The New Year is nigh upon us, which obviously means a cavalcade of well-intentioned resolutions are sure to be leaping out of the mouths of family, friends, or even you. In years past, I have not been much of a practitioner of such annual declarations, primarily because of my immense rate of personal failure with them when I have attempted these reaches at betterment. But instead of feeling sad or disappointed by falling short, I take comfort in the fact that most other people with noble January goals fall in the same boat. However, after looking back at my unrealized goals -- well, goal, since the only resolution I've ever set forth revolved around losing weight -- I had an epiphany of sorts. Namely, what if I came up with resolutions didn't suck?

Seriously, why do so many of these things involve copious amounts of personal torture? Why can't we use January 1st a launch pad to induce some Bacchian-fueled goals upon ourselves during the course of the year? I mean, if the New Year is alleged to be about renewal and whatnot, why can't laying out a couple of decrees specifically designed to re-ignite the spark of life behind our eyes, lest we notice ourselves complaining about our days being filled with the mundane by the time spring rolls around?

After pondering these self-asked inquiries, I have come up with a quintet of food-related resolutions that are clearly designed to be relatively easy and dare I say a bit of fun to boot. Feel free to rip off as many of these as you see fit.

1. Check out a place that you have always wanted to try. With the growing preponderance of OC Restaurant Week, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find ways not to adhere to this goal. Frankly, if you have a restaurant in mind that fits this criteria, and they are indeed participating in OCRW, then you really have no excuse not to go whatsoever. In fact, it would be rather lame if you didn't.

2. If you eat at a place "out of habit" and not because you enjoy the food, resolve to break the habit. We all have places that we've gone to in a robotic fashion for the past decade or two because it's there. If you enjoy the food, by all means keep going. However, if your opinion of the food has not elevated above a resounding "meh" in the past dozen times you've visited, it is time to vacate the premises and don't look back. A better world awaits you.

3. Try a new cuisine you have never tried before. Considering that we live in such a massive cultural hodgepodge, the degree of difficulty here is not all that high. For those of you who feel that they have already accomplished this goal, seek out something from within a cuisine's umbrella that you have never enjoyed, or even heard of, for that matter. It is because of this philosophy that I discovered a Japanese dish called taco rice at a place in Huntington Beach. Yes, it is a legit dish originally conceived by American soldiers stationed in Okinawa decades ago. Yes, it is exactly what it sounds like. Yes, it is yummy.

4. Revisit a food that gave you childhood trauma. If you have an aversion to carrots because you had a bad culinary experience with them when you were seven, it is really time to realize that you were seven at the time. The results can be quite rewarding, and I speak from experience. I have recently discovered the magic power of eggs again after abstaining from them for almost thirty years because I got ill on them as a little tyke. Suddenly, going out for breakfast is fun and full of options. Coincidence? I don't think so.

5. Center a weekend getaway around a particular restaurant. In other words, go to a city specifically to try a eat at a place. This is an idea that any self-respecting foodie can get behind. Indeed, it is an idea that is propelling my wife and I to San Francisco at the end of January, as we have been obsessed with going to Chris Constantinos' venue Incanto since Anthony Bourdain paid a visit there on his show a few months back. Heck, with all the food recommendations we have fielded since we bought our plane tickets, we surmise that we will have to average about 17 meals a day to fit in everything we want.

Granted, the lone by-product with sticking to any of these resolutions is that it may cause you to gain a little weight. If that does happen, don't fret. You can always resolve to shed the pounds starting January 1, 2011.