Too Thousand and Nein.

I left right after the countdown last night, completely sober and looking forward to spending the first day of the new year bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and raring to go (where exactly, I hadn't quite yet figured out, but it would've been some sort of run, I guess). Instead, I woke up in the morning feeling like a sock being turned inside out, starting with my uterus. Hence New Year Resolution #1:

I will take my flaxseed oil supplements regularly.

In fact, this year will be all about regularity, in a way. Sticking to things, finishing off what I've started, making the most of what I already possess. Perseverance. Tenacity. Ardour. Words one commonly finds in a school motto. Because in the past few weeks I was forced to do a mental inventory of all my possessions and wow I do possess quite a bit. A lot of it was just clutter, objects used-and-abused and stuff which sentimental value had eroded completely over time. But several items did rather painfully stand out for representing desire without the willpower for execution. Dusty half-completed self-study courses in assorted languages, boxes of watercolours and empty sketchbooks, clothes a half-size too small for me, an army of cosmetics and toiletries promising a brand new beautiful me, etc. So New Year Resolution #2 would read something like:

I will not buy anything new unless there is nothing amongst my possessions that could conceivably provide for the same purpose.

It saves me money and puts less pressure on the environment too. #3:

Painting, physical fitness and Portuguese.

Of course there are other things I want to do this year, like making the most of my digital camera and learning to ride a motorcyle, but these things don't start with the letter "P". But Philippines, Pemuteran (in North Bali) and Phu Quoc (in Vietnam) do, all relevant to #4:

Travel.

Fairly achievable resolutions for 2009, I'd say. Which apparently is a good thing, according to this recent BBC article cautioning people against new year resolutions because failure to execute them "could trigger feelings of failure and inadequacy". And I certainly wouldn't want to feel those. Like cockroaches. I would absolutely not want to feel a cockroach, or one crawling up my leg. I really hate cockroaches.

...