My goals

My (short term) goals are as follows:

1. I want my room to be perfectly clean.
2. I want to lose enough weight that I feel comfortable in a bikini.
3. I want to write (and publish) a book.
4. I want to go to Hong Kong to do my final field experience.

Let's look at these one by one, starting with... well... the first one.

1. I want my room to be perfectly clean.
Okay, for my room to be perfectly clean, I have to clean it, right? Well, I'm trying. I really am. I'm up to what, part six of my room cleaning saga? This is a goal I can control, and I am controlling it. I'm setting some time aside as often as possible to clean as much as I can. As I clean, instead of just moving things from one side of the room to the other, I'm actually packing it in boxes and reusable bags. This way, I can easily stack, store, and (later) find my books and DVDs (which seem to be the stuff of which I have too much). This way, everything has it's place and it's place isn't randomly strewn around my room. This is a goal that I am in control of. I can (and will) achieve.

2. I want to lose enough weight that I feel comfortable in a bikini.
Ahh, this old thing. Yep, the weight thing. So, I'm fat. I'm not delusional about this, it's a fact and I'm okay with it. Well.. not really, if I want to lose weight, right? This is a health thing, not a vanity thing. I'm out of breath all this time, my knees hurt, my heart beats so freaken quickly... I'm too young to have all these problems. Also, I have an awesome tattoo that NO ONE SEES because I'm too ashamed of my fat belly to show it off. So I'm eating better, not dieting. Dieting is a deprivation of certain foods. I'm not ready to (nor do I think I have to) cut out whole items from my daily menus. Instead, I'm eating less bad stuff and more good stuff and making better choices in my day to day life. I'm also exercising more. I'm not going to the gym because a) I'm poor and b) I don't think I need to go to the gym right now. Gyms are great for those with time and money and I have neither at the moment. We have an elliptical at home and if I use it more and walk the dog more, then I think that'll be enough for now! This is a goal that I am in control of. I can (and will) achieve.

3. I want to write (and publish) a book.
I think this may be the easiest of the goals to accomplish. Now a days, anyone can write and then self publish a book. The thing is, I don't want to be a self-published author. I want to be a real author. A good author. I want to write something that people who are not my family and friends will buy, read, and love. My mom says all I need to do is get an idea and run with it, but that's a lot easier said than done. I mean, if it were easy, I'd have already done it. My mother raised a good point by asking my what kind of book I want to write. Well, I have no idea. Whatsoever. Not a clue. But, if I persevere, I might actually succeed. This is a goal that I am in (somewhat) control of. I can achieve it, if I try.

4. I want to go to Hong Kong to do my final field experience.
Seriously, this is a possibility. It would be a DREAM COME TRUE in more ways than one. I'd be teaching in Asia. This could open up a whole new bunch of possibilities: I'd have my foot in the door of a teaching job in Asia. Also, I'd be going to Asia on my school's dime, which really isn't that terrible of thing, is it? Hong Kong is a beautiful city. I really want to be chosen for this... That's right. Chosen. This is NOT a goal that I am in control of. I've written my letter of intent and all I can do is hope that it gets me an interview. After that, I can just pray that I've impressed them enough to pick me as one of the lucky 8 people from TESL to go. I hope I can achieve it.

Things I Learned at my Friend's Bachelorette Party

Last night was the Bachelorette party for one of my best friends. It was an evening of dinner, dancing and great conversations. It was also, for me, an evening of self-discovery/remembering why I used to go clubbing. Here are a few things I learned (along with a little story about how/why I learned it):

1. Don't count on people
Along with the four bridesmaids and the bride, there were supposed to be three other guests at last night's event. One called a few minutes before supper, with an excellent reason for having to cancel at the last minute. The other two just didn't show up. This wasn't just a birthday or a "just because" dinner. This was the LAST wild and crazy night the bride would have as a single woman. If you can't make it, that's fine, but the least you can do is call to cancel because I'M the one that had to explain why no one else showed up.

2. 80s night it not always the most epic night
For those of you who know me, you also know that 80s night is (usually) my favourite night to go out, so I was really looking forward to a night out at La Tulipe. I guess I just have to be in the right club, with the right 80s music and in the right frame of mind because last night, it just wasn't working. There were too many songs I didn't know (or like). There were too many situations in which I was allowed the opportunity to just sit and be anti-social. I was crashing from an intense sugar rush brought on by sugar pie and an alcoholic slushy. It just wasn't working...

Which brings me to my next point:

3. Just go with the flow
I'm a planner. I plan things, it's what I do. When things don't go as planned I feel like I'm no longer in control of the situation, whether the situation is mine to control or not. It was a good call for the bride to want to change locations and abort 80s night in favour of more modern music. We walked from one club to another and it seemed to completely invigorate us. We entered Le Diable Vert new people. It was a good night.

4. I have no patience for stupid people
So there are five of us dancing in a little pentagon/circle thing when this group of three people (two guys, one girl, they looked about 18 or 19) pass through us on their way to another part of the dance floor. While it's slightly annoying, I can't fault them as I, myself, have done that many times. The problem started when they stopped in the middle of us to share a word. Again, annoying, but whatever, as long as you move on. Well, they didn't. They stayed there, talking, in the middle of our group. So I catch the eye of one of the guys and make a "you, move" hand motion. Sure, it's a little rude, but don't block me off from my friends when dancing if there's more than enough dancing room around our group. So the guy obviously understands what I was saying because he nods and then whispers to the girl. The girl looks at me, whispers (and by whispers, I mean yells into their ears) to the guys, and then start dancing. In. Our. Circle. Who does that?!!? So I start dancing. I do my (should be patented) elbows-out-hitting-unwanted-people-in-the-back dance. And this girl tried. I mean she tried hard. But she just couldn't hack it. She gave me one last dirty look and walked away. Now, I don't know if the others were in on my telepathic conversation, but I felt like it was a victorious team effort. I mean really, skinny bitch, you look 12, you weigh 50 lbs and you're going up against a pms-ing 24 year old who's been clubbing since before you started high school? Bitch, please.

5. I needs me some more club-rap music from my high school days on my iPod
Oh man, I cannot remember how long it's been since we closed a club. I can practically guarantee, though that the last time I did it, Ja Rule was a chart topper and DMX was all up in the clubs. You remember them, right? Yeah, me either... but what I was listening to last night was close enough. It seems I was in my element, last night, with the club-rap. That's what I felt most comfortable dancing to, what I new most (if not all) of the words to, what reminded me of my former clubbing days. I'm not saying I'd be able to stand a full 4 hours of only rap music, but I think I definitely need some to make my night. And I refuse to believe I'm the only one!

All in all, it was a good night :)