Life Advice from Old People

The New York Times has a great piece on life advice from 80-something-year-olds. Maybe it was the arrogance/ignorance of youth, but as I'm getting older I find that there is soooo much more to learn than I imagined. So advice from people who've been around much longer is valuable. A few things that I'm taking to heart:

On work: Besides the usual do-what-makes-you-happy blah blah, there's this: "keep in mind that a promotion may be flattering and lucrative but not worth it if it takes you away from what you most enjoy doing." Life-work balance is hard to achieve, but I'm working on it.

On getting older: "Embrace it. Don’t fight it. Growing older is both an attitude and a process." and “Don’t waste your time worrying about getting old." I'm loving 26 so far.

On travel: "Travel more when you’re young rather than wait until the children are grown or you are retired." and  "'Travel is so rewarding that it should take precedence over other things younger people spend money on.' Create a bucket list now and start whittling it down." I think this blog covers the bucket list part, but this is a good reminder for me to skip the new purse/shoes/skirt and plan more adventures, invest in experiences.

On attitude: "You are not responsible for all the things that happen to you, but you are completely in control of your attitude and your reactions to them...Adopt a policy of being joyful." I'm a firm believer in mind over matter. Your attitude affects your actions, so choose a positive one. I will wake up tomorrow and think "I am awesome." OK, maybe not, but I will say "I have coffee, let's do this."

Wanderlust

An email from Travelzoo about an Iceland Northern Lights gave me such wanderlust that I decided that I am done with boring vacations and need to go on more adventures. So no more all-inclusive, free poolside cocktails and buffets, but more live-like-a-local, off-the-beaten-path trips.

Image via MountainGuides.is

Who is up for walking on glaciers and seeing the Northern Lights in Iceland?

Also on my travel list:
New Orleans -- I'm still debating whether I want to experience Mardi Gras or not
Quebec, CA
Barcelona, Madrid & Andalusia, Spain (already been to parts of this, but I want to go back)

Obviously there are more places I'd like to visit, so this is an ongoing list without a deadline. Plus, I'd be broke and jobless if I tried going everywhere.

Time for an Update?

Who's still reading this? And why? I checked in on this tonight and was a little mortified to find that my most recent post was about pole dancing. I mean, if a random person found this and got their impression of me through only my blogs, I'd like to be able to offer more than the fact that I learned to dance like a stripper.

Anyway, a quick recap of my progress on this list since June:

• I've been doing Krav Maga somewhat regularly and love it. It's a different approach compared to yoga and running, both of which require no aggression, and hey, at the end of the day, it's nice to be able to hit things and be healthy about it. Also, I got pink MMA gloves. 
• I took a bike riding lesson and learned how to balance...but I couldn't quite get myself to pedal without tipping over, sooo... I guess I'll have to take more lessons. (Do you bike riders secretly have abs of steel from all that balancing? Do you also have more cushion back there? Because ow. I totally get why they have padded shorts now.)
• I got highlights! I'm ashamed to say I checked myself out lots of times after getting them, but they're gorgeous. If I wasn't so afraid of frying my hair, I'd go for a second round. But you'll have to wait a few more months, lovely chemicals.

The during.

• On the Filipino front, so far I've done a volunteer project with other members of CORE at a nursing home last spring (or was it in the fall?), read a new translation of Jose Rizal's El Filibusterismo, and taken on the role of editor of their semi-annual/quarterly newsletter. What can I say? My job follows me everywhere. But it's good to make my contributions however I can.
• Attempting to teach myself Spanish is harder than I thought, in that my ambitious self will set a crazy lesson plan and then my lazy self will say "That's ridiculous, I know espanol muy bien." BUT! I've got a trip to Puerto Rico planned and while that won't make me fluent, I'll at least get to say arroz con pollo, donde esta el bano? y quiero cafe por favor.

Did I miss anything? Until next time, blogosphere. Toodles!

Hello, 2011 (One Week Late)

I wanted  to end 2010 by highlighting the good parts:

• I got a promotion at work. Yay! Let me tell you, the relief that comes with having health insurance again is indescribable. 
• I made a very big step towards the next part of my life. I can't elaborate on this, but you'll have to take it as it is.
• I completed 9 out of the 25 on my list: rock climbing (update to come soon! And by soon I mean, in the next month or so), drinking for my career (aka industry happy hour), shooting a rifle, treating myself to a spa day, learning CPR, testing my limit (and taunting my sanity) by forgoing coffee, donating blood, cooking, and joining a Filipino-American organization.

And now for 2011, I hope to regain some balance between my personal and professional life (maybe even resuscitate my social life), slowly restart my fitness routine and continue learning. But before that, I'm off to a trip to the Philippines tomorrow for some family time -- and squeezing in some traveling too. See you in 2 weeks!

What's in store for you for 2011?