Are EOY memes supposed to be done on Jan 1st or 31 Dec?
Hacked from my own post from last year. I do realise that probably nobody would read this, but I find reading my own entries from last year somewhat amazing. Like, you mean all that has happened to me recently only happened in the last year??
1. What did you do in 2014 that you'd never done before?
Haha. Hahaha. *coughs and clears throat* Get engaged. Get married. Move to live in an overseas country for more then 6 months. Work overseas. :D It's been a crazy year.
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Apparently my resolution last year was to save money! And strangely enough, even with the wedding and the moving overseas and dipping into savings and everything... I did! I was just telling my husband I've never had that much money in my accounts before!
My new new year resolution shall be to maintain my current level of fitness and health, and to eat healthier things! Less sugar!
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yup! A cousin and an ex-colleague! Oddly enough it wasn't a year of my close friends delivering.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Thank goodness not. :)
5. What countries did you visit?
Hmm. I think I went to Turkey twice for work, once to the US for work, once to Canada for work too (yay!), and Tokyo for a pre-marriage honeymoon. After that, we came to London for the start of our 10 month stint, and we popped into Florence and Venice during the December holidays~ Less than the epic travelling that was last year, but no regrets there!
6. What would you like to have in 2015 that you lacked in 2014?
2014 was oddly a pretty good year for me, mostly because almost half the year was spent not actually working for the Singapore government. I felt accomplished at work before I left it, and continued to feel useful at the work I'm doing in the UK. I managed to save money, lose weight, stay healthy, get a good work-life balance (mostly because people leave work at 5PM here), get a lot of home-cooking done, a lot of quality time spent with my husband. And 2015 promises to have all of that, up until we finish our 10 month stint and end up back in Singapore and I'll have to start working again. I guess, for that part, I would like to have the self-discipline to remember the lessons in work-life balance that I learnt here and apply them to my work in Singapore.
7. What dates from 2014 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
14 April, when my husband proposed. 25 May, our marriage/ROM anniversary. 17 August, our post-ROM, pre-wedding, pre-departure tea party for our friends. 29 August, our wedding.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Planning effectively three wedding related events in 1 month and 4 months respectively, which was planned together with my husband, and without too much disagreements from our parents. I still think the fact that I've managed to save money even after effectively two money-intensive activities (moving to UK and the wedding) is pretty amazing.
9. What was your biggest failure?
One of my good friends has not had a good year, and especially during the period when my own life was becoming settled and things like weddings and moving overseas was happening, her own life did not seem to turn for the better. I often wonder whether there could be more I could have done for her, and I still haven't figured out whether there was.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing major! I'm pretty sure I still fell ill occasionally after work trips. Oh! There was the time I came back from the US and had a septic ulcer on the plane back (not. fun.) and was taking antibiotics for it when I got back, and then my husband proposed. Haha. There might also have been a day when I went to work, went to see the doctor during lunch for something for my persistent cough, and was informed that I was running a temperature (I had no idea). The doctor was very amused and amazed at me.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Ignoring all the wedding related stuff, and all the household stuff we bought since coming over to the UK (eyes the pots and pans and the heater), I would say probably my £50 calf-high leather boots from Marks & Spencers. They are mostly waterproof, warm my calves, and I can wear them to work, and are very comfy! I wear them almost everyday and walk 30 minutes to work in the morning and 30 minutes back in the evening.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
I probably have to say, my husband, for tolerating me so well so far. Especially when I oversleep and he has to wait an hour for his breakfast. :P
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled?
Nobody really. Everyone has been amazingly supportive this year, including my colleagues and bosses in Singapore, the ones over here, my families, old and new, friends etc. I find myself on 1 Jan 2015 racking my brains for who would have appalled me. Besides people who appear in the news etc of course. I'm finding UKIP very interesting for example.
14. Where did most of your money go?
This was the year I started logging every.single.transaction. since March 2014, so this is the first year that I've not felt completely lost where my money went. Probably the biggest expense was the wedding, though in terms of net expense it wasn't that bad. I still did a fair amount of shopping and spent a fair amount on travelling, but it's been a really good year for the finances so far. Hope I keep it up!
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Wedding! And also the whole 10 months in UK thing. Actually I think what I really really got excited about was a LONG break from work for the first time since I started work.
16. What song will always remind you of 2014?
Any of the songs we used for the wedding. In particular All The Pennies by Mindy Gledhill, because that's the song our photographer used for the wedding montage.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you (a) happier or sadder, (b) thinner or fatter? (c) richer or poorer?
(a) happier, should I say, more happy in life, since I'm actually married and want for nothing (b) omg for the first year I can say, thinner! Because I had to diet for the wedding and am still keeping it off! (c) Definitely richer, hoping to keep it that way!
