Begin Again
I really do love the arbitrary start of a new year and even if the cliches of new year, new me is logically not the only time to start to change, and yet it always feels fresh and I am into it. Chinggay got me into a year planning thing with Unravel Your Year and it was really nice to sit down and really think of how I plan on approaching the new year (and the new decade).
It was also interesting to look back on the past decade and damn, a lot of shit went down. Luckily, I’m an ultra anal person when it comes to documentation so it was funny to read back on entries and cringe-worthy things that I wrote down. Embarrassing and also hilarious. Still, it goes to show how insane life has been and I’m always grateful for the friends and family and experiences that shaped me along the way.
Stay Healthy
My health scare at the end of 2019 really put things in perspective for me. For someone that exercises fairly regularly but eats horribly, it was such a slap in the face to see how badly my cholesterol was and so it’s a conscious effort on my part to really get my shit together. No more weekly McDonalds + KFC runs. It’s going to be tough but I don’t want to be on statins (medication) forever so I must.
And I really should find exercise that works (stretching at yoga doesn’t feel sufficient) so something that I enjoy that actually will contribute to my being a ‘healtheir’ person. The eating part might be the toughest thing but there are bigger problems out there. I can survive more vegetables and less pork. I hope.
Spending/Saving Better
At my age, I feel like I should be way more responsible financially and I definitely still go a bit overboard on the self-care excuse and treating myself. All of this is well and good of course, but because I’m so bad at foreseeing the future, I can’t imagine what life will be like then. Still, I definitely don’t want to work forever (and obviously I won’t be employable at one point) so I definitely need to plan/save better.
It’s tough and I wish someone would literally just tell me what to do so I can do it. So if anyone who’s good at financial planning for the future is reading this, please tell me because I am all ears. I will listen and follow a checklist. I just am not sure where to start. Which really freaks me out.
Practicing Gratitude
I don’t know if this goes against planning for the future but I definitely want to try and live in the present and be more grateful for what I have right now. I think I get bogged down easily and have a lot of unnecessary self-imposed drama and I could use a perspective change and just be more grateful.
I am so incredibly blessed and have been lucky enough to have a pretty good life and I know it’s easy to preach this but so hard to practice it. And I definitely just want to be less hard on myself (and others) and be more in the here and now and appreciating what I have. It’s a lot.
Connect with Loved Ones
I stay in touch pretty regularly with family and friends — a text here and there (almost constantly) and this everyday talking really does make me think that I’m still in their lives, but there’s also something about a phone call or chat in real life that just grounds things much more.
I’m going to try my best to connect more with those that matter — I’ll start small, texting is always welcome, but when time permits (or really, making time for it), I’d love to have a call! A ringing phone, the horror! But I’ll overcome that somehow.
