Last year, my resolutions included buying a bike and joining a hiking club. I joined the An Oige hill walking club.
I remembered on the first day of 2008, Peter and I drove to Parnell Street in Dublin and paid 40 euros for a second hand bicycle. Peter helped me adjust it to my height and greased the chain. Although I had an accident several days later, it did not stop me from cycling to and from work. Even with my poor sense of direction, I managed to cycle everywhere within an hour’s cycling distance. I was told that my bike was heavy and it was damaged a bit from the accident. Because of this it made me very fit!
I started hiking with An Oige on 6th January 2008 with Wendy, who was one of my Hong Kong housemates. It was an easy hike and the group took a rest every 15 minutes. I moved up to the moderate hike the week after and joined the hard hike a few months later.
I met a lovely old hiker named Brendan Dempsey who is 80 years young. I drew him a Chinese painting for his 80th birthday. I made friends with Angela and moved to her and her boyfriend's house in late June. Around the same time I met Philip, with whom I fell in love.
I tried my best to save money from the moment I arrived in Ireland. My housemates and I did not even use the heating system and took as much as we could from work. Still, I was happy because the job was simple and I had plenty of time to develop my hobbies. However, from July I was becoming stressed about my U.K. work permit application, undesirable working conditions at Butlers, my living conditions and my love relationship. Things were going in directions I did not want and I felt I had no control over them. I was disappointed and complained a lot, even when I went travelling in Italy for three weeks.
Maybe you are aware that my U.K. teaching job is not going well. I only learned I was being kept on the 16th of December. Also, after going through Philip’s birthday, my birthday and our first holiday together, we finished our romantic relationship. I can’t believe I have been going through on disappointment after another for half a year. That is too long for me. It is time for change.
My 2009 New Year’s resolutions are to buy another bicycle, join a cycling club, become friends with Philip and integrate into the U.K. lifestyle.
I spent my Christmas holidays with Adrian, a classmate from University living in Paris. We planned the holiday through email and gTalk. He bought a microphone especially for chatting. Finally he bought a train ticket one week before our holiday. On the holiday we talked a lot and had a good time. There are plenty of places to visit around England, places I wanted to see.
I spent my New Year’s with my Irish hiking friends in the Peak District in the north of England. Angela told me about the hiking trip and I was very keen to join them. I could not get a booking for the first night and kept ringing the hostel to see if there were any cancellations. Finally I rang that morning. I was lucky, there was a cancellation and I set out on the seven hour journey to get there. We hiked for three days and I shared my experiences since I had left Ireland for the U.K.
Not everyone has the opportunities I have. I had refused to see them and had confined myself to my little flat. I am not strong enough in myself. It was unhealthy to hurt myself to get attention. I was lost and forgot what is important to me.
But, I know I will be ok.
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