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
I kind of thought we might have travelled more now that we are located in Europe, but in all honesty my husband still has school and I still technically have a 5-day-week job, so it's mostly the weekends we have free, and we only travel if he doesn't have homework or exams. :P But it's not a big deal.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
*Racks brain* Maybe not play so much Minesweeper and Spider Solitaire on my phone after work? :P
20. How did you spend Christmas?
We woke up late, made breakfast, lazed around, bundled up, popped down to Seven Dials for our reserved table at Scoff & Banter, had a Christmas lunch, went down to St James Park in the hopes of some quiet wandering around the park, found that everyone else in London had the same idea, still spent some time marvelling at the concentration of wildlife in that one park, came back home, watched One Piece on the computer, listened to an episode of Good Omens on BBC Radio, cooked Bak Ku Teh and vegetables, ate dinner, watched more One Piece, and went to sleep. Oh, and husband started surfing the net for early Boxing Day sales and bought stuff from Uniqlo and Ecco online. Haha. Super domesticated.
21. Did you fall in love in 2014?
*grins* *points at husband*
22. What was your favourite TV programme?
This year was QI year! We watched every single episode whilst we were here. And also, One Piece! We must have only started watching mid-year, but we're already on episode 350++? It's really a wonderful show! I cry and laugh so much at it.
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nope. I really rarely hate or dislike people.
24. What was the best book you read?
My husband passed me his Kindle whilst we were here so I've been reading quite a bit on it, though mostly non-fiction history of Scotland/Wales books. I also stock up on books to buy when we pop into Waterstones, though I buy them on Kindle, so effectively I'm show-rooming when I'm in Waterstones. I'm sure I've basically forgotten a lot of the books I've read, but if in-progress books are counted, I've been discovering how highly readable The Tale of Genji is!
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
One Piece music. And also ONE OK ROCK. And all the music my husband has. :P
26. What did you want and get?
Hahaha I wanted the proposal and I definitely got it and more.
27. What did you want and not get?
... A toaster oven? I keep thinking it might be useful to actually get something that toasts bread and can do mini-baking, instead of me toasting bread every morning on a frying pan. (My husband just quipped that this can be an easy item to move from Qn 27 to Qn 26 next year with a cheeky look.)
28. What was your favourite film of this year?
... Kenshin? I'm a bit blurry on movies.
Except, we definitely watched the NT Live of The Audience (with Helen Mirren) where she acts as the Queen of England (and interestingly enough we then watched King Charles III in London) and that was spectacular. One of the best plays I've had the fortune of seeing. It's so good we're definitely going to watch the revival in 2015.
29. What one thing made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Being married. Really.
30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?
Stockings, blanket scarves, boots and colour!
31. What kept you sane?
That I was going to get married. And then, being married.
32. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"I don't need your money
Just your kisses and your funny faces
Which I miss when you're away" - from All The Pennies, Mindy Gledhill
1. What did you do in 2014 that you'd never done before?
Haha. Hahaha. *coughs and clears throat* Get engaged. Get married. Move to live in an overseas country for more then 6 months. Work overseas. :D It's been a crazy year.
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Apparently my resolution last year was to save money! And strangely enough, even with the wedding and the moving overseas and dipping into savings and everything... I did! I was just telling my husband I've never had that much money in my accounts before!
My new new year resolution shall be to maintain my current level of fitness and health, and to eat healthier things! Less sugar!
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yup! A cousin and an ex-colleague! Oddly enough it wasn't a year of my close friends delivering.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Thank goodness not. :)
5. What countries did you visit?
Hmm. I think I went to Turkey twice for work, once to the US for work, once to Canada for work too (yay!), and Tokyo for a pre-marriage honeymoon. After that, we came to London for the start of our 10 month stint, and we popped into Florence and Venice during the December holidays~ Less than the epic travelling that was last year, but no regrets there!
6. What would you like to have in 2015 that you lacked in 2014?
2014 was oddly a pretty good year for me, mostly because almost half the year was spent not actually working for the Singapore government. I felt accomplished at work before I left it, and continued to feel useful at the work I'm doing in the UK. I managed to save money, lose weight, stay healthy, get a good work-life balance (mostly because people leave work at 5PM here), get a lot of home-cooking done, a lot of quality time spent with my husband. And 2015 promises to have all of that, up until we finish our 10 month stint and end up back in Singapore and I'll have to start working again. I guess, for that part, I would like to have the self-discipline to remember the lessons in work-life balance that I learnt here and apply them to my work in Singapore.
7. What dates from 2014 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
14 April, when my husband proposed. 25 May, our marriage/ROM anniversary. 17 August, our post-ROM, pre-wedding, pre-departure tea party for our friends. 29 August, our wedding.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Planning effectively three wedding related events in 1 month and 4 months respectively, which was planned together with my husband, and without too much disagreements from our parents. I still think the fact that I've managed to save money even after effectively two money-intensive activities (moving to UK and the wedding) is pretty amazing.
