Review of 2011

Well, another sorry year on the resolutions front. If I was being very flexible, which I am, then I could say that I have achieved about two out of ten. Atleast I didn’t open the year with a stinking hangover and a hazy memory this year. No my mind was clear as was the sense of failure.

Anyway, as is now custom at this time of the year, here are my resolutions for 2011 and a review of 2010 – a year that will be remembered as consistent rather than spectacular.

Resolutions

1) Return to football and get amazingly fit
2) Get promoted in my job
3) Pass my driving test
4) Learn to cook
5) Perfect the acoustic guitar
6) Break 80
7) Write a book
8) Bring my blog back to life
9) Be there for my family
10) Be on time


1. What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before?
- I started driving (lessons)
- I was made redundant
- I had my first (semi) serious football injury

2. Did you keep your New Year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I set new year’s resolutions every year and every year I fail to achieve them. I suspect I will do the same again this year. However I am going to employ a new strategy. Instead of a blanket attack on them all, I am going to break them up quarterly so I have more of a focus. Q1 is resolution 1, 3, 4.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
- No

4. Did anyone close to you die?
- No.

5. What countries did you visit?
- France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Pakistan. I’m never going back to Amsterdam. Bad things happen there. I’m never going back.

6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?
- Better control over my health and fitness
- More contentment with my performance at work

7. What date from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
- Can’t remember the date, but the day Kraft took over Cadbury was the most significant date as it cut short my career at Cadbury and paved the way for a great move to Blue Rubicon. At first it seemed like the end of the world, but as actually turned out to be a great opportunity.
- Another memorable day, was the day I returned to Pakistan – it was great to revisit a part of my life that I absolutely loved and for it to feel so familiar

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
- Securing my job at Blue Rubicon in combination with three other job offers

9. What was your biggest failure?
- Failure to really make my mark in my new job immediately. Personal - failure to take control of aspects of my life such as money and health and fitness.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
- Seriously damaged my knee playing football. It has disrupted the last 4 months both in terms of sport and at work; a real pain in the arse

11. What was the best thing you bought?
- Probably my laptop. It’s not that I’m in love with my laptop because it’s a bit shit (emad’s fault, I wanted a Mac) but I do use it everyday.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
- Kurt and Nimra for following their convictions and getting married
- Colleagues at Cadbury who fought tooth and nail for a company they truly believed in.

13.Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
- The Lib Dems. It didn’t depress me as such, but I do think that they have put themselves in a hopeless position by going so gung-ho into the coalition at the price of a lot of their manifesto commitments. . I guess it’s easy to forget what you stand for under the lure of power.

14.Where did most of your money go?
- Socialising, clothes, rent. I also invested in driving lessons, however I still haven’t passed my test.

15.What did you get really, really, really excited about?
- Revisiting Pakistan. It was the highlight of the year with many great memories including an epic voyage looking for a camel.

16.What song will always remind you of 2010?
- Frank Turner – Live Fast, Die Young

17.Compared to this time last year,

I. are you happier or sadder?
Happier

II. thinner or fatter?
Fatter – no exercise because of my knee has taken its toll.

III. richer or poorer?
Richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
- Cooked. I wish I had cooked more and eaten out less.
- Writing. I’ve really led my standards slip and want to write much more this year.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
- Checking Facebook and my email for the third year running.

20. Did you fall in love in 2010?
- No.

21. How many one-night stands?
- Never any comment on this.

22. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
- No

23. What was the best book you read?
Burnt Shadows - Kamila Shamsie. I’ve literally just finished it this second and it was one of the best books I’ve ever read.

24. What was your greatest musical discovery?
- The Courteeners

25. What did you want and get?
- My job

26. What did you want and not get?
- A pool table. We were monitoring the price on ebay for days, but when it came to putting in our bid we didn’t do it in time. That pool table could have changed our life.

27. What was your favorite film of this year?
- I liked Shutter Island at the time. Wall Street was quite good too. I also went to the premier of ‘The Other Guys’ which was brilliant in hindsight.

28. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
- I turned 27, which I can’t believe every time I say it. Amazingly my friends held a surprise party for me at Chicago Rib Shack. I was expecting a dinner with 2-3 friends as most people said they were busy, at which I was secretly very pissed off. However when I walked in, all the main players were there. It was a great night.

29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
- The lottery
- The one
- More holidays
- Achieving my resolutions

30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010?
- Sales centric – every 9 out of 10 items I buy is in a sale which is probably evident.
- You could also describe it as ‘Invests a lot for very little return.’

31. What kept you sane?
- My good mate and housemate Emad Nadim. We are comrades in the struggle.

32. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
- I don’t really fancy public figures so always struggle with this question. That one that won Strictly seemed like a nice lady.

33. What political issue stirred you the most?
- Lots of political issues stirred me this year with the election. The most outrageous though is the rise in tuition fees and I have been impressed by the student response (apart from the violence). I wish I could have been a student and got involved myself.

34. Who did you miss?
- The Pakistani family
- Family

35. Who was the best new person you met?
- I’ve met a lot of great people at my new company – it’s great to work in a place that you.
- I also met some great new people in Pakistan (briefly) – Meg Lyons, Fatima, Shazia, Thystere, Nimra

36. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010:
- You’ve got to get the basics right to be brilliant.