2015: Our Best Year Yet!

Hello everyone! It's been a long time, I apologize. The last few months of last year have been crazy, and I mean crazy! I spent most of my time in Jakarta, and had my birthday, Christmas and New Year in the superbly breathtaking New Zealand!

2014 has been an awesome year, but I know that 2015 is going to be my best year yet!

So here are my new year's resolutions that I wrote during a company retreat in December.

Personal Goal
1) To start at least 2 new investments by this year.
2) To go to Japan and Harry Potter theme park
3) To write more. Blog at least once a week.
4) To finish Game of Thrones books

Family Goal
1) To spend more time with Dad and my sisters, if possible have another family vacation

Career Goal
1) To get a promotion (Update: I did it! Achieved in January, which means, maybe I need to aim for another promotion by this year? OH YES!)
2) To have an independent branch in Jakarta

Health Goal
1) To take part in at least 2 marathons this year

It doesn't seem much but I learnt not to set unrealistic expectations that are just going to demotivate you, but then again, my goal this year importantly above all those things that I've listed above, is to be a better me, in everything.

Better person, better daughter and sister, better girlfriend, better co-worker, better friend, better learner.. A me who is going to make me proud. 

I am so happy at where I am in my life now, and can't be more grateful for the people around me who have given me so much love and support. Together let's make this year a smashing mondofabulous one!

I'm going to blog and post pictures from my New Zealand trip soon, so stay tuned! :)

Keep smiling, because life is a beautiful thing and there's so much to smile about.

Fat. And a plan.

I probably don't need to remind you of how fat I've become these past few months. I'm not saying I'm fat, like in fat fat, but the fact is, I am getting fatter. I have people around me who constantly tell me that I look fine, that a little curves here and there wouldn't hurt, and true, I don't want to become one of those girls who look like sticks, like their arms are gonna break within the slightest touch or a blow of wind.

No, I don't wish to be skinny, but I do want to lose a few pounds because I have been gaining weight recently, and I notice the difference in the size of my arms and thigh, particularly. Yes, every now and then, an old friend who hasn't seen me in a few years would comment, "hey, you look chubbier now.." but that's not the reason why I want to lose weight. (because there's nothing left of my ego to lose. Kidding!)

Oh, but you know what. Maybe I should show you with a picture. Now, kids, look away now, and guys, in case you're eating when you see this, I recommend you to finish your meal first. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Seriously, now. Now I really have no ego left.

And that picture is probably suitable for a fattening pill commercial. Although, I don't think there is such thing. The first picture was taken three years ago, and I have to say, that was the shortest shorts I have ever worn. It's so short, it looks as if I barely had any pants on.

I still have that shorts, but now the police probably would have to shoot me first before I get to wear that out again. I can't imagine how many people I might traumatize and corrupt with that sight.

The "after fattening pill" picture was just taken last Sunday on my outing to the beach. Yes, similar occasion, same beach even. But look at my arms and thigh! That shorts wasn't even nowhere as short as the first one, yet my thigh looked like it was ready to jump around everywhere. I could barely contain it in place. Same case with my arms, which is probably twice the size of the original form.

Does that look healthy to you?! Curves in your hips, yeah, that's awesome, but not in your arms and thigh, I don't think so!

So I started to pick up running these days, and you would know how uncharacteristic of me to wanna run since I hate sweating and I hate sports even more. But I surprise myself by actually enjoying it. Well, at least as far as doing sports goes. I would still rather choose lazing around in my couch than going running, are you kidding? But I mean, it's good to be a little more active too, and I found the perfect track and place to run which is not far from my apartment.

Interesting thing about it, yeah, I get to run and stay healthy and hopefully shred a few pounds in the process, but there's something else that comes with the territory everytime I go running at my favorite place: people-watching.

I normally run in the evening around 6, and I started noticing the same people who always run at that time too, and it's like, there's this unspoken acknowledgment among us. And the people are always very interesting and diverse. There's this indian girl who looks like she's about to train for marathon or something judging by the intensity of her work-out, a chinese uncle who sweats like no other, I can almost see the sweat dripping like a faucet, two teenage boys who always run side-by-side and never missing a beat like siamese twins, an old couple who stroll in the track so slowly like the entire place is theirs. And then there's me. A girl who looks like she's about to pass out anytime.

One time during last week when I was running, I passed this chinese man in bicycle and he shouted, "Jia you!" at me, which means "good luck" in english. Not that I don't appreciate his encouragement or anything, but I wonder, I must have looked beyond stupid for him to say that. I was panting and running in such a pathetic pace.

