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End of 2021, beginning of 2022... |
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Again, this year I'm a little late to the party. I tried to get around to filling this out around New Years, but things were busy, and I wanted to make the most of the Summer weather in the first week of January, especially I had time off from Uni, Tai had time off work and Sabrina's daycare was closed. So with trips to the beach, and Zealandia, and then rushing back into studying in time to sit a bunch of mid-trimester tests this week and last...well, I just haven't got around to doing this. But...here it is!
1. What did you do in 2021 that you'd never done before? I don't know really, what did I do that was new? I had my car stolen...but that was something that happened to me, rather than something I did. I started studying for a Masters degree, I mean that is new, because my previous Uni degree was a BA. But, potato, potahto. Not much else really.
2. Did you keep your New Years' Resolutions, and will you make more for next year?Mostly. I did lose some weight again this year. I also had wanted to make some changes in my family's lives, and I did that, because we moved back to Upper Hutt and Taina got a new job, and I started studying. One of my goals this year is to do Yoga every day- just these 10 minute yoga sessions on YouTube so not too hard to keep up with, plus I'd like to get my DDR mat back from John (my father-in-law, who offered to fix it for me a couple of years ago and still hasn't gotten around to it), so I can hopefully find someone to fix it for me sooner rather than later.
3 . Did anyone close to you give birth? My sister-in-law Carol did. Again. She had baby number 4, a girl called Rea a few months ago.
4. Did anyone close to you die? Not someone close as such. But Chris- he was an old family friend, to be precise he was my second cousin Sari's ex-husband. He and Sari split up in the early 90s when I was still a kid, but he and Sari stayed friends, and he got on great with all the extended family so we all kept in touch with him for years. We even went to his next wedding to Steph, when I was about 14. He'd been quite sick for the last few years so it was no surprise when he passed, but still, he wasn't that old really, maybe 60. Also my friend Lisa- her Mum died this year so that was sad.
5. What countries did you visit? Nowhere. Much the same story as last year. COVID-19 is still a big problem so too risky to travel overseas, plus still the issue of money, and the fact that Sabrina is only 2, so travelling anywhere with her would be a big undertaking.
6. What would you like to have in 2022 that you lacked in 2021? I'd like to manage my finances better and get some debt paid off, plus I'd like to keep losing weight and getting a bit fitter, and a bit more energetic.
7. What date from 2021 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Good Friday, I think it was the 2nd of April. The day I was woken up at 5am by a call from the police, saying my car had been stolen, used to ram into a shop and then abandoned, badly damaged, with the stuff in my car taken.
Also there was a day in November that was quite memorable, when my new car (that I had got from insurance after the April incident) was crashed into when I was driving down Fergusson Drive. 2021 was not a lucky year for cars. By the end of November, I was onto my third car of the year.
8.What was your biggest achievement of the year? There's a few I suppose. Got into a new home in a new neighbourhood, and I really like it here. Taina's new job is awesome, he works close to home, and has 'normal' Monday- Friday daytime hours, and I can claim that as my achievement as I had a hand at nagging and pushing him to apply for jobs. My studying has been going well, the first assignment was a short worksheet (like a mini essay) for my Business Law course- the tutor liked my submission so much she posted it on the course notes for the rest of the class as an example on how it should be done. So I'm a wee bit proud of that.
9. What was your biggest failure? I wouldn't say there were many, if any, failures this last year. There are areas in my life that I feel need improvement, mostly in terms of money and health. But I also think those issues are the results of earlier struggles, and I think last year I worked hard to improve them where I could. All I can do is keep going.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? I had a few colds throughout the year. Nothing too severe, possibly because I got the flu vax so that kept away some of the worst bugs around. Plus I got the COVID jabs too of course. I did get injured a little in the car crash in November- mostly internal bruising from my seatbelt slamming into my chest during the impact. I recovered pretty quick, and I count myself lucky. The fact that my seatbelt slammed into my chest so hard goes too show how much force there was in the crash. If I hadn't had the seatbelt to stop the momentum, it could have been disastrous.
11. What was the best thing you bought? Haha...well, I bought myself a new car...twice! Didn't really feel like I was treating myself to something new, it was more a case of needing to replace something urgently, when ideally I would have preferred not to have people stealing or crashing into my car in the first place so that I wouldn't have had to bother with the hassle.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration? Taina and Sabrina. My awesome little family. Sabrina has grown this last year, from a baby who was just walking, and still mostly talking gibberish, to an adorably sassy 2 year old who loves cars, and balloons, and pretending to make me coffee (she got a toy coffee shop for Christmas). Also Jess- helped out so much. Babysitting. Lent us her car while I had to sort out a replacement car...twice!
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Anti-vaxxers and general idiots. Car thieves. People who pull out of side streets onto Fergusson Drive without looking or slowing down.
14. Where did most of your money go? Rent! Bills! Food! Cars! All this exciting adulting stuff.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? I enjoyed Sabrina's birthday party. That was exciting, friends and family together, food, toys, balloons, fun stuff. House hunting before our move to Upper Hutt was actually quite exciting. Starting my new degree, that was exciting a bit.
