fresh
It's funny how today, the first day of 2010, doesn't feel particularly interesting or significant. It could be a sleepy Saturday like all the other weekends, with an afternoon shower and no real plans for later. What does sound momentous is the fact that it's January again. It implies new beginnings, starting over, clean slates, although of course one can always start something at any point in the year.
J and I spent the last day of 2009 catching up with friends. I brought The Bun over to J's office party where he charmed the pants off various female colleagues by smiling and showing off his dimple. Later in the evening we sat around the Tawandang pub at the East Coast Park with the usual suspects, drinking lager, sharing a pork knuckle and various crunchy, delicious and unhealthy snacks. (The diet can always start tomorrow!) We followed this with a full seafood meal at a restaurant about 10m away from the pub. The Bun behaved fairly well considering he had not really had a full nap for the entire day and he was being schlepped around and exposed to all sorts of noisy people and places, but by 9.30pm he was exhausted and frankly, so were we. J and I had our own quiet little celebration at home, popping champagne at midnight and watching the first half of a really entertaining Hindi movie on television, side by side on the sofa. It was peaceful and cosy and was just right.
I used to do one of these yearly round-up memes a couple of years ago (see here and here) but missed out on 2007 and 2008. It can be hard trying to recall stuff that happened in the earlier part of the year, but it's worth the posterity.
1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
I gave birth! Probably one of the most memorable experiences of my entire life. Thanks to the happidural and the great midwife who was by my side throughout, it was also a very positive experience.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
No resolutions were made, as far as I can remember. This coming year, I want to take better care of myself: stop rubbing my eyes when I'm tired (hello wrinkles!) and to lose the last of the baby weight. I also want to work on a creative project.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes - J's sister had her daughter, who is younger than The Bun by three months. And various friends and ex-coworkers. It seemed to be a bumper crop, this year.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No, thankfully.
5. What countries did you visit?
England & Scotland; Hokkaido; Bangkok.
6. What would you have liked to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
I can't really think of anything, and actually, I think it's better this way.
7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
28 July, The Bun's birthday. Life changed forever.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Getting back on my feet again after being so blue after The Bun's birth, and becoming his primary caretaker while juggling the household on my own. Staying at home with a baby is SO not a walk in the park.
9. What was your biggest failure?
This might seem quite silly, but placing an undefined hiatus on my photo project, flash365 made me twinge with guilt and regret. I had been faithfully chronicling every day since January 1, 2007. Then laziness and inertia, my biggest enemies, brought me down. I plan to restart it today!
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing much.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
An airticket to London on Singapore Airlines' spanking luxe A380 for S$1200, all-inclusive. It was fantastic, especially on the way there, because who can't get excited being on a plane bound for Europe?
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
J, for being so hands-on and knowing me inside out, and for never saying no to me.
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
No one comes to mind. Which is a good thing!
14. Where did most of your money go?
Baby-related stuff, travel, and food.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
The Bun's arrival, although that was certainly mixed in with a fair bit of apprehension.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
'Drown' by the Smashing Pumpkins, from like 1992 or something. I heard it at Y's hen night about a month ago, and all sorts of crazy memories came flooding back. That was seventeen years ago!!! It's still a very wonderful song to me.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?
I cannot honestly say that I don't think a lot about happier times in the past, especially when The Bun's being particularly frustrating. But I am certainly not sadder, and yes, overall I AM happier.
ii. thinner or fatter?
Every year I say fatter. Which means nothing good.
iii. richer or poorer?
Definitely poorer, but I like to think that my life means more than my bank balance.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Being braver, and being more disciplined.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Reading mommyblogs. It's great to hear about other mothers' experiences and to share stories, but it can also get too much. Sometimes the best thing I did was to simply listen to myself.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
We woke at 9am and opened presents together with The Bun. This was followed by some supermarket shopping, a quick visit with The Bun's grandma, and then cooking dinner for friends at my place. J made roast lamb and my friends brought wonderful dishes - mozzarella wrapped in parma ham, seafood aglio olio, a turkey ham and mushroom quiche, and mango raspberry mousse for dessert. We all lay like beached whales after and watched TV, drank tea, and talked.
21. If you could relive one thing in 2009 so that you could have acted differently, what would that be?
I would have put more effort into making J's birthday a better and more memorable one. We did have a good time out with The Bun and a twosome-only dinner at Wahiro, but I wish there could have been more. I was too bogged down in daily mundanity with The Bun and somehow couldn't rouse myself with enough energy and time.
22. Did you fall in love in 2009?
Yes, and he's two feet tall and weighs 7.5kg.
23. How many one night stands?
Erm, none. But plenty of standing, at night, doing things for The Bun.
24. What was your favourite TV programme?
I was rather addicted to Jon & Kate Plus Eight, then got stuck onto the silly but very amusing Style by Jury.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
No.
