2013

[ShortOrderCook]

The year is rapidly drawing to a close now, with just a little over 24 hours left of 2013. Looking back, how has your year been? Been a good one? Glad to see the back of it? Been a completely nothing year or highly eventful? What's been your biggest accomplishment of 2013?

 

2013 has been a very transitional year for me. And I don't mean that it's been an in-between forgettable one, but that the year has seen many changes and transitions throughout. There's been some trying periods but overall, those changes have all been for the positive. I'm in a much better, happier place than a year ago, I've achieved just about everything I set out to achieve this year and I've got some big, exciting things to look forward to for 2014.

 

When the year started I was in a relationship that I knew I needed to end and really had known as much for a good couple of months, particularly as there was someone else who had come into my life. In the first couple of months I looked to bring that relationship to an end in a manner which avoided any hostilities but it proved increasingly difficult to do so for a variety of reasons, but in February finally did and was all on relatively good terms. The someone else was to be heading off on an 18 month round the world travelling adventure in the summer, so was only ever going to be a casual thing, but had she not been travelling probably would have ended up as something more, but in hindsight i'm really glad it didn't, as I really wouldn't have wanted anything more serious than what it was, but I made a point of seeing as much as possible of her before she went and you can't help but begin to think certain things when you do that. Soon after she left for her travels though I realised I was foolish for thinking that way though and that actually, I could really focus on other aspects of my life I wanted and needed to focus on.

 

I've had a bit of a blow out year with friends, in hitting a shitload of festivals all throughout summer. I made the most of that and doubt i'll be doing so many in one year again and certainly feel i'm growing out of certain things and wanting to do other things with my life that some of my friends aren't. But I've had a hell of a good time this year in doing so. Come September though, when festival season was over I was ready to shift focus on to some other things.

 

I took the plunge and went self-employed this year. Which has definitely been a move that needed to be made and worked out well. I'm earning more (but should still be earning even more) but it's been a move i'm really glad I've made and brought a lot of good things.

 

In the last few months have met a new girl and things are going very well indeed. The year has absolutely flown by, yet at the same time when I think back to my situation in January it feels like a lifetime ago. I think that's mainly down to having so much happen this year and it being such a busy one.

 

Got plenty of exciting things coming and planned for 2014. Intend to move to London (most probably in the Summer), i'm around certain areas 90% of the time as it is and it's been something in the works for a while but has fallen through for a few reasons but definitely looking to make that happen in 2014 and very much looking forward to it. My brother and his girlfriend will be coming back over here to live from Australia for at least a few years, which will be nice. I've got best man duties to take care of in early summer and a big stag to organise along with it. A few new goals i'll be looking to achieve which will have me again in a quite different position this time next year.

[Astro Hollywood]

Worst year of my life. An endless string of increasing low points that I won't expand on, for people to throw at me with a sly reference or a "" when we disagree in a thread. Barring some insane miracle, 2014's going to be venturing even deeper into this lightless tunnel.

 

Also, can we try and keep this thread free of the insipid faux-deep, Poundland Dwayne Johnson, half-arsed Buddhism,

[LaGoosh]

My year has been great. My work have messed me around a lot so I'm not doing what I want to be doing so that's the only complaint but that will be sorted out in January.

 

My highlights:

- celebrated my second wedding anniversary

- got my wife indefinite leave to remain on her passport so she can now stay in the UK permeanantly. People who haven't dealt with the Home Office don't realise how much of a pain of an arse it actually is to sort out the visa for your spouse...and how fucking expensive it is too. Glad it's all done and dusted

- Glastonbury 2013. I got to see the Rolling Stones, stayed in a yurt instead of a shitty tent, the weather was great and there was a real good vibe between all who went in my group. The most fun of the 4 Glasto's I've been to so far.

- went to Los Angeles with the wife which I loved and will go back to next year

- went to Las Vegas with my mates which wasn't my cup of tea but had some unforgettable moments

- went to a shooting range for the first time, realised I love shooting guns...especially machine guns

- seeing Wu Tang Clan live at Brixton Academy

- seeing The Book Of Mormon

- saw The Undertaker live

- watched some amazing television: Game Of Thrones season 3, Boardwalk Empire season 4, Breaking Bad season 5, Spartacus, Arrested Development season 4, Hannibal, The Returned, Broadchurch

- discovered some amazing kids shows which are now favorites: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Adventure Time, The Legend Of Korra

- set myself up with Spotify Premium and have listened to and discovered more brilliant music this year than probably the past 10 years combined

- loads of nice country pub lunches and good nights out with mates

- managing to save up a nice little nest egg as a start to building a potential mortgage deposit to buy my own gaff

- found my new favorite London pub. It's called the Black Dog in Vauxhall. It's a dinghy shit hole but plays great music, sells a cider called Thundering Molly's that gets me pissed after 4 pints it's so strong and they do an amazing burger

- read dozens of great books and have recently discovered an interest in Middle East politics so am reading loads of fascinating stuff about that

- started going to the gym again last month after 4-5 years and enjoying it

- bloody nice Christmas

[HarmonicGenerator]

Quick, is how I think I'd describe 2013. It's flown past at quite an alarming rate.

