February 04, 2011

yearly check up

oh i am very late this year... but better later than never. the traditional yearly check.


1. What did you do in 2010 that you'd never done before?

i started living with a boyfriend, taught english

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
i dont make new years resolutions...

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
i think my cousin had her baby in march or so... yes

4. Did anyone close to you die?
yes

5. What countries did you visit?
okay this is short :( greece. ops, and syria and lebanon in february - its feels like such a long time ago.

6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?
more traveling

7. What date from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
march 28th - when i moved to istanbul and my current relationship started.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

hmm...what counts as achievement? cant think of anything.

9. What was your biggest failure?
not sure.... i dont like to think of failures, i dont think i completely failed at anything?

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
nothing major, my feet caused some problems though, mainly the heel spur(s). oh and i'd already forgotten about the conversion disorder... luckily it seems to have disappeared altogether.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
i didnt buy anything big, or should i say important. despite giving me a LOT of grief, HTC Wildfire brought me a lot of joy too. well i did buy TURKPUPU, my computer for this new journey, he is very nice. in December i bought a pair of Mango shoes that are awesome. TVkaista (finnish tv online) was also nice to have.

12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
this is a weird one... i think boyfriends dont count, they are winners in their own category. Volkan helped me a lot in settling.

13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?

some peoples behavior was not up to my standards but that is pretty common isnt it, not worth mentioning?

14. Where did most of your money go?
just general life, bills, a lot of furniture and white goods.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
i was 'pretty' exited about the move, all the while being scared shitless too. i was excited about moving together with doctor. i was excited about both of the jobs i got.

16. What songs will always remind you of 2010?
Ke$ha: Tik Tok (err......)
Stromae: Alors on Danse
Portishead: The Rip
Jeanette: Porquè Te Vas?
Scott McKenzie: San Fransisco

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? happier
ii. thinner or fatter? the same
iii. richer or poorer? technically richer but in practice poorer

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
appreciating, learning turkish

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?

complaining (as usual - seems like i never learn)

20. How did you spend Christmas?

hmm, 24th was a friday... i went to work, we went for a christmas lunch there in the afternoon. i had steak. and in the evening nothing special - waiting for doctor to come home from his business trip.

21. How did you spend New Years?
in a couple of parties with good friends in Helsinki

22. Did you fall in love in 2010?
despite all my skepticism... YES I DID :D

23. How many one night stands?
if its the start of a wonderful relationship, then does it count? that was all.

24. What were your favourite TV programmes?

House - as usual, The Good Wife, Kadonneen jäljillä. True Blood lost its
attractiveness this past season :(

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
im not into hating.

26. What was the best book you read?
Stephen Kinzer's Crescent & Star - it made me really understand Turkey so much better. also In the Name of Honor: A Memoir by Mukhtar Mai was very interesting.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
i think 2010 was quiet on that front :( i cant remember a single thing.

28. What did you want and get?
a new life. work. a lot of experiences, feelings and understanding.

29. What did you want and not get?
inspiration

30. What was your favourite film of this year?
ops, i didnt watch many movies either....

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
i turned 30 and had a "big" party (as big as possible in my small flat)

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
actually i am not sure - being realistic here... i got quite lucky

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010?
i found turquoise this year. but besides some more color, same old alternative girly rock.

34. What kept you sane?
i think i totally lost it :)

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
i cant think of anyone - weird.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
i suppose turkish politics, the army being separated from the government
and so on. and middle east in general, the islamic regimes etc.

37. Who did you miss?
friends back in finland, mom

38. Who was the best new person you met?

there were many! boyfriend is a bit of an obvious choice... so lets say Melisa for instance

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010.
hmm... i learned to seriously lie, hassle and push - to manage in turkey. and as for other things, i think i might have become just a lil bit better person due to my relationship. but something that could be called a life lesson...? i think every year it becomes more obvious that the gut feeling is the right choice.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"At night it hits me cold
There’s so much more to life than I’ll ever know
I look around and I realise
It’s time to make a move, though you won’t sympathise

Stars collect overhead
They look down on the channel and our lives grown dead
Cars pass on through the night
How do you get to heaven if you never try?

New life, new love
Where’s the heart I was dreaming of?
I need a new hope, new dream
Another heart in a different scene"

Pet Shop Boys: A New Life