looking back and looking forward

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Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And days o' lang syne

CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my jo,
For auld lang syne,
We’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.

And surely ye’ll be your pint-stowp!
And surely I’ll be mine!
And we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We twa hae run about the braes,
And pu’d the gowans fine;
But we’ve wander’d mony a weary foot,
Sin auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We twa hae paidl’d i' the burn,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But seas between us braid hae roar’d
Sin auld lang syne.

CHORUS

And there’s a hand, my trusty fiere!
And gie's a hand o’ thine!
And we’ll tak a right gude-willy waught,
For auld lang syne.

CHORUS

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Auld Lang Syne
Robert Burns

2008 has passed, 2009 has come. Somehow it felt time has passed too quickly, yet it also felt I've been stuck in the same time for far too long.

--

How has 2008 been for me?

Left IMU, left Vista Komanwel for the last time.

Looked for work with Mus, worked for the first time in my life, earned my first ever paycheck (complete with berbanyak drama haha).

Sat in a long-haul flight for the first time, left Malaysia for the first time (aside from going to Singapore).

Came to Dundee, learned to live on the other side of the world from home.

Got to know old batchmates that I've never talked to before, got to travel and meet up with friends all over UK.

Started clinical phase of studies, took blood from patients for the first time.

Experienced seasons for the first time, felt snow crunching underneath my boots for the first time.

Learned how to ski for the first time, fell down countless times in the process.

--

2008 has seen a great many changes in my life. From being almost fully independent and earning my own dough even just for a while, to leaving my home and coming to a totally unfamiliar town. I'll say 2008 was a great year for me, for the new experiences I had kinda made me a grown up now.

Never one to make new year resolutions, not even one to have any ambitions in life, I realise it is time I take control of my life and not let luck or fate or destiny or whatever it's called dictate what becomes of me. So to start off I'll make a list here of my resolutions for 2009:

Resolutions:
1. Study everyday, allocate at least 2 hours for studies.
2. Be more organised and plan in advance, especially with regards to meeting deadlines and being on time (especially waking up early!).
3. Be more active and get some exercise (already bought weights to pump, will do jogging once it gets hotter)
4. Spend less time in front of the computer, don't waste so much time doing nothing.
5. Donate blood every 3 months. (starting with this Saturday! (: )
6. Donate to a charity or to a street performer at least once. Give away unused/unwanted stuff like clothes.
7. Be more environmental friendly. Use less paper, recycle more.
8. Support free range/free trade foodstuff more.
9. Finish reading at least 4 books.
10. Control spending, do not buy too much unnecessary stuff (keep within my ₤400 monthly budget).
11. Blog more. This might be the only way I can look back on my life next time.
12. Talk to people more, approach more patients, get to know more local friends.

Think that's enough for now haha. Let's see how many I can break keep in a year's time.

Happy New Year 2009 everyone!