 

The good: First full year with the g/f, some of it distance, some of it not, but it's still going well as far as I can tell! We've done some great things this year - went on my first proper holiday in a few years to Italy, and fell in love with Florence particularly (plus met one of the E Street Band by the Trevi Fountain in Rome), and followed Springsteen to Wembley and then Paris (which also had Paris). Went to some great gigs that weren't Springsteen, too, like Fleetwood Mac, Sabbath, and Seasick Steve, saw some great stuff on stage - Twelfth Night, Once, The Lion King - and so on in that fashion. Visited places like the Tower of London, Whitby, and the Lake District, none of which I'd been to before. I would like to think I made the most of my days off, plus the time spent with the g/f, this year. It's been a good year relationship-wise.

 

I tried something that I never thought I'd be any good at in March when I was invited to a block of improv workshops. Ended up loving it, and went regularly for the rest of the year, even having a go at doing stuff in front of an audience by year's end. Met some great people too.

 

Got a mini-payrise at work, and featured in a few notable bits and pieces, like our ad campaign.

 

The not so good: Lost my grandma this year, plus a friend from my theatre group, and our family cat.

 

At the beginning of the year I was in a shared-house situation that wasn't really working out - I think I'm past that stage of my life now, and I'd rather be saving to buy than continuing to rent. The lease ended in May anyway, so it would have come to an end regardless. I'm seeing 2015 as the point at which I could do something definitive from this perspective, but you never know for 2014. The major advantage of this place was its proximity to the local swimming pool - from January to March I did quite well at regular exercise, but then work got crazy and I lost the motivation. Which was bad of me.

 

Work-wise, there's been some negatives too. My best work friend left for a much better job in London in April, and it's not really been the same since. I find myself finding it samier than it's ever been before, and noticing the lack of upward progression for the first time. It's definitely the sector I'd like to be in, but I'm starting to realise I'm going to need to do another qualification in order to get the better jobs.

 

 

Generally speaking, the positive has outweighed the negative. I've got a reasonably achievable mini-list of things I'd like to accomplish in 2014 to hopefully further narrow down the negative and increase the positive. I just need to find my 2013 equivalent to that, to see whether I thought the same this time last year!

[Callum1993]

2013 has been a pretty awesome year for me overall.

 

1. My main highlight of the year was my Mam getting the all clear from Cancer which was obviously amazing.

2. Getting a 2:1 from my first year of Uni was great.

3. Getting my first proper job and still having it right now earning some pretty good money along the way.

4. Having my first lads holiday to Ibiza in the summer was pretty awesome.

5. Moved back home which money-wise was a great decision.

6. Had some great nights out and met some awesome friends this year.

 

For 2014 I have a few aims:

 

1. Lose some weight. Going on a big health kick this year...want to lose about 3/4 stone.

2. Get another 2:1 in Uni.

3. Smash loads of work experience ready to apply for my teaching degree.

[Devon Malcolm]

Worst year of my life. An endless string of increasing low points

 

Oh hello there terrible year twin.

 

Terribly self indulgent of me but this might shed some light on why it's been so dreadful:-

 

http://letterboxd.com/settingsun/film/punch-drunk-love/1/

[PowerButchi]

2013 was fucking terrible and if 2014's as bad as that again I'll end up jumping off the fucking aqueduct. A total loss in my formerly sky high self confidence, the realisation that I'm nearly 30 so probably never going to get near my goals I had as a youth, my ever exoanding wasteline, the fact I'm not as charming or funny as I once thought I was, funding being cut in work so I'm done after a colossal 3 months, my inability to go near any intoxicating substance be it booze or drugs without ruining myself, it turning out that I'm a fucking mental, and yet another fucking year in my parent's box room made this year absolutely fucking awful.

 

So yeah, 2013 can suck my hairy fucking dick.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

Must be the number 13, because its been a horrendous year for me. This is how life must be for substitute goalkeepers and Taz every year. But you're going to have to pay a fiver to go into paid and see my meltdown from earlier this year, though, because I cant be arsed to type it again and I'm not really in the mood to visit parts of my brain which may make me down tonight.

[The Cutting Edge]

Cant complain been a great year as always, sure shit went wrong but I dont dwell I move on.

 

Great wife, Decent Job, Holiday in Florida, Money in the bank, improvements and size/muscle gained at gym etc all is good for 2014 in Edgeland

[niff]

2013 has been a really good year moving in with my boyfriend and spending our first Christmas together even though I've been poorly for most of last week. Things going well at work, getting the recognition and being asked to be the acting project manager for a short while before getting back to my own stuff recently has been a great experience. I'm feeling more confident in the kitchen but I have a long way to go!