26. What was the best book you read?
I read quite a lot this year, including various magazines and plenty of chick-lit (very good for whiling the time away when pumping milk). Nothing quite stands out enough for me to give it the 'best book' trophy, but I am reading Ruth Riechl's memoir Garlic and Sapphires now and I love it. She writes about being the food critic at The New York Times in the eighties, and how she went to the extremes of disguise - wigs and theatrical-grade makeup and all that. She also writes wonderfully about food and New York. I am savouring every page, hoping it won't end so soon, but I'm more than halfway through already and I'll probably be done with it by this weekend. Oh no!
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
No big new obsessions this year, my playlists always seem to be filled with the same bands - Camera Obscura, Belle & Sebastian, The Killers, Air.
28. What did you want and get?
A healthy and happy baby. Also, the fact that my other baby - that darned thesis! - was finally completed, goodbye the end forever.
29. What did you want and not get?
A healthier body, and a watch I've been meaning to get (and wear) forever but just can't bring myself to buy.
30. What was your favourite film of this year?
I reviewed the Australian film 'Men's Group' by Michael Joy for the Singapore Film Festival this year, and amongst many other good films, this one really really stood out.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
For once I was in the country for my birthday, but no one had time to spend it with me, so I went out, got a haircut, enjoyed some solo shopping time on my own, then met my family for dinner and forced them all to have Pizza Hut (!!) with me. I turned thirty-one. The day after, I celebrated my birthday with my closest friends by stuffing ourselves silly with Japanese food and black-forest cake, followed by karaoke after.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
More sleep! Ha ha... I'm already very lucky The Bun is fairly good with his sleep.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
Lots of shorts and cotton tops.
34. What kept you sane?
Counting down the days to the weekend, when J and I could escape out of the boring household monotony and go exploring and eating, the way we always do. Especially good were weekdays when J was on leave and we'd go out with The Bun, the three of us, on simple, uncomplicated outings.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Brandon Flowers, I will see you very soon when your band comes to play!
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Not an issue as such, but Obama's inaugural speech - what a performance!
37. Who did you miss?
My life has become so domestically-centred that I don't see my friends as often as I would like to.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
Guizhen, my part-time cleaner who comes once a week. Not only does she polish up my place and do the ironing (ugh), she's also interesting to talk to, yet not so forward that one feels like one has to keep up the conversation.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
I can't stop change from happening, and sometimes it's better to just relax, embrace it, and roll with what happens.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
I can tell there's something going on
Hours seem to disappear
Everyone is leaving I'm still with you
It doesn't matter what we do
Where we are going to
We can stick around and see this night through
~ 'Young Folks', Peter Bjorn and John.
J and I spent the last day of 2009 catching up with friends. I brought The Bun over to J's office party where he charmed the pants off various female colleagues by smiling and showing off his dimple. Later in the evening we sat around the Tawandang pub at the East Coast Park with the usual suspects, drinking lager, sharing a pork knuckle and various crunchy, delicious and unhealthy snacks. (The diet can always start tomorrow!) We followed this with a full seafood meal at a restaurant about 10m away from the pub. The Bun behaved fairly well considering he had not really had a full nap for the entire day and he was being schlepped around and exposed to all sorts of noisy people and places, but by 9.30pm he was exhausted and frankly, so were we. J and I had our own quiet little celebration at home, popping champagne at midnight and watching the first half of a really entertaining Hindi movie on television, side by side on the sofa. It was peaceful and cosy and was just right.
I used to do one of these yearly round-up memes a couple of years ago (see here and here) but missed out on 2007 and 2008. It can be hard trying to recall stuff that happened in the earlier part of the year, but it's worth the posterity.
1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
I gave birth! Probably one of the most memorable experiences of my entire life. Thanks to the happidural and the great midwife who was by my side throughout, it was also a very positive experience.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
No resolutions were made, as far as I can remember. This coming year, I want to take better care of myself: stop rubbing my eyes when I'm tired (hello wrinkles!) and to lose the last of the baby weight. I also want to work on a creative project.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes - J's sister had her daughter, who is younger than The Bun by three months. And various friends and ex-coworkers. It seemed to be a bumper crop, this year.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No, thankfully.
5. What countries did you visit?
England & Scotland; Hokkaido; Bangkok.
6. What would you have liked to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
I can't really think of anything, and actually, I think it's better this way.
7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
28 July, The Bun's birthday. Life changed forever.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Getting back on my feet again after being so blue after The Bun's birth, and becoming his primary caretaker while juggling the household on my own. Staying at home with a baby is SO not a walk in the park.
9. What was your biggest failure?
This might seem quite silly, but placing an undefined hiatus on my photo project, flash365 made me twinge with guilt and regret. I had been faithfully chronicling every day since January 1, 2007. Then laziness and inertia, my biggest enemies, brought me down. I plan to restart it today!
