Happy New Year!
Before I begin posting about recent adventures, I feel compelled to reflect a little bit on 2008. A year ago today, this is what I wrote as my last sentence:
"I'm hoping 2008 will be better than 2007. And it'd be great if it was anything close to 2003. So this is the new year..."
In retrospect, I realize how ridiculous of a statement that was. And not because I was hoping for better times, but because in a way, I desired a piece of my life that had already come and gone. Now, if living in London for the last few months has taught me anything, it's that life can change in the blink of an eye... and that incredible, new experiences are always around the corner. Clinging to the past just makes you blind to the present. But I guess that's always been a bit of a tendency with me.
Fortunately, I'm in a wonderful place this time around - and I think I can talk about 2008 with a better mindset than my last year-in-review.
2008 was one for the books. It had all the good old traditions and the usual bits of "everyday" life - Big Bear trip with friends in January, working a lot throughout the spring, family get-togethers and epic nostalgia sessions... but it's also been a year of intense change.
I spent a lot of time this year assessing the value of my relationships and have again reorganized my "most important people" list. Sounds terrible, I know... but we ALL do that - admit it. The good news is that there's been some consistency, which makes me feel good because I know I'm not incapable of maintaining closeness with some people. Others have been (for lack of better words) "promoted" to the top tier of my friendship chart - mostly because they've been just extraordinary friends in the last year. And others have fallen down the ranks a bit, but I have no bitterness. I'm not going to name names, because that would just put the cherry on top of my pretentiousness sundae... but I'm pretty sure they know who they are - and that's what really matters. Some of the most important moments of the last year have come down to one thing - being unafraid to tell people how much I love them.
This becomes more and more important to me as I get older... and nothing else can better remind me of that except for death - which has been another serious theme of 2008. Too many family members, friends, friends of family, family of friends and even far-away celebrities have died in the last year. It's been a major reminder of our mortality and perhaps the best way to deal with it (at least in my case) is to see it as a sign of changing times - not necessarily in a negative way, but as a lesson in enjoying life as much as possible. Rest in peace, dear ones.
Other notable first-time things that have happened in 2008 (in no particular order):
-Fran got a B+ in science
-My little brother moved back from SF
-I got back in touch with my roots in the Philippines
-I quit my first job that was actually part of my career track
-I saw Radiohead live... TWICE...
-I was part of an art show
-I bought my first pair of all-black, leather converse
-I started wearing skinny jeans
-I went to Thailand
-I learned to crochet
-I moved to London
-My best friend got engaged
-I went on a late-night rendezvous down Mulholland Drive
-I tried cannabis in Amsterdam
-I saw Scotland for the first time
-Kim moved to Edinburgh
-I made latkes
-My mom smoked hookah
-Nathan graduated from high school
Things that have stayed the same throughout 2008 (in no particular order):
-Fran still plays the piano
-I still smoke cigarettes
-Becky is still my best friend
-Converse are still my favorite shoes
-I still wear dress socks with designs on them
-I still drink coffee religiously
-I still love Harry Potter
-Procrastination is still my favorite pastime
-Sushi is still the best food ever
-I still love writing (no professional regrets, whatsoever)
-I still want to marry Jack White
-I still play music
-I still love home
For the most part, even though a lot has changed in my life, I still feel like the same person - except now, I'm much more comfortable in my own skin. But I guess that's the ideal situation as life goes on.. 2008 has been the most amazing year of my life, despite some of the tragedies. But I won't say that I want to repeat it - because each new year should bring about a new set of valuable experiences - just as important as the ones we already treasure and file away in our minds. Welcome 2009!
"In the end... the love you take, is equal to the love you make..."
Showing posts with label year in review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label year in review. Show all posts
Friday, January 9, 2009
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
So this is the new year... and I don't feel any different.
I was originally saving my first blog entry of 2008 for some type of introspective "year in review" but next thing I knew, an entire week had already past without as much as a thought of how I was planning to conduct such an endeavor.
So I figured that before I let the entire month of January pass by (which I have a natural talent of doing) without writing anything, I should probably just get on with it in whatever manner comes spewing forth through my keyboard.
Here's 2007 in my self-imposed nutshell:
January
We went on our annual trip to Big Bear. It didn't come close to the first two trips back in 2003, but it was still fun... despite some unavoidable awkwardness and the overwhelming feeling of "missing my girls." On the 3rd night of the trip, I got drunker than I had ever been in my whole life and I insisted on smoking a cigarette in the 0-degree backyard in nothing but pjs, a tank top and my snowboard boots.
Josh moved to San Francisco... after all these years of living in the same house, it felt strange to say goodbye.
I quit my job at the Body Shop to focus on my final semester of college.
February through April
For the most part, I stopped talking to people who weren't directly involved in my day-to-day routine. All that mattered to me at this point was becoming an editor of the campus magazine and everything else school-related.
