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12 little things to do

Between the great things we cannot do and the small things we will not do, the danger is that we shall do nothing. -Adolph Monod

Speaking to a friend a few days ago, I lamented how weak my resolves of late have been, of things I’ve started but now reluctantly giving up or putting on hold, of feeling overwhelmed by all that I should do and the panic that ensued when I felt I’ve failed to push myself to get them right. Methinks the greedy philosophy is backfiring…

If I am to go slow, then I need to (re)start small. Baby steps. I cannot keep looking back at those which have gone wrong. Do-over moments are life fallacies. There are, however, don’t-repeat-bad-choices moments to live by. Afterall, life is the sum of all that we’ve been through, regardless of time, place or the people we were with. We are who we are.

But now, time to look forward. Set new (little) goals.

1. Set aside 15 minutes each night to reflect on the day, focus on the positive, and mentally prioritise tasks for the following day.

2. Learn a word a day. English, French, Arabic – who cares which language it is in?

3. Go away a weekend each month. See and experience something new. It doesn’t have to be far. Even a village nearby would do.

4. Cook and eat seasonal. (Note to self: prepare a list of what’s in season when)

5. De-clutter. Nothing good comes from hogging anything, not even love. You know as well as I do that obsessive love is unhealthy. In any case, love is not a collectible item. Just be grateful with all that you receive.

6. Be more a saver, less a spender. (Perhaps a tad contradictory to No 3 above, but hey, trips don’t have to be on the pricey end either. Got to balance things up but it can be done.)

7. Stop worrying about what others may or may not think of my weight. If someone tells me that I need to lose some, I’d thank him/her for the advice and move along.

8. Healthy body, healthy mind – time to get back into my jogging routine!

9. Stop procrastination. ‘Nuff said.

10. Free hugs, virtual or in real life. *Hugs*

11. Project Life. (I’m just throwing this in for now. It’s something I’m interested in but just an inkling. On principle, it’s a pretty good idea.)

12. Smile. Every day. Even when it’s tough to. :D

And no, these are not New Year’s Resolutions. These are life resolutions. And thank you for listening reading my sudden revelations on improving my personal life. I’ll be back tomorrow with more thoughts on my roadtrip in Sri Lanka. See, part of the “stop procrastination” effort. ;)

The plus side of being petite

Supermarket shelf too high? The guy sitting in front blocking the view? Can’t reach that little corner for cleaning? Need about 3-4 inches of heels for a wee boost in height? These are the downsides of being me. Of being a mere couple of inches taller than five feet. But when it comes to travel, being petite has many advantages too. (Scroll over images for captions)

Plenty of leg space
Frequent travellers know that leg space is on the premium while on the move, be it on the plane, car, bus, or even train. Luckily for me, there’s normally a reasonable gap between my knees and the back of the seat in front of me. Stretching out, pas de problème!

Just get comfortable
If I don’t feel like stretching out, tucking my legs under me to settle in comfortably is relatively easy too. There’s nothing beat curling up in one’s seat to read while listening to music, if the scenery proved to be too familiar, repetitive and/or unattractive.

Evoke protectiveness
It is hard for me to appear threatening to anyone. With a little smile, it goes a long way into enlisting help from others. Putting my bag into overhead locker, fishing that one last bottle of ice tea from the top shelf, asking for direction… I just need to be careful that the friendliness is not perceived as an expression of interest for “something special”.

Make the luggage shrinks
The running joke is I could shop in the kids’ section to avoid paying too much value added tax. I bet my five blouses could fold more compactly and weigh less than, say, an adult man’s pair of jeans. Even my shoes are nearly comically tiny. Translate that in terms of volume, it means I can bring less and travel lighter.

Walk right through
Low ceiling, low door threshold, low cupboard shelf, etc – nary to worry. I would have to try to jump up so I can bump my head to the corners. So I’d just happily walk under them, and come away on the other side unscathed. Pretty handy for visiting Lilliput!

