Five Potential Hong Kong New Year's Resolutions

A quick rundown of 5 ideas for any Hong Kongers (expat and local alike) yet to settle on a New Year's Resolution:

1. Start dressing for the temperature rather than the date. Yes, it is officially Winter, but it is also about 68 degrees outside. Yesterday at least 85% of the people I saw were wearing some combination of boots, parkas, scarves, and hats.
   
2. Walk with some sense of purpose at rush hours. Hong Kong has a glorious 350 kilometers of hiking trails (just in the big 4 trails) within easy reach of where ever you are in the fine territory. When the urge comes upon you to stroll at a leisurely pace, go for it, but maybe doing so on the sliver of sidewalk beside Queen's Road at 7 pm on Wednesday is not the right choice of venue/moment.
3. Never go to Lan Kwai Fong again, unless you have visitors in town and want to show them a spectacle. Really, its the only acceptable reason to go and that you are just hearing this from me is almost incredible.
4. Spend at least 1/3 as much time with your children as your maid does. Seriously, if you find that you absolutely need to have your maid with you and your family at all times (including, but not limited to beach trips, back to school shopping, LouHu tailor visits, and holiday dinners) this might be an area of life worthy of a quick re-evaluation. Just send the kids to boarding school if you don't want to be bothered with caring for them during your free time.
   
5. Support local artists, musicians, charities, and brands. Hong Kong is what it is culturally partially because the only acts that can garner any support are Oasis and Lady Gaga. Go to Clockenflap, check out Schoeni, Exit, and Osage galleries, listen to A Roller Control and Chochukmo. If the event you go to ends up sucking, at least you can be ironic and make fun of it.