hi sophomore year, it's me

Earlier this year, I made a list of aspirations for my semester. (You can read about that HERE.) In summary, I said I'd write more letters, use up a planner, clean my desk regularly, stop eating after eight every night, catch the 7:44 am train every morning, turn off my phone while studying, and take more pictures. I may have failed in a few areas (namely the food part) but I cannot stop recommending the idea of setting small attainable goals. It gives you such a sense of achievement. Try it. You'll be happy you did. I promise.

Anyway. I have new goals to set. So, without further ado:

1. Save more, spend less. I almost put this down for my semester goal last year, but refrained because I didn't think I could do it. I've been a little too free with my wallet lately. Goodbye, Loft flash sales; it's not you, it's me.

2. Make breakfast freezer meals on the weekends. If you had to wake up at six every morning, you'd do the same too. I don't know why I didn't think about doing this sooner. It would've saved me so much money and freakout moments where I was thoroughly embarrassed that people would hear my stomach rumbling in class. I'm thinking about trying out THIS recipe first (probably sans beans, cause being gassy ain't classy). What do you think?

3. Unplug on Sundays including YouTube, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, Facebook, and Instagram. AHHHHH, I'm going to hate myself for saying this. Well, too bad future Ariel. You'll just have to suck it up. I spend too much time on social media sites. I really do. It's the first thing I check every morning and the last thing I see every night. Sadly, I wrote a full fifteen page paper on the detriments of social networking on teens for crying out loud, and not a single word went to heart. (Did land the A, though, so that's a plus?) I will leave my (dumb) phone on for texts and calls, but that's it.

4. Journal at least once a week. All throughout high school, I scribbled in my journal avidly--a little note there and a little note here. Somehow, this love of mine got lost after going to college. But it's like what they say: You make time for what you love. Am I right? I love leafing through old journal entries; strictly speaking, it's a way to document growth. To elaborate, sometimes I don't think too much about the type of person I am now versus the person I may have been two, three years ago. It's nice to know when you've grown in certain areas. Not to mention, it's also a good way to just relive and remember. 

5. Strengthen my relationships. I despise wallowing in regrets, but I'm human and guess what, I make mistakes (ones that I genuinely regret). The redeeming aspect, however, is that once a blue moon, life comes and bops me on the head (in the form of friends or family) and a problem surfaces to my attention so I can learn to remedy accordingly. Here's me confessing my regret from freshman year: I neglected at building relationships (both with friends and family, unfortunately). When I did spend time with people, I found it extremely difficult for me to enjoy myself as I was always thinking about things I should've been doing. Sure, my grades might've gone up but I'd like to believe that having an encouraging group of friends is vital to my own growth as an individual, and isn't that the point in just about everything we do? THIS article popped up on my Twitter feed recently and number #2 struck home: Community isn't optional; it's essential. I wish I had read this last year. 

6. Keep taking more pictures. J and I now have a little collection of photographs from our challenge. Round two starts this week. Our site recently underwent a little renovation, but it's growing on me. Check it out HERE and give us a follow if we're your cup of tