The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

New Year, blank slate.
#thebestisyettocome

I already hinted at not everything having been picture-perfect last year (is it ever?), but as the saying goes, every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day. The same applies to years, obviously, so here's a little recap, starting with the Good:

• I once more realised that I have great friends and colleagues (many of them actually belong to both categories) who cheer me up and don't stop offering advice they know I will ignore anyway...
• I got to travel to amazing places last year including making my dream come true to swim in the Marina Bay Sand's infinity pool in Singapore. One item ticked off my bucket list!
• I went out (dancing) a lot with an awesome gang of girls, including my favourite cousin, Chiquita. The two of us can't quite decide who is whose "charity project", but we love one another all the same. 
• As a not entirely unwelcome side-effect of being lovesick (I'm the opposite of an emotional eater) I lost the surplus fat I had accumulated over the previous 2+ years and find my almost-43-year-old body damn hot for a lazy no-sports type of girl, if I may say so myself. 
• As a "by-product" of online dating I made 2 (platonic) friends I am grateful to have met and whose paths I would not have crossed otherwise. 
• I really enjoyed the positive vibe on Instagram and even met one lovely lady who happens to live in my neighbourhood in person.

The Bad:

• I failed miserably at spending less time online. Shame on me!
• If you don't count baking, I was extremely un-productive on the creative DIY front in the past year.
• I did not learn any new skills or languages, sometimes fearing my brain was about to atrophy.
• I read fewer books than ever, constantly struggling to catch up with my magazine backlog while buying even more mags.
• I really bought too much sh** in a retail therapy kind of way. Not good.
• I lost about a month of last year obsessively staring at my phone. And that's probably an understatement.

The Ugly:

• I was deceived (really, really badly) by somebody I liked and admired a lot. It still hurts
• I wasted way too much time brooding over irrelevant statements and actions by insecure and rude guys whose judgement made me question myself. Hopefully never again.
• I once more learnt the hard way that you should choose your confidantes and allies wisely. Time to remember it once and for all!