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing much.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
An airticket to London on Singapore Airlines' spanking luxe A380 for S$1200, all-inclusive. It was fantastic, especially on the way there, because who can't get excited being on a plane bound for Europe?
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
J, for being so hands-on and knowing me inside out, and for never saying no to me.
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
No one comes to mind. Which is a good thing!
14. Where did most of your money go?
Baby-related stuff, travel, and food.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
The Bun's arrival, although that was certainly mixed in with a fair bit of apprehension.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
'Drown' by the Smashing Pumpkins, from like 1992 or something. I heard it at Y's hen night about a month ago, and all sorts of crazy memories came flooding back. That was seventeen years ago!!! It's still a very wonderful song to me.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?
I cannot honestly say that I don't think a lot about happier times in the past, especially when The Bun's being particularly frustrating. But I am certainly not sadder, and yes, overall I AM happier.
ii. thinner or fatter?
Every year I say fatter. Which means nothing good.
iii. richer or poorer?
Definitely poorer, but I like to think that my life means more than my bank balance.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Being braver, and being more disciplined.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Reading mommyblogs. It's great to hear about other mothers' experiences and to share stories, but it can also get too much. Sometimes the best thing I did was to simply listen to myself.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
We woke at 9am and opened presents together with The Bun. This was followed by some supermarket shopping, a quick visit with The Bun's grandma, and then cooking dinner for friends at my place. J made roast lamb and my friends brought wonderful dishes - mozzarella wrapped in parma ham, seafood aglio olio, a turkey ham and mushroom quiche, and mango raspberry mousse for dessert. We all lay like beached whales after and watched TV, drank tea, and talked.
21. If you could relive one thing in 2009 so that you could have acted differently, what would that be?
I would have put more effort into making J's birthday a better and more memorable one. We did have a good time out with The Bun and a twosome-only dinner at Wahiro, but I wish there could have been more. I was too bogged down in daily mundanity with The Bun and somehow couldn't rouse myself with enough energy and time.
22. Did you fall in love in 2009?
Yes, and he's two feet tall and weighs 7.5kg.
23. How many one night stands?
Erm, none. But plenty of standing, at night, doing things for The Bun.
24. What was your favourite TV programme?
I was rather addicted to Jon & Kate Plus Eight, then got stuck onto the silly but very amusing Style by Jury.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
No.
26. What was the best book you read?
I read quite a lot this year, including various magazines and plenty of chick-lit (very good for whiling the time away when pumping milk). Nothing quite stands out enough for me to give it the 'best book' trophy, but I am reading Ruth Riechl's memoir Garlic and Sapphires now and I love it. She writes about being the food critic at The New York Times in the eighties, and how she went to the extremes of disguise - wigs and theatrical-grade makeup and all that. She also writes wonderfully about food and New York. I am savouring every page, hoping it won't end so soon, but I'm more than halfway through already and I'll probably be done with it by this weekend. Oh no!
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
No big new obsessions this year, my playlists always seem to be filled with the same bands - Camera Obscura, Belle & Sebastian, The Killers, Air.
28. What did you want and get?
A healthy and happy baby. Also, the fact that my other baby - that darned thesis! - was finally completed, goodbye the end forever.
29. What did you want and not get?
A healthier body, and a watch I've been meaning to get (and wear) forever but just can't bring myself to buy.
30. What was your favourite film of this year?
I reviewed the Australian film 'Men's Group' by Michael Joy for the Singapore Film Festival this year, and amongst many other good films, this one really really stood out.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
For once I was in the country for my birthday, but no one had time to spend it with me, so I went out, got a haircut, enjoyed some solo shopping time on my own, then met my family for dinner and forced them all to have Pizza Hut (!!) with me. I turned thirty-one. The day after, I celebrated my birthday with my closest friends by stuffing ourselves silly with Japanese food and black-forest cake, followed by karaoke after.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
More sleep! Ha ha... I'm already very lucky The Bun is fairly good with his sleep.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
Lots of shorts and cotton tops.
34. What kept you sane?
Counting down the days to the weekend, when J and I could escape out of the boring household monotony and go exploring and eating, the way we always do. Especially good were weekdays when J was on leave and we'd go out with The Bun, the three of us, on simple, uncomplicated outings.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Brandon Flowers, I will see you very soon when your band comes to play!
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Not an issue as such, but Obama's inaugural speech - what a performance!
37. Who did you miss?
My life has become so domestically-centred that I don't see my friends as often as I would like to.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
Guizhen, my part-time cleaner who comes once a week. Not only does she polish up my place and do the ironing (ugh), she's also interesting to talk to, yet not so forward that one feels like one has to keep up the conversation.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
I can't stop change from happening, and sometimes it's better to just relax, embrace it, and roll with what happens.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
I can tell there's something going on
Hours seem to disappear
Everyone is leaving I'm still with you
It doesn't matter what we do
Where we are going to
We can stick around and see this night through
~ 'Young Folks', Peter Bjorn and John.