My parents 60th birthdays were great fun and weekend breaks to London and Edinburgh in the summer were fantastic. I hope for more of the same in 2014 but I'd love a trip abroad.

[Quentin]

The highlights included a promotion at work, getting tattooed by the guitarist from my favourite band, booking one of my wrestling icons from when I was a teenager, my first trip to Amsterdam with my three best mates, growing a massive beard, cracking weekends in Newport and Brighton and to top it all off, finding out that me and the wife will be having a baby boy in April.

 

The lowlight of the year was waking up one morning in the worst pain I've ever felt in my life owing to a kidney stone. Fucking horrible.

 

All told, 2013 has been pretty good to me!

[FLips]

Fairly mixed year for me, but the bad usually outweighed the good. I'm still single, I'm still fat and though my social confidence has improved; my self esteem and personal confidence has not. The one casual fling I had was a fucking disaster as some of you may remember, and that only got worse as it peaked in a pregnancy scare that had me terrified for months and brought my anxiety back until I was 100% sure it wasn't mine.

I spent a lot of the year feeling bad for myself and the one time I did just think "fuck it" and got a girl's number, it went absolutely nowhere and I just gave up.

 

Feel daft moaning about girl problems and being a fatty after seeing some other people's posts, but still.

 

On a brighter note, I currently have a job I'm in love with and a group of friends who I wouldn't change for the world. I'm sticking at Uni and like I mentioned my social confidence has improved in that I now go out more often, I dance if I get drunk enough and I can have a good time in situations I used to really hate and worry about doing.

 

Hopefully 2014 ends up being alright, me and a flat mate have made a pact to eat healthier and while I have cheap access to a gym and a decent amount of money, I should really stick to that.

 

EDIT: And I got stuck with this fucking stupid FelatioLips name

[SiMania]

Great year for me. Highlights were 2 pay rises and a new job as an IT Project Manager. Saw Neil Young at Newcastle and managed to get to a few Celtic games. Watching my son change so much (he turned 2 a couple of month ago) has been great, he's a lot of fun when he's not being a little shit. Recently I've been brewing my own beer so reading about that has taken a lot of time, I don't have the money to spend on the kit that I'd like, but I've got a nice enough little setup to brew some nice beers.

 

Low points were my uncle dying suddenly in September on the day my Dad turned 60 and retired, I had to go to Dublin that day for work so was away from my family, it was a strange time. I didn't do a few things I'd set out to at start of year such as play guitar more, get fitter, watch some more wrestling. Hopefully 2014 will be more of the same good stuff and less of the bad.

[SiMania]

Great year for me. Highlights were 2 pay rises and a new job as an IT Project Manager. Saw Neil Young at Newcastle and managed to get to a few Celtic games. Watching my son change so much (he turned 2 a couple of month ago) has been great, he's a lot of fun when he's not being a little shit. Recently I've been brewing my own beer so reading about that has taken a lot of time, I don't have the money to spend on the kit that I'd like, but I've got a nice enough little setup to brew some nice beers.

 

Low points were my uncle dying suddenly in September on the day my Dad turned 60 and retired, I had to go to Dublin that day for work so was away from my family, it was a strange time. I didn't do a few things I'd set out to at start of year such as play guitar more, get fitter, watch some more wrestling. Work has been so busy that I've not been in touch with my friends as much as I should so will sort that one out next year.

 

Hopefully 2014 will be more of the same good stuff and less of the bad.

[Cobra1000]

Eh yeah, good and bad.

 

Up until September it was pretty awful. I was in the worst relationship of my life and had no job for most of it too. I was in a horrible relationship with this girl who treated me like a worthless piece of garbage. The complete opposite of what I wanted in a girlfriend. She basically wanted a someone rather than me and she shouted, bitched and moaned and was basically destructive to my confidence and you know, sanity.

 

After that I,'ve rebuilt myself a bit. A couple of trips abroad in Portugal and Switzerland were great. I have been going out and pulling which is weird after many years not doing it. It's weird when random girls kiss you with more passion than your ex ever did! I've got a job which I really like now, doesn't pay great but it gives me time to work on other things. I had a dream come true in getting paid to write about music so that's awesome. Also rekindled friendships which I lost after being stuck in relationship and am genuinely happy with all my mates. Got to see Van Morrison, Bruce Springsteen and Rufus Wainwright so gig wise it was okay...

 

Also have a combination of bad a good in that my brothers mother in law found out she had cancer but now she looks to be in the clear. A friend from my primary school also committed suicide before Christmas which is messed up and it makes me feel so so empty even though I hadn't talked to him since I was 11.

 

2014 is looking up with Optimus Primavera Sound in June, Nou Camp trip in early May and a snowboarding trip in January and a few gigs and other things which should keep me happy.

 

Oh and I actually don't know what I'd do without this forum, cheers me up on some crappy days and even if I don't post all that much the relationships thread helped me out a lot.

 

Happy New Year guys, hope 2014 is way better!