9. What was your biggest failure?
One of my good friends has not had a good year, and especially during the period when my own life was becoming settled and things like weddings and moving overseas was happening, her own life did not seem to turn for the better. I often wonder whether there could be more I could have done for her, and I still haven't figured out whether there was.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing major! I'm pretty sure I still fell ill occasionally after work trips. Oh! There was the time I came back from the US and had a septic ulcer on the plane back (not. fun.) and was taking antibiotics for it when I got back, and then my husband proposed. Haha. There might also have been a day when I went to work, went to see the doctor during lunch for something for my persistent cough, and was informed that I was running a temperature (I had no idea). The doctor was very amused and amazed at me.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Ignoring all the wedding related stuff, and all the household stuff we bought since coming over to the UK (eyes the pots and pans and the heater), I would say probably my £50 calf-high leather boots from Marks & Spencers. They are mostly waterproof, warm my calves, and I can wear them to work, and are very comfy! I wear them almost everyday and walk 30 minutes to work in the morning and 30 minutes back in the evening.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
I probably have to say, my husband, for tolerating me so well so far. Especially when I oversleep and he has to wait an hour for his breakfast. :P
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled?
Nobody really. Everyone has been amazingly supportive this year, including my colleagues and bosses in Singapore, the ones over here, my families, old and new, friends etc. I find myself on 1 Jan 2015 racking my brains for who would have appalled me. Besides people who appear in the news etc of course. I'm finding UKIP very interesting for example.
14. Where did most of your money go?
This was the year I started logging every.single.transaction. since March 2014, so this is the first year that I've not felt completely lost where my money went. Probably the biggest expense was the wedding, though in terms of net expense it wasn't that bad. I still did a fair amount of shopping and spent a fair amount on travelling, but it's been a really good year for the finances so far. Hope I keep it up!
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Wedding! And also the whole 10 months in UK thing. Actually I think what I really really got excited about was a LONG break from work for the first time since I started work.
16. What song will always remind you of 2014?
Any of the songs we used for the wedding. In particular All The Pennies by Mindy Gledhill, because that's the song our photographer used for the wedding montage.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you (a) happier or sadder, (b) thinner or fatter? (c) richer or poorer?
(a) happier, should I say, more happy in life, since I'm actually married and want for nothing (b) omg for the first year I can say, thinner! Because I had to diet for the wedding and am still keeping it off! (c) Definitely richer, hoping to keep it that way!
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
I kind of thought we might have travelled more now that we are located in Europe, but in all honesty my husband still has school and I still technically have a 5-day-week job, so it's mostly the weekends we have free, and we only travel if he doesn't have homework or exams. :P But it's not a big deal.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
*Racks brain* Maybe not play so much Minesweeper and Spider Solitaire on my phone after work? :P
20. How did you spend Christmas?
We woke up late, made breakfast, lazed around, bundled up, popped down to Seven Dials for our reserved table at Scoff & Banter, had a Christmas lunch, went down to St James Park in the hopes of some quiet wandering around the park, found that everyone else in London had the same idea, still spent some time marvelling at the concentration of wildlife in that one park, came back home, watched One Piece on the computer, listened to an episode of Good Omens on BBC Radio, cooked Bak Ku Teh and vegetables, ate dinner, watched more One Piece, and went to sleep. Oh, and husband started surfing the net for early Boxing Day sales and bought stuff from Uniqlo and Ecco online. Haha. Super domesticated.
21. Did you fall in love in 2014?
*grins* *points at husband*
22. What was your favourite TV programme?
This year was QI year! We watched every single episode whilst we were here. And also, One Piece! We must have only started watching mid-year, but we're already on episode 350++? It's really a wonderful show! I cry and laugh so much at it.
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nope. I really rarely hate or dislike people.
24. What was the best book you read?
My husband passed me his Kindle whilst we were here so I've been reading quite a bit on it, though mostly non-fiction history of Scotland/Wales books. I also stock up on books to buy when we pop into Waterstones, though I buy them on Kindle, so effectively I'm show-rooming when I'm in Waterstones. I'm sure I've basically forgotten a lot of the books I've read, but if in-progress books are counted, I've been discovering how highly readable The Tale of Genji is!
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
One Piece music. And also ONE OK ROCK. And all the music my husband has. :P
26. What did you want and get?
Hahaha I wanted the proposal and I definitely got it and more.
27. What did you want and not get?
... A toaster oven? I keep thinking it might be useful to actually get something that toasts bread and can do mini-baking, instead of me toasting bread every morning on a frying pan. (My husband just quipped that this can be an easy item to move from Qn 27 to Qn 26 next year with a cheeky look.)
28. What was your favourite film of this year?
... Kenshin? I'm a bit blurry on movies.
Except, we definitely watched the NT Live of The Audience (with Helen Mirren) where she acts as the Queen of England (and interestingly enough we then watched King Charles III in London) and that was spectacular. One of the best plays I've had the fortune of seeing. It's so good we're definitely going to watch the revival in 2015.
29. What one thing made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Being married. Really.
30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?
Stockings, blanket scarves, boots and colour!
31. What kept you sane?
That I was going to get married. And then, being married.
32. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"I don't need your money
Just your kisses and your funny faces
Which I miss when you're away" - from All The Pennies, Mindy Gledhill