Post analyzing 2011, I can't put a solid verdict on how it was. So, let me just piece apart the highlights of the year. Naturally, there are also frustrations. I'm typing those down in the hope that putting it out online means putting it out of my body system. Hehe! Anyway, here goes:
January - My January was spent studying for my MA comprehensive exam. I remember being so hermit-ish at work, just so I could concentrate on reviewing. This was such a big deal for me, 'cause it's been so long since I've had such a big pressure on my shoulders (even my job hasn't pressured me that much). When I think of this exam, I remember studying in Katipunan with my two other classmates, looking for places to eat with a good wi-fi service. I remember sneaking and taking a break to watch American Idol and listening to The Man Who Can't be Moved (The Script) over and over during reviews. I remember the smell of that semi-cold January air, and the feel of my fingers on my then kinda-new laptop. :)
February - I took my exam on the first two weeks of this month. I remember not bringing a car on that early Saturday morning because I felt too tensed to drive. I took a cab, looking outside while praying, and trying to be nice and polite to the cab driver while he talked to me (when I didn't want to talk). Alam niyo na, for good karma. Hehe! When I reached the room, I was feeling all sorts of physiological bad signs - I was nauseous, I wanted to pee, to poop, to throw up. My tummy's turning, and everything! Ibang klase! I only calmed down when the examinees started coming in and my phone started beeping with good luck messages from friends. Phew!
You see, for January and February, I don't even remember anything about work! Haha! That's how much MA consumed me.
March - I always remember March as being a light month in terms of work. Well, and in MA, too. This was mostly spent on cleaning up my stuff and preparing for my summer vacation. This was also the time when I discovered the website of a a great UP professor, the late FG David. I've read the entries on his site from cover to cover, and my teacher friends were surprised that I've traded playing Taboo and Cranium with reading. Hehe!
April - April... Oh, April... I wish April 2011 didn't have to end (or my money didn't have to run out). My trip sealed 2011's guaranteed awesomeness early on. It was an unbelievable experience I couldn't even start to recount or end. I saw so many places and experienced lots of things I wouldn't have experienced if I didn't leave. Until now, I feel touched by God's and my friends' blessings for letting me and helping me see that other side of the world. For a regular person like me- who earns a teacher salary, drives her dad's car, and whose major purchase in life is a netbook- a month-long trip sounds almost impossible. But God has his ways of showing me that rewards come after hard work and persistence. Kung gusto pala talaga, kaya. :) Also because of this trip, I got to know my family and friends there more. And like what I've always believed- and this much holds true 'til today - people just become nicer and nicer as you get to know them better. What a blessing, that trip. :)
May - May started out with a celebration of my best friend's wedding. Seeing my friend and his bride, and my HS friends all dressed up has reminded me how much we've grown through the years. Chronologically and maturity-wise. ;) And I'm glad that we're still together. :) Work was pretty much ok. And when I say ok, that includes me toppling in questions and complaints here and there. Ooh, lots and lots of them! Sometimes, I complain to the right people. But more often than not, I complain to my poor friend who had to endure all my issues. Haha! May has also rejuvenated the idealistic in me when it comes to our country. Fresh from experiencing a fraction of the life in the States, I found myself comparing and thinking that if they can do it there (clean streets, no traffic, fast service, etc.), maybe we can also do it here, too. Can't we?
June - For the past years, I've always anticipated June. I like being with the kids (even if that means work) so much more than preparing to teach them. But for 2011, June to me was something else. It meant start of a serious thesis work. You could tell that this whole MA thing really eats me up. Especially now that I have less enthusiasm for my work, my world actually just revolves around my studies.
July - July added fuel to the fire of my love for paper crafting. If only I have half the energy of what I put into crafting in my studies, I may just well be the best student in Ateneo. Hahaha! I started buying more crafting stuff and less clothes and food. That's proper allocation, people. Hehe!
August - I got on with my thesis business - it was a roller coaster ride. Many times I felt energized, then discouraged, then hopeful, then losing, then smart, then dumb. Haha!
September - Worked on thesis. Surprise!
October - Worked yet again on thesis. Surprised?
November - November kept me busy with the wedding invitations I blogged about earlier. I'm thinking, if ever I jump into making that a business, I'm sure I won't earn a lot because I like pretty and expensive materials! I don't wanna settle with an 'almost similar' product, hehe. Blame it to my non-creativity - I need beautiful materials to make beautiful projects. I also got more crafting supplies this month, and so I felt like a more legitimate crafter. Hehe! Hey, I turned 27 this year. Bummer. Haha! I'm not one who's afraid of age and of getting old in general, but man, it still gets into you, you know?
December - The thesis is becoming clearer, and I'm scheduled for a proposal defense in January (wish me all the luck!). I'm also loving this Christmas break! This must be my most productive break yet - I can't imagine working on the thesis without this time-out from work. I also had a couple of get-together's, and those always keep me happy and recharged. :)
My 2011 in a nutshell. Save for my April trip, 2011 sounded like a very nerdy year. Hahaha! I won't disagree with that, hehe. I love being a studious and academic person from time to time, but that's not really who I am (who I really am is a junk food-eating, sitcom-watching, board game-playing person who just wants to be rich without moving my butt). I hope 2012 will have more adventures and surprises. :)
2012, I dare you to break the monotony! :)
Happy New Year, everybody!
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