Scaremongering

I have noticed that there have been stories in the News about the influx of immigrants that will come "flooding" into the country now restrictions have been lifted.
If you  believed some of the stories, we should be finding it difficult to walk around without bumping into a Romanian or a Bulgarian.
Have you fallen over vast swathes of the aforementioned people whenever you go out?  No, me neither.
For even one person to come over here, it means giving up the life they are used to, leaving their friends and extended family behind.  It means coming to a country where they more often than not, do not speak the language, do not know the ways and customs of the country.  They are giving up what might be a very poor living, but at least they are familiar with it and know what to expect, in the hope of having a better lifestyle in a country where they will have to make adaptations to their lifestyle to fit in.
With all that in mind, are we really going to be "flooded" with immigrants?
I seriously don't think so.  The people who come here will be determined to make a better life for themselves.  They'd have to be in order to give up everything that is familiar to them and start afresh.
One thing that the scaremongers have missed out on is....if these people can come here, then surely the reverse is true, and we could emigrate to another EU country.
Personally, I think the immigrants who come here to work are very brave to give up what they know in search of a better lifestyle. 
And as for them "taking our jobs".  That is a sweeping statement if ever I heard one.  Yes, the jobs are there, but they are often jobs that many of the UK unemployed think are beneath them, either in skill level or wage level.
There are quite a few Polish live near me, and many of the men are qualified engineers and electricians, but they are just doing any job rather than be jobless. 
So, my point here is....how willing would you be to give up everything you are familiar with, and move 100s or 1000s of miles from your home in search of a better life?
I know I wouldn't, unless I had someone very special in the new place.

Promises to myself for 2014

I always think resolutions are difficult to keep, so I'm not making any, but I am promising myself that I will do certain things.
So here goes...
I promise to be kinder to myself and not torture myself about what I shouldn't eat and drink.  I will try to eat more of what is good for me, and less of what is bad for me.
I'm going to continue denting my yarn stash, and try my best to dent my fabric stash.
I'll read, but then again, seeing as my idea of hell is no books, that is easy to keep.
I'll try not to spend money on frivolous things.  (I don't do this much anyway.)
I'm going to try not to leave Yule gift buying/making to the last minute.
Try to stop myself getting stressed at times, as this just triggers problems with my asthma.
And lastly, I will try my best to finish decorating the stairs and landings, and possibly give the kitchen a coat of paint, and maybe the bathroom.
If I can manage to do these things, perhaps I won't feel so lonely.
I'm going to continue trying out a new recipe per week.  I've already tried two this week, minestrone soup and apple strudel.
As a last mention, I did knit a swatch of entrelac knitting before 2013 left us, so that one is another first.  I can now confidently knit the cardigan I want to make in it as I now know what I'm doing, and it's a lot easier than I thought it would be.