New Year, New You, Y'all!

From Sibel:
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New Years is the holiday that holds the greatest value to my family, and in recent years past I have done some pretty extraordinary things.  While I was living in England, my mom met me in Dublin for the holiday where we stayed in a spectacular castle in Killiney, down the road from Bono's house, which hilariously is sequestered behind bronze gates engraved with U2 lyrics.  Prior to that, I spent three consecutive years at the French Embassy in Washington, DC with my dad and his colleagues.  Although comparatively low-key, ringing in 2012 was one of the best, with a traditional Southern meal hosted by my dear friends Tina and Grayson. (Also, the first time I had black eyed peas or collard greens, despite living in North Carolina for over ten years.)  Yes, great plans are fun! and exciting! but they are just places, y'all! The best part about New Years is to actively think about how you want to better yourself in the following year. Deciding to change! and maybe sticking to it!

This past year was a difficult year for me -- I lost a job I held for six years and was subsequently unemployed for three months.  Not having any income (and absolutely no savings), I was forced to sell my records to pay rent (which thankfully I could do! but unfortunately did!).  And unemployment means having to say no to going out for drinks with friends, or really doing anything because gas is expensive, too.  But I am happy to report that I am back in the workforce and will soon be able to pay back all the kind folks who bought drinks for me, meals for me, and were just stellar friends all around. And, hey, that's a really nice feeling.

Every Sunday before New Years, I write my resolutions.  I try desperately to make abstract goals, rather than concrete ones. Because change is fluid! I won't go into great detail about my resolutions but I will say that one of them is to devote more energy toward being mindful. Tangentially, I would really like to push myself to write more so I hope you will be seeing a lot more of me on this space, engaging with my environment and sharing it.

Here's to the hopes of a year full of happiness, goal-achieving,and general incredibility to you and yours.