first off, happy new year to everyone.  i hope all of you had a safe and wonderful celebration of ringing in the new year last night.  well, if you ask how i welcomed 2009, traditionally i was with family and relatives lighting fireworks in between alcoholic drinks.  we even had my cousin’s laptop on hand, broadcasting our new year’s celebration on yahoo messenger for our other relatives who are in new zealand, dubai and united kingdom.  i stayed up until around past 5AM, drunk but happy.  so drunk that before i fell asleep, i was feeling woozy and had to throw up in the bathroom.  just a perfect way to end the celebration, my head slumped over the toilet puking dinner, alcohol and more food.  hahahahaha!!!

 

so 2008 is finally over and 2009 is here.  will it be a good year or were the bad things that happened in 2008 just a prelude of things to come?  for me, i try not to pre-empt or jump the gun so to speak with what might happen.  all i do is just meet the year head on.  challenges, setbacks, blessings, rewards, i’ll take ’em all on.  after all, what’s there to live for if you don’t jump into life head first, right?  but of course, just like most of you, i try to set goals for myself for this year.  hopefully, this year i’ll be able to accomplish at least one or two of them.  so as not to set too many things for myself and make me look like an ass, i’ve narrowed my so-called new year’s resolutions down to just three.  and they are:

 

1.  get back in shape – if a filipino male’s life expectancy is 70 years old, that puts me almost halfway there.  but with the shape i’m in, i don’t think i’ll even reach 65.  i guess i have to be pretty aggressive with this one.  though i’m not going to the gym anymore like i did during 2007, there are other alternatives to compensate for having a good workout.  my ultimate goal with this one, to go back to having a size 32 inch waistline (at least; don’t even ask me what my waistline is right now).  that’s quite a tall order, but if i pushed myself like how i did two years ago and achieved acceptable results, there’s no reason why i can’t do it again.

 

2.  post blog entries regularly – in other words, keep my blog updated.  i suppose a minimum of six or seven entries in a month would suffice.  hopefully i won’t be having once-a-month entries like i did during the latter part of ’08.  believe me, it’s quite hard to have something regular to blog about, especially if the mind just completely goes blank.  but if i consider blogging as one of my interests and hobbies, then i have to be committed to it.

 

3.  smile more – even though i’m always looking at the bright side of things or just thinking positive amidst setbacks, i almost never physically show it.  i mean, a good smile never hurt anyone, right?  besides, people who meet me for the first time almost always see me as a snob even though i’m not.  well i guess here’s where first impressions come into play.  and i just remembered that smiling reduces wrinkles so if i want to continue to look young i better lighten up.  well, my face that is (surprisingly, i still look 28 to most of the people i met last year).

 

there it is.  three simple goals to reach (supposedly).  if you’re wondering why didn’t i set a goal for my personal life (read:  lovelife) this year, well, having a girlfriend has been on the upper part of my list since i got over my ex 13 years ago.  and for that amount of time, nothing came about it.  i hoped, wished, prayed, followed advice, dated, prayed some more, met women in various ways, transferred companies, prayed a little more, went on blind dates, had my friends and cousins set me up on dates, had people pray over me, followed bizarre rituals, and still… zero.  not that i’m already giving up (well, close to), but i just figured when it’s time, it’s time.  until then, i just continue what i’m doing and date women whenever i can, however i can.

 

i’ll be ending this entry with a quote i received some months ago through sms.  i saw it as i was going through all the saved quotes on my mobile phone and i think it’s something nice to think about and consider doing with the brand new year and all.  it reads, “let go of those who cannot treat you right and hold on to those you love you back and/or appreciate your worth.  After all, life is not about meeting people; it’s touching people’s lives.”

 

happy 2009 to all of you!  it’s a start of another one of life’s journeys.  sit back, strap in, and enjoy the ride.