New Years Resolutions: Broad City Style

With 2014 quickly drawing to a close, I thought I’d take a moment to reflect. This year was a tumultuous one. Full of ups and downs, new friends, new self-awareness, love, hard work, utter chaos… And I plan on topping it all off with a bottle of pink champagne. But before I get too deep and nostalgic (or knackered), I want to talk about one of the perfect additions to my year: Broad City.

Now, I don’t watch television. Not regularly anyway. I don’t really have the patience, so if a television show can make me sit down and—more importantly—stick around for a few episodes I consider it a success. Broad City didn’t only catch and keep my attention, but also left me gasping for breath. I don’t even remember how, or when, I picked up the show but after the first episode there was certainly no putting it down.

It was funny without being mean. Quirky but lacking in obnoxious pretention. Simultaneously crass and heartwarming, clumsy and victorious, outrageous and honest. I have never connected with a show so quickly or so closely. So in honor of an absolutely awesome show, and in preparation for the new season (PREMEIRING IN JANUARY Y’ALL), I’ve decided to detail a list of five New Year’s resolutions for taking on 2015 as inspired by the ladies of Broad City.

1. Develop your inner Abbi and Ilana (aka be unapologetically you).

What I think draws so many viewers to the show are the characters of Abbi and Ilana, who are exaggerated versions of the show’s creators, Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer. From the first episode they found a place in my heart as my heroes. Here were two women, embracing their weirdness and their imperfection, unafraid to be wrong or to mess up (which is fortunate because they often did). They were oblivious and unorganized and awkward and uncouth and a little gross and sometimes lazy. They might’ve been losers but they sincerely didn’t seem to give a damn. They were totally and comfortably themselves, serving a realness that is positively refreshing. So in 2015, challenge yourself to accept a little more Abbi and Ilana into your life – that is, be unapologetically you (as long as that doesn’t mean being an ass).

2. Stop worrying about not having it all together. Seriously.

If Broad City helped me at all during 2014, it was by convincing me that nobody actually has their shit together. Like nobody. I mean, Abbi and Ilana were hardly holding it together. They were mostly confused and embarrassed, dealing with the insecurities that come with being young and kind of (not really) in control of your “adult” life. But they didn’t let their problems or their anxieties crush them down into a pit of existential despair, which I know many of us (myself included) are prone to do. So when you’re confronted with disorganization and frustration in 2015, be sure to remember that you’re not the only one struggling and that finding yourself in the middle of a shit-storm (hilarious or otherwise) is just a part of growing up. And on that note:

3. Embrace awkward/embarrassing/uncomfortable scenarios with resilience (and humor).

There were a couple moments in season one where I was so overwhelmed with second-hand embarrassment that I had to turn away from the screen. But these moments weren’t devastating. In fact, Abbi and Ilana never seemed to let their discomfort or their embarrassment get the best of them. Whether they wound up in weird, awkward situations by chance or by a ridiculous series of events, they embraced them with a brazen resourcefulness and a heavy dose of humor. This is something we can all aspire to do in 2015, when life inevitably throws us curveballs. Although let’s hope those curveballs are nowhere as screwy as what Ilana and Abbi have to deal with (e.g. cleaning an apartment in your underwear for a man who thinks he’s a baby).

4. Always strive to make today “The Day.”

Okay, so this one is a bit meta. Bear with me. When I first heard Abbi drunkenly wax poetic on “The Day,” my heart leapt. I knew exactly what she meant. “The Day” is such a deliriously epic concept that it can hardly be put into words. If I were to attempt to explain it, it’s pretty much the sum of all your hopes and dreams, a day spent with your best friend, full of bliss and good vibes, topped off with somehow arriving at a sacred Rihanna-level of fly coolness. You either get it or you don’t. Abbi and Ilana certainly do and I plan on making more of my days in the upcoming year align with this magical concept of “The Day.”

5. Keep focused on what matters most: the ones you love.

This is the big one, y’all. This is what Broad City is really all about. Despite all the humor the show has to offer – the weed-fueled absurdity and misadventures, the mind-numbing minimum wage jobs, and all of the laughably mediocre sex – the heart of the show really revolves around the friendship between Abbi and Ilana. These girls show up for each other, with unflinching, unconditional support. They celebrate each other and stick together through failure and confusion. They’re friendship is a love affair that stands in a league of its own, strong enough to withstand pettiness and the stresses of life. Whether you’ve got one close friend or a group of many, I think everyone ought to aspire to this level of jubilant, kick-ass camaraderie in 2015. There’s nothing quite like falling in love with your friends. That’s a closeness that doesn’t quite compare with anything else.

So yeah, sure. Shit has been known to hit the fan. In fact, I think that was the theme of 2014. I can only hope that the New Year will be fun and fantastic from start to finish. The future seethes with unknown promise and potential…But if (and when) things get tough, maybe this list of resolutions will help just a bit.