Hopping through the 2000s, remembering Y2K and weighing New Year’s resolutions

In a few days, we’ll be 25 years into the 2000s. 

(One could argue that the 2000s actually began in 2001, but that would make you pedantic and boring). 

2025. How did we get here? 

I know it was one day after another, but it seems like time has flown by at warp speed, because 25 years ago should be the late ‘70s, not Y2K. 

Does 2015 feel like a decade ago? I remember that year vividly. I moved to Norman, Oklahoma to run the Norman Transcript. Not that much has changed.

Then again, so much has changed. Most of my friends married and have children. I’ve lived in two states and run three newspapers since then. 

The biggest movies in 2015 were Jurassic World, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and the third Avengers flick. Those just feel old. (Interestingly, the fourth highest box office went to Inside Out, while Inside Out 2 is the highest grossing film this year).

*****

No new year in my lifetime will have the panache that 2000 did. There was a lot of hope in the U.S. in the late 1990s. The economy was doing well, the film industry was churning out high-quality movies (1999 is considered one of the greatest years in American cinema) and the internet looked like it was going to provide a variety of new and exciting opportunities (but would we ever buy anything on it? Of course not!).

Then there was the Y2K scare. For those who didn’t live through it, allow me to explain: most computer programs represented four digit years with two digits. 1989 was therefore just 89. But with 2000 approaching, the two-digit approach no longer worked. 

What seems like a minor problem drove some people into a frenzy. There were real concerns that the computers that controlled our public utilities, communications, plane flights, etc. would malfunction. There was a good deal of hubbub about it — governments and private companies scrambled to fix the programs and people stockpiled food, water and guns for the impending apocalypse. 

My dad worked for an IT company in Dallas, Texas at the time, and I remember that he had to sleep at his office on New Year’s Eve so they could handle any problems that arose when the clock hit midnight. 

We didn’t stock up on firearms, but my mom did buy a lot of canned and shelf-stable food and bottled water. When 2000 hit and the world didn’t explode, everyone considered the Y2K scare somewhat silly. But my brothers and I ate strawberry Pop-Tarts for breakfast for like two years until we finally got through my mom’s Y2K supply.

*****

The hope inspired by the new millennium faded pretty quickly after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, subsequent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and the Great Recession. Calendars, after all, are just constructs and new millenniums aren’t much of a bulwark against evil, greed and stupidity.

I still find it valuable to mark the new year. Though the change from one year to the next may not mean much on a global scale, I find it useful motivation. New Year’s resolutions get a bad rap, but what’s wrong with investing time and money into ourselves and others? 

A few years ago, I decided I wanted to start reading more books. I read voraciously as a child, then dropped off after college. In 2017, I read 10 books. In 2019, I read 35. Now, I average between 60-65 a year. 

Losing weight is a common New Year’s resolution, and I won’t get into the exhausting debate around American fitness. I just knew I wanted to get into better shape so I could hike more, play more sports and fit better into my clothes. I started walking every day, built a support group that included my brother (a nutritionist) and friend (a personal trainer) and made lasting changes to my lifestyle that allow me to live a richer life. 

My friend Shavonne always shares three goals for the next year: a personal one, a financial one and a professional one. I think that’s a great way to plan for 2025. 

Maybe you don’t find the New Year useful, and that’s okay. Maybe your goals in the New Year are restricted by your health, your finances, your relationships, etc. That’s understandable. 

But if you do have life goals, things you want to achieve, I hope you find the motivation, the resources and the support network you need to achieve them. If there’s anything I’ve learned in the 25 years since 2000, it’s that the years are short. Let’s make the most of this next one.

Caleb Slinkard is the managing editor of The Macon Melody. Email him at caleb@maconmelody.com.