For This Year

Resolutions are really secondary. I don't know if I will keep them, but there are fun to make. What is more important is this tradition that I do not want to break. A couple of years back I've always given myself a frame of mind to face the new year.

2010, my last year as a student, I wanted to be brilliant.

2011, my first year working fulltime, I wanted to be brave.

So in 2012, it is going to be a year of possibilities. This year, I want to make my dreams come true.

So yea, dear me a few months down the road, please don't chicken out and please don't settle. You will be tempted, but do not give in. Heck, you're 25 this year and you still have nothing to lose. So go and pull your dreams from the clouds and make it real.

2012 Resolutions

Wokay, let's recap last year's resolution:

1. Be happy. Despite all the let downs, I was happy.

2. Learn how to make things move. Hell yeah!!

3. Learn how to code (pass if I can make my own website). Fail kao kao.

4. Illustrate. In terms of work, I did a lot. But in terms of developing my existing skills to a higher level, no.

5. Read 50 books in 2011. I lost count. But am certainly didn't.

6. Start and finish my Eason Chan artbook. Didn't start at all.

7. Save money for camera, laptop and holiday. (so not gonna happen, at least not all three at the same time) No camera, no laptop, but I committed to TWO holidays, which I have yet to have the money to go on.

8. Run. Hell yeah!!!

9. Lose fat, be healthy. Came a bit late in the year, but yeah, I did this. At least I started.

10. Be happy. I am.

Come to think of it, I think I did pretty good for last year's resolution. But then again, I merely accidentally achieved most of it. It's not like I remembered these all the while and strive to achieve them. Why even make resolutions if they don't work? New years have this magical ability to make everything feel brand new, as if we could wipe all the bad things off and make a clean slate. For me, new years are about having new hope and dreams. Or rather, renewed chances to make my dreams come true.

Foolish it may be, but I kinda like resolutions, so this is my list for this year:

1. Save half my salary every month. Be frugal. Really stingy! (not possible for Jan, CNY costs a lot of ka-chink)

2. Learn HTML.

3. Go to the gym at least 3 times a week. (yup, I have an effing gym membership)

4. Draw. Draw. Draw.

5. Start a new blog on design.

6. Be more focused in work. Thus leave work at 7pm when possible. (yea rite, of course, whatever)

7. Start my pet project.

8. Be good and practice more patience with a certain someone.

9. Earn more money.

10. Be happy.

If you realise this whole list is basically all about work. I wanna make work something enjoyable again. Away from the office, I want work to be a joy again. Leave work early, and go make art.

From Last Year

Bad memory of mine these days, I got so used to thinking I had this long list of resolution from last year. But reading back on my past post (first one in 2011), what I wrote was simply this:

Brave new environments.

Brave new people.

Brave new challenges.

Brave tough times.

It was something like a pep talk for myself as I stepped into my first real job as a multimedia designer. Thinking back, I thought this frame of mind that I set myself into was simply brilliant. I don't know if I adhered to these rules consciously or not, but it certainly got me through the year. Rui has this tendency to ask us to sum up the year in three words, I could think of only one very appropriate one: WORK.

Confucious once said, "Do what you love and you need not work a single day." I think it was Confucious. Hah. I thought that was complete bs. Or maybe rather my actions were not exactly to his words. I do not love what I'm doing, but I do love what I can do. This first year of working life got me down more times than I cared to count. I have another 30 years to go, maybe? Oh my.

I have been an awful blogger this year. So much so I didn't post a single thing for the last two months. Sorry 2011, I wasn't able to bid you a proper farewell.