I am twenty-four now. Twenty-four years old. I have been alive for twenty-four years. Strangely, I feel like this age is more real for me than twenty-three was. I seem to fit into this age better than I fit into twenty-three. I really don't know how to fully explain what I mean by that, but that's the way it is. Though my time at twenty-four has been brief, it is already more comfortable than twenty-three. Anyway.
I had some grown-up monotony set in this last year. Not anything bad, just the slow, steady creep of getting set into a routine. I realized it when I was calling my family for phone-updates and found that when they asked "what have you been doing?" I had nothing to report. My week pretty much consisted of going to work, going to the gym, and going to a friend's house for tv shows and dinner. That's it.
Yeah, watching this is part of my week.
Some of this is inevitable. As we become adults and have set schedules and responsibilities, we become a little more set in our ways, what we like and don't like, what we do with our spare time. However, I don't think being adult or responsible means life has to be boring or predictable. I spent most of high school and college terrified of becoming a mundane person and the thought of no longer being fun or spontaneous still fills me with dread. To combat the onset of old-and-boring-itis, I have decided that I will set twenty-four goals of things to accomplish before I turn twenty-five. Granted, I will be spending most of this year in China, so that will affect the formation of some of the goals. I will update them as I complete them and be motivated to complete them so I don't face the shame of the internet community holding me accountable. Anyway, the list! It's coming!
1 - Learn how to use a camera and how to effectively use photoshop.
2 - Try at least thirteen completely new foods.
Stinky tofu will not be one of them. I am not doing it.
3 - Get a new stamp in my passport.
4 - Read thirteen books.
-"Let's Pretend This Never Happened"
5 - Finally do the gum grafting surgery.
-turns out, it's unnecessary. Done.
6 - Learn extremely basic communication in Chinese:
-how to order food
-saying "hello" and "how are you"
-asking for directions
7 - Get rid of anything from my wardrobe I haven't worn in a year. And anything worn out. And anything I don't wear but keep around because I think it might be cute someday (every woman in my family weeps for the state of my wardrobe. About half of it is from thrift-stores and give-away piles or completely threadbare. I have trouble getting rid of things).
Of course I wouldn't wear this, guys. I don't even have cowboy boots.
8 - Actually wear my perfume.
9 - Learn to french twist my hair.
10 - Sketch.
This kind of thing should be happening more.
11 - Make and follow an actual cleaning schedule.
12 - Go for walks. Frequently.
13 - Write. A lot. Set aside time for it instead of confining it to "spare moments".
14 - Make at least five new friends that I can hang out with on my own.
15 - Become flexible enough to touch my head to my knees. Or do the splits. Whichever comes first.
This works too.
16 - Sing somewhere. A coffee shop. A show of some kind. But I really want to sing again.
17 - Finish my tattoo design well. And then decide if I actually am going to get it.
18 - Get a hat that does not look stupid on me.
19 - Memorize three good poems/speeches.
20 - Succeed at Baldur's Gate (meaning, stop dying every second mission).
Yeah, I am not coming out of this alive.
21 - Get a scooter (ok, fine. It's a dream).
22 - Keep a plant alive for at least three months.
23 - Buy a pair of red shoes.
24 - Be a good pen pal with at least three of my far-flung friends, communicating in short or long messages at least once a week.
Those are mine. I will keep it updated as I succeed (or not. I really don't know if I can ever become more flexible).
Until next year, goals.
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