16. What song will always remind you of 2021? Bleachers and Walk The Moon both had new albums out this year. In particular, I listened a lot to Stop Making This Hurt by Bleachers, and Giants by Walk The Moon.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you: i. Happier or Sadder? Happier for sure. Sabrina is still exhausting at times, but as she gets older there are more games and things we can do together, so I can enjoy time with her more and more. I like our new place so much better than where we were a year ago. Quieter street. A fenced-off backyard for Sabrina to play in. A garage to store things in. And studying gives me an idea that I'm working towards more improvements in the future. ii. Thinner or Fatter than last year? Thinner. I lost 14 kgs, which sounds impressive, but I still don't exactly love my current size, it's still hard to find bras to fit comfortably. I still would like to get a bit more weight off. iii. Richer or Poorer? Maybe like a tiny bit richer? But not much. I have been budgeting well, but on the other hand, there are always more expenses, and there have been a few instances where Taina has missed out on pay because of catching colds off Sabrina and then not having any accrued sick pay (because been at his new job less than six months) so having to take unpaid leave. In the pre-COVID days, in those circumstances most people would have just stuck it out being sick at work, but that's not really an option now, any symptoms and you have to stay away from work and other public places. It would be fine, if the government would change the law to make sick leave available as soon as a person starts a job, instead of accruing it over six months.
18: What do you wish you'd done more of? Actually....nothing. I think I managed my time well. I exercised when I could. I read books sometimes. I studied when I needed to. I played with Sabrina when I could. I slept. I cleaned the house when I could. No, I did well.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of? Eating junk. Story of my life right there.
20. How will you be spending Christmas? The morning was just me, Taina and Sabrina at home. We opened our presents from Santa and from each other, listened to Christmas music, ate breakfast, and got ready to go over to Nana and Grandads (Dad and Jill's house). The rest of the day was spent there, presents, food, playing. Sabrina had a bad cold or flu so she was grumpy and tired a lot. But we made the most of it. In the evening, because Sabrina was so tired, we came home and put her to bed, but Dad, Jill and Brierlee came back to our place too, and we stayed up late playing Cluedo and drinking Blueberry Liqueur that Dad had brought over.
22. Did you fall in love in 2021? I love my family. That's enough.
23. How many one-night stands? I don't have a night stand. I have a bedside table. xd
24. What was your favourite TV programme? I got into a couple of shows this last year that I hadn't seen before. I really liked Superstore, and Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. In the last month or two, I discovered that someone on YouTube has uploaded big long videos of every month of Coronation Street going through the 80s and 90s. That probably sounds lame, but the thing is, I grew up watching Coro St. It was me and my Mum's thing, we always watched it together, and even after I moved out of home, me and Mum would text each other to discuss what was going on in the show and check if we'd seen the latest episode. I first started watching it with Mum when I was about 7 or 8, so around 1993-ish. So once I discovered all these videos, I decided to watch the entirety of Coro St from 1989 onwards, find out stuff that happened back before I started watching, and see how much I remember from the stuff I did watch so long ago.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? No...frustrated at many people, but noone I know personally, just the general idiots of the universe.
26. What was the best book you read? I read this book, can't remember the name. It's a real life diary of a black American slave girl just before the US Civil War, her life trying to escape the South and start a new life in the North, (New York or Boston) and all the problems along the way. It was great.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery? I looked up some stuff by Air Traffic Controller, and New Politics. Both great bands, both bands I'd heard one or two songs from before on Spotify so decided to find out what else they had.
28. What did you want and get? I asked Taina for a gift certificate for my birthday. So I got a voucher for a massage, and for Christmas I got a voucher for a skin treatment at Caci. Haven't used either of them yet, but I will once all these tests and assignments for Uni have calmed down.
29. What did you want and not get? I'd like my DDR mat repaired and returned to me. Also I'd like a big freezer in the garage, like a chest freezer, so I can stock up on stuff so there's always something I can whip up for dinner in a hurry.
30. What was your favorite film of the year? Went to the movies twice this year. Saw Cruella, it was like a prequel of 101 Dalmatians, focusing on Cruella de Vil as a young woman. Really good, amazing classic 60s/70s soundtrack. And just recently saw the new Spiderman movie, that was surprisingly good too.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 36. Invited Dad, Jill, Brierlee, Jess and Luke over for a lunch and general hang out. It was nice and chilled out.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more enjoyable? A bit more money, and none of these dramas involving cars.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2022? My personal fashion concept was, "Yes, I know this top has holes and food stains on it, and no, I don't care"
34. What kept you sane? TV. Rollercoaster Tycoon Touch on my phone. My family. Going for walks.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Hmmm...maybe Daddy Pig (from Peppa Pig)? No, I'm kidding.
36. What political issue stirred you the most? I guess just the pandemic and people's responses to it.
37. Who did you miss? Exact same answer as last year: I always miss my Mum, I wish I could tell her about everything going on in my life.
38. Who was the best new person you met? Sabrina's teachers at her daycare are lovely. Also my Business Law lecturer Trish seems cool.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2022? If you want to change something in life, then just do it.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year: "Toot, toot, chugga, chugga, big red car..."(except my new car is pink)
weezieishness · Wed Jan 19, 2022 @ 03:17am · 0 Comments |
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