Cheap(er) to feed
Well… this is not exactly true. I’m not a fussy eater and I’m almost always game for something local and novel to me. Give me a decent plate of food and I’ll be quite full but, reality is, I could eat large-ish portion when I put my mind to it. Not only that, I’m not aversed to eating at expensive places either. One really should not assume that it’ll be cheap to feed me… ;)

A renewed start

I can’t even begin to tell how crazy the last 6 months have been. I am away a lot – perhaps a bit more than I care for – and hardly have the time to see my family and friends. Even with regular Facebook updates, many are still confused of where I am and where I’ve been. In addition, I have put aside part of my personal life on hold, and by extension, this blogling too. Ops.

My schedule is still pretty erratic and busy. I also know that this is going to continue right up to the end of the year. And then some. This blog will end up going nowhere if I don’t just start writing. Something. Anything. Hopefully interesting stuff. A few more pictures. This and that, you know.

But first, I must renew my commitment to write.

There are a couple of pages around here that I have not yet work on and for the time being, will most likely remain neglected. Baby steps. As much as I’d love to launch this only once the entire site is completed, I must be realistic. It’s going to stay work in progress for a while more and I’m learning to live with it. For now, baby, I’m back!

Ps: meet Hope, my current constant companion on the road ;)

Spring travelling

Spring is my favourite season to travel. More concisely, late spring spilling into early summer, although given an opportunity to travel, it doesn’t really matter when, does it? ;)

New bloom in spring

Here are but some of the reasons why it’s great to travel in spring:

  • Cost: traditionally a shoulder travelling period, prices from flights to accommodation to certain activities are cheaper than the summer (peak season) and winter (to escape either to seek the sun or to hit the slope) months.
  • Attractions: in a lot of places, come winter, certain attractions are difficult to access and/or may be closed. Spring is the time they reopen and luckily, the throng of visitors doesn’t usually flock in high numbers during this period.
  • Transportations: winter travel sees potential cancellation due to adverse weather conditions, summer travel within close quarters can be too stuffy and uncomfortable. Additionally, for winter travel, public transportations to get around may also be limited.
  • Weather: not too warm, not too cold. The possible downside is the arrival of spring shower, but more often than not, it is sunny and cheerful with temperature in high tens.
  • Colours: after the grey winter spring brings forth a burst of colour as flower blooms and trees begin to spot fresh foliages. The “awakenings” may seem like a poet’s cliché but it is all very true.
  • Day and night: the times for sunrise and for sunset are within reasonable time frame, and I take this to heart because I love going out in the morning when it’s quiet outside with little people around, not to mention the colour of the sky at this time of the day is simply wonderful.
  • Packing: oh how nice it is not have to bring thick jumpers and coats, and with less to carry, the lighter I can travel. Perfect for this day and age of travelling where best flight prices are with low cost carriers, and when negating the need to check in luggages, additional charges can be avoided.

Of course, most of the above are mainly applicable where seasons of the year transform the way we live.

What is your favourite season to travel, and any particular reason why it is so?

Hello world!

Never have “Hello world!” been so appropriate. ;)

Still, I have travel envy.

I am envious of carefree travellers who are seemingly unbound by anything but their wish to see the world. Oh I am sure they have their share of worries but at least they are not paralysed by these responsibilities of life.

Travel guides and photo album

On the other hand, I fret over too much, from my being a female (indeed, many places are safe for single female traveller but there are also places where to venture all by myself would be foolish to say the least) to the burden of education loan (unless someone’s offering to help me repay them?) to the lack of travelling time (at times of recession, jobs are hard to come by and losing one would hardly be conducive to saving up for travels).

It all comes down to balancing act. I try to sneak away for a trip here and there whenever I can spare the time and the dough (loan repayment obviously takes priority), and I try to do sufficient research to ensure my safety and well-being. Luckily I usually do have travel companion(s), or friends to spend time with at my destinations, thus it’s not often that I’m left to my own device in a foreign location.

I used to dream of having a job with extensive travelling opportunity. Even better would be a job that allows me to stay in a place for 2-3 months before moving on to another place, so that I can get a deeper feel for the place, the culture, the language and the cuisine. But of course, this is untenable. It doesn’t take much for me to realise that I’m not quite as nomadic at heart, as I need to have a stable social circle to really thrive and to appreciate what I have in my life when I’m away.

I may not travel as much as some, but I count myself very lucky to be able to travel more than most people.


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