2011
I am not big on lists, and I’m definitely not big on New Year’s resolutions (this is actually the first time I’m doing one), but there’s something about 2011 that compelled me to plan. I’m more excited and optimistic than usual, probably because I’m at a stage where I could very much do whatever the hell I want to do, as long as I set my mind to it. So for 2011, I want to do the following:
1. ROAM PILIPINAS.
That’s what’s written in the tsinelas I recently bought from Team Manila. It’s a shame that I’ve been to other countries and yet I really haven’t explored the Philippines! And what’s the use of being a freelancer if I can’t go on vacations whenever I want to? I want to go to Batanes and be awed by nature. I want to go to Donsol and swim with butandings. I want to go white water rafting in Cagayan de Oro. I want to go to Albay and see Mt. Mayon up close. I want to see Banawe rice terraces and Chocolate Hills. Ok, so this list is turning out to be straight from “Magagandang Tanawin ng Pilipinas” from a grade school Sibika at Kultura textbook, but that’s exactly my point. I’m a Filipino and yet I haven’t seen most of the places that the Philippines is know for!
2. LEARN TO COOK.
It’s time to bring out the inner Kapampangan in me. I’m 25 and yet cooking to me means frying Spam and boiling Lucky Me instant pancit canton. Pathetic. I just don’t get the idea of slaving in the kitchen for hours and then eating whatever I’ve cooked for less than an hour. I love, and I mean REALLY love, eating, but I don’t like preparing what to eat. But since my brother and I are kinda moving out of the house this year, I need to learn to cook or else die of Chicken Joy cholesterol.
I plan to learn Kapampangan dishes first from Manang Ben, my lola’s cook. She’s getting old so it’s really urgent that we get to learn her recipes ASAP. She doesn’t know how to read and write, so all the more that we need to record all that she cooks for us every Sunday. And then of course I need to learn healthy dishes from Mom, which basically is learning how to disguise vegetables into something tasty and edible.
Plus, and this is very shallow I admit, I’m jealous of friends who bring their dishes to potluck parties and say, “Luto ko yan!” So, the inggitera that I am, I want to learn how to cook killer dishes and say “Luto ko yan!” to parties. Hahaha =p
3. SLEEP LESS.
About a month ago, I was genuinely sad that 2010 flew by so fast. At first, I credit it to the fact that I’m having too much fun with my job, the line “time flies when you’re having fun” certainly rings true for me. But then I realized, whenever I’m not working, I always oversleep. I justify it by saying that I deserve to oversleep after days of nonstop work, but then sleeping more means my day becomes shorter. So one way to prolong 2011 is to get my ass off the bed earlier!
4. FACEBOOK LESS. BLOG MORE.
I waste so much time mindlessly reading friends’ posts and updates in Facebook, before I know it an hour has passed and I haven’t done anything productive. I love Facebook for effortlessly connecting me to friends, but I know I won’t die if I don’t get to read what someone had for dinner. And that’s just Facebook. I can’t imagine how people who Twitter or play Farmville or Cafe World or whatever game there is manage to work.
Instead, I plan to blog more. I was off to a good start last 2010 with my makeup blog, and I plan to double my number of posts. I had about 50 last year, so I’ll try to make 100 posts this year. That’s roughly 2 posts a week.
Also, since I discovered last year that blogging is so much fun, I decided to create this Tumblr blog to write about my thoughts and non-makeup related experiences. I hope I could keep this up and write in this at least once a week.
5. DISCOVER A NEW FORM OF EXERCISE.
I’ve obsessively danced from prep to college (ballet and cheerleading), and then I stopped for more or less 3 years because of work. I was so restless during those 3 years because my body’s not used to it, I simply need to move! I got back to dancing (lyrical jazz and hiphop) summer last year, but I had to quit a few months ago because I can’t fit it in my erratic schedule anymore.
Going to gym and running bores me, so I need to discover something new. I would love to dance still, but since I have a very unpredictable sched I can’t go regularly to classes. I’m not a fan of walk-in dance classes because I know I wouldn’t get better if I just attend whenever I want to. Any suggestions on what I could try?
6. LEARN MORE ABOUT PERSONAL FINANCE.
I’ve started truly caring about how to handle my money and how to make it grow just late last year, and I have lots to learn. I don’t know why they don’t teach personal finance in school; if only everyone knows all the options there is available, then we all wouldn’t have to work so hard! I want to learn more on how money could work for me and not the other way around.
So far those six are on the top of my list. I’m sure I will be adding more to this, but that’s for my next post. Happy New Year! =)
