When it comes to New Year’s resolutions, Roy and Diane Jordan are a house divided.

“He makes resolutions. I don’t. I think it’s silly,” said Diane Jordan as her husband smiled, listening.

Starting fresh can be easy for some, while difficult for others.

As 2010 comes to a close, Dawson County residents will resolve to clean the slate and begin the year anew.

For some like Joanna Hester, it’s a tradition that’s successful — for the most part.

“I always make my New Year’s resolutions, and I keep about half of them,” Hester said. “It’s usually the easiest ones that I keep. Bad habits are hard to break.”

Skip Arnhart, on the other hand, doesn’t make New Year’s resolutions.

He figures they are made by people most often because “they want a change of lifestyle.”

“They’ve reflected over the past year, and they realize there are things they need to correct and change,” he said. “I’m right along with that, but I just don’t make resolutions.”

Neither does Diane Jordan.

“People put all this pressure on themselves to be perfect,” she said. “They should just let the chips fall where they may and roll with the punches.”

Roy Jordan disagreed with his wife.

“I make New Year’s resolutions, because it helps me ... for instance, I need to lose weight. About 30 pounds should do it.”

He also added that he would like to quit smoking.

“I want to be around to see my kids grow older, so that’s important for me,” he said.