this obsession with the virtual may make me a more relational person. Instead of that IM blooping on my taskbar, I’ll give a phone call. Instead of planning a tentative date for meeting with others, I’ll arrange an appointment to meet up. Ten days into this year has made me reflect on my behaviors. Three hundred and fifty-five left to go to change myself!