I spent less and less time with my regular group of friends, and more time with new people. In retrospect I attribute it to a subconscious "sorting" I was doing to weed out the bad "friends" and maybe also as an effort to surround myself with people who "understood" me. What was comfortable was falling apart... I had to do something different.
This attitude may have persisted throughout the rest of the year, but it was most significant during these few months.
Also in April - We went to New York City for Spring Break. It was wonderful. We had a laugh attack at the Paradise Cafe and wandered through Greenwich Village. We may have spent too much time at H&M.
May
I graduated from college with a bachelor's degree in magazine journalism. I was pleasantly surprised when you attended my graduation.
June-October
I got hired at The Acorn and started off immediately as the lead reporter of the Simi Valley edition. I was sucked in to the real world, perhaps too quickly to have really enjoyed it. I missed school.
The summer flew by without incident. Except for my birthday (which was exceptional this year), I hardly noticed it.
Halloween was mediocre. But Francis had fun as Harry Potter.
November-December
I was getting desperate and wanted very badly to move to San Francisco, or New York, or anywhere.
I couldn't move so instead, I spent a few days wandering SF by myself. I stayed with Josh but he had to work. Napa was great. Nothing bad happened in November - which was record-breaking compared to past years.
Thanksgiving reminded us of how important traditions were. As a family, we made the most of the holidays. We were all very much closer than usual.
"They" say that whoever you celebrate New Year's Eve with will be the same as those surrounding you in the coming year. On Dec. 31, 2006 - I didn't see any of my regular friends. On Dec. 31, 2007, I made it a point to see the really close ones.
So this is the new year... and I don't feel any different.
As Ben Gibbard continues to sing...
I wish the world was flat like the old days
Then i could travel just by folding a map
No more airplanes, or speed trains, or freeways
There'd be no distance that could hold us back.
I'm hoping 2008 will be better than 2007. And it'd be great if it was anything close to 2003. So this is the new year...
So I figured that before I let the entire month of January pass by (which I have a natural talent of doing) without writing anything, I should probably just get on with it in whatever manner comes spewing forth through my keyboard.
Here's 2007 in my self-imposed nutshell:
January
We went on our annual trip to Big Bear. It didn't come close to the first two trips back in 2003, but it was still fun... despite some unavoidable awkwardness and the overwhelming feeling of "missing my girls." On the 3rd night of the trip, I got drunker than I had ever been in my whole life and I insisted on smoking a cigarette in the 0-degree backyard in nothing but pjs, a tank top and my snowboard boots.
Josh moved to San Francisco... after all these years of living in the same house, it felt strange to say goodbye.
I quit my job at the Body Shop to focus on my final semester of college.
February through April
For the most part, I stopped talking to people who weren't directly involved in my day-to-day routine. All that mattered to me at this point was becoming an editor of the campus magazine and everything else school-related.
I spent less and less time with my regular group of friends, and more time with new people. In retrospect I attribute it to a subconscious "sorting" I was doing to weed out the bad "friends" and maybe also as an effort to surround myself with people who "understood" me. What was comfortable was falling apart... I had to do something different.
This attitude may have persisted throughout the rest of the year, but it was most significant during these few months.
Also in April - We went to New York City for Spring Break. It was wonderful. We had a laugh attack at the Paradise Cafe and wandered through Greenwich Village. We may have spent too much time at H&M.
May
I graduated from college with a bachelor's degree in magazine journalism. I was pleasantly surprised when you attended my graduation.
June-October
I got hired at The Acorn and started off immediately as the lead reporter of the Simi Valley edition. I was sucked in to the real world, perhaps too quickly to have really enjoyed it. I missed school.
The summer flew by without incident. Except for my birthday (which was exceptional this year), I hardly noticed it.
Halloween was mediocre. But Francis had fun as Harry Potter.
November-December
I was getting desperate and wanted very badly to move to San Francisco, or New York, or anywhere.
I couldn't move so instead, I spent a few days wandering SF by myself. I stayed with Josh but he had to work. Napa was great. Nothing bad happened in November - which was record-breaking compared to past years.
Thanksgiving reminded us of how important traditions were. As a family, we made the most of the holidays. We were all very much closer than usual.
"They" say that whoever you celebrate New Year's Eve with will be the same as those surrounding you in the coming year. On Dec. 31, 2006 - I didn't see any of my regular friends. On Dec. 31, 2007, I made it a point to see the really close ones.
So this is the new year... and I don't feel any different.
As Ben Gibbard continues to sing...
I wish the world was flat like the old days
Then i could travel just by folding a map
No more airplanes, or speed trains, or freeways
There'd be no distance that could hold us back.
I'm hoping 2008 will be better than 2007. And it'd be great if it was anything close to 2003. So this is the new year...
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