Hi everyone I'm back from the UK! Got back about 2 hours ago and my bags are lying on the floor, waiting to be unpacked. I for one am horrible at unpacking- the process from start to finish typically takes me a month. I think I find it so hard to unpack because I'm perpetually in denial that the holiday is over... unpacking is like an acceptance of harsh reality man.. But anyway I'll talk about my holiday (it was AWESOME) later on.
Because I'm a rather emotional person with tendencies towards over-sentimentalisation, I just wanted to quickly pen down some thoughts about 2013 because it has JUST, yes, J-U-S-T hit me that today is the very last day of the year.
First of all, WHAT THE F??? How did that even happen? I know that 6 billion other people are saying the same thing, but how did time even fly by so quickly?! It feels like the year just started and I was writing excitedly on page 1 of my red Kikki K. 365 day diary (How naive of me to think I could pull it off- I stopped writing at day 126, F.Y.I).
But at the same time, although I can't believe there's only 12 hours left of 2013, I also cannot even begin to fathom the amount of change that's taken place, much less the confoundingly-massive amount of memories I've collected from this past year alone. In other words, the year passed so quickly, but I feel like so much has happened, and so much has changed, that there's no way all of that happened in the space of one year.
Like every single year that I have stopped to reflect on, 2013 has had its highlights and also its shitty-parts-you-don't-really-want-other-people-to-see. The post-A level break was definitely one of the reasons 2013 was so awesome. 8 months of no school? Hell yeah!
For me, one of the best things that happened in 2013 was also spending 5 months of my life working at Jones. When I first started out, it was so much fun, super exciting and just a really fresh experience. I learnt so much there and I think the first few months were truly the best- I went home tired as shit with a pathetic jingling of coins in my pocket, when I would much rather a $ note $ as a tip. But it was so rewarding to earn my own keep, and to know I'd earned that good night's sleep. I loved meeting new people, interacting with customers and putting a smile on their faces. It's the best feeling in the world when they're so pleased they even write you a nice comment card. :') A tip was always a bonus. The biggest tip I ever got was $27- I could hardly believe my eyes- DEFINITELY a highlight of 2013 HAHAHA.
A huge part of loving work at Jones was also getting to work with Weina. Praying we get allocated to the same station so we could chat, discreetly making snarky comments about bitchy customers, checking out customers (in our defence, this was very rare because there was hardly anyone to check out HAHAHA) all made working so fun. & I'm so thankful because this is what brought us closer, and I know I've found a real friend in this girl and she's become such a big part of my life. :-)
Towards the end of my stint at Jones, work definitely became a drag. I can't even count the number of times I cursed having to wake up at 6am on a perfect rainy morning, just to die serving coffee to impatient, unreasonable, snooty soccer-moms who had way too much time on their hands. :P My last day at Jones ended on a really sour note, which saddens me but when I look back on my time there, I know I loved it.
I'm also really thankful for the two holidays I had in 2013- the first one to Sydney for a week in March, and this one I just returned from. Honestly I love my family so so much and any time I get to spend with them is infinitely precious. I feel so lucky to have them. Also, I love to travel, and those 2 holidays are definitely highlights of 2013. I think they'll rank among my top favourite memories of all time.
Another good thing about 2013 was starting at NUS. I've made so many new friends, but even more, I've learnt a lot of new things. Things I feel that have changed me, but in a good way. Also glad that I did okay grade-wise because I honestly had no idea what to expect! And I can't believe I'm saying this but I think i'm looking forward to the next sem just a teeeensy little bit. (might regret saying this when school starts)
2013 was also the year of the friend because so many friendships were developed/maintained/strengthened and I'm so thankful for every single person in my life. My AC friends, my PHS gang, my oldest friends, my NUS friends, all of whom I've shared so many experiences with, have all made 2013 such a wonderful year. Shoutout to Abby, Aly, Dawnie, Eunice, Grace, Bren, Weina, Cassie, Neen, Jess, Kar, Nat, Mich, Shiming, XY, Abi, Chu, my OG mates and ok wow I realise that's a lot of people HAHA. Without them, I'm certain growing up would be intolerable, and getting through life would be impossible.
SO here's to the new year 2014 ahead. Here's to starting the first page of my new journal (also kikki k. lol) and hopefully finishing it this time. Here's to new experiences, new friends, new lessons, and growing to be a better person. I'm excited for what 2014 has in store for me! Happy New Year everyone!