But hey, at least he didn't call me a fatty.

But all jokes aside, I really am serious about staying healthy and all that. I still eat like normal, but I just make a point of not consuming too much of anything. I hardly drink soft drinks anymore, and when I used to drink green tea everyday at home, now I make a point to have plain water instead. And I eat apple everyday, try to have more vegetables and salad too, and hopefully I can keep up with running and actually feel better about myself.

Stuck and A Plan in Motion

Just as you go through phrases in life, sometimes I find myself 'stuck'. No, I'm not talking about anything heavy here. Please, I'm having too much of a blonde moment right now to be worrying about my uncertain and bleak future, blah blah blah.

I'm referring to my absence in writing. Hey, there's a thing called 'writer's block' for a reason, isn't there? My creativity is scarce like a drop of water in the desert. Let alone composing a barely readable post, I can't even make a decent structured sentence without hurting my head. Something is obviously wrong, but I think to myself that I might easily just be having one of those rough patches in one's unprofessional credential.

Gimme a break.

Is it possible to suddenly run out of ideas? It is, right? Afterall, I've spent so much time in the past writing bollocks out of nothing. There's a chance I simply have just exhausted all my life's worth of words and opinion. Well, at least for the time being that seems to be the case. (Because otherwise, it's too grim of a reality to imagine. My look is just what I have left after I win people over with my personality.)

I'm fairly certain it will eventually come back to me, out of the blue and unexpectedly. There's a phrase about that, right? That, um, things work out in the most unexpected ways?

Ah, well, I'm just trying to console myself, I guess. And apparently, failing miserably too.

But, I'm taking preventive steps! Well, not necessarily 'preventive', perhaps 'recovery' is a better word. Yes, I'm taking recovery steps to regain my inspiration back. My creativity juice, my chi, my center in life!

I thought, if I could do something out of the ordinary, perhaps that would make a difference. Maybe to avoid being stuck, I should just go in a completely different direction, so I'll always venturing out to new territories. No way I can get stuck there, right?

After I proudly came up with this game plan, I started thinking about, well, the new things I should try doing. Only then did I realize that this idea only works well in theory, and once again, well, remember the blonde moment I was talking about earlier? Yeah, having a major one at the moment.

I was intending to take drastic measures. But within reason, I certainly can't help to find the cure for cancer, or lead the blind, can I?

Left out with nothing much after crossing those two off my list, I realized too that I probably won't be able to learn korean, make pottery, or do rock climbing in foreseeable future.

Anyway, maybe I should start with baby steps. Aim high, shoot low. (Heck, I don't even know what that means to this day.) Make a change within myself, I mean. And what's one thing I've always wanted to change about myself, but never been able to? (due to serious lack of motivation, determination. In short, pure and simply laziness.)

Exercising!

(Not 'stop talking', 'stop writing gibberish' or 'stop partying'. Sorry.)

Yes, working out. 'Working out' and I haven't exactly been friends. We were introduced one time, and we didn't hit it off at all. We had nothing in common, and we didn't talk for the rest of the semester.

Maybe it's time to make amends with this fella. See if we can be good acquaintances at the very least.

Thus, with this new plan in motion, I just came back from a swim, which in itself is a pretty unlikely of me to do at 8 o'clock at night when I normally would have been laying in the couch, munching potato chips.

And also, that's why I went back and forth to the video store a few days ago on foot, which is unlikely too, and I actually enjoyed it. Although, I had a big dinner afterwards. Not that it's the point.

That's also why I planned to do a little hiking this weekend, which is yet to happen, I know, so there's a chance I might back out of it. But fingers crossed I won't! See, I'm taking steps to recovery.

I'm speaking as if I'm a mental patient in a clinic who needs to ehm, recover in quotation mark. No! All I want is to get my inspiration back. (I don't know what's the connection between those two, but let's just say there is one. I'm forcing it.) Afterall, if yoga is indeed relaxing and can help you to reduce stress, then why wouldn't it work in any other ways, right?

Swim and you'll be inspired! Jog and voila! You study better! Etc, etc, etc.

The things I do to be able to write again...Now that's the spirit, my friend! See, even writing about wanting to work out just so I could write again, already helped me to write this entry about that very topic, eh, now I'm confused.

Ah! Better end this now.

I should start working out before I turn completely into someone with no opinion and absolutely nothing interesting to say.