New Year’s resolutions were not as specific this year as in someyears past, according to an unofficial poll by The DAILY LEADER,but still held the common thread of people hoping to betterthemselves.

“I don’t have any New Year’s resolution other than to make it abetter year,” said Allyson Garcia of Brookhaven.

Garcia was confronted with several bad personal experiences lastyear and hoped some recent changes in her life would make this yearbetter than the past one.

“It’s looking better already,” she said with a smile.

Angela Wilcher of Brookhaven held much the same thoughts asGarcia.

“Mine was just to do things better than I did last year and todo more of them,” she said.

It’s not a new resolution for Wilcher. She traditionally makesthe same resolution each year, but some years holds to it betterthan others. She gives herself a good chance to succeed thisyear.

Kelly Parkman of Jayess, a junior at Lawrence County HighSchool, said about five months ago she got a boyfriend and ajob.

She still has the boyfriend, but she’s changed jobs since then.She found in the last six months she had been trying to pleaseeveryone but herself and resolved to fix that this year.

“My New Year’s resolution was to be myself again,” she said. “Tomake myself happy and not worry about everyone else. I’ll be asenior next year and I want this to be one of my best years.”

Common New Year’s resolutions include such possiblylife-changing and saving decisions as losing weight or quittingsmoking. Although fewer people were more specific than working tobetter themselves this year, there were some who followed thetraditional pattern.

Gerald Boyd, of Brookhaven, was one of them. He resolved to loseweight in 2004.

“I weigh about 200 lbs. and I want to get down to about 175,” hesaid.

Boyd said he is skeptical of his chances, but he has hope.

“I enjoy putting it back on too much,” he said with a laugh.

Boyd is hopeful, however, because it’s not often he decides tomake a resolution.

“I don’t make too much many,” he said.

Derrick Smith of Brookhaven was in total agreement with Boyd.Smith said he’s breaking the tradition this year.

“I (made some) last year, but I broke them; so I didn’t make anythis year,” he said.

His new tradition, he said, was not to make resolutions and totake each day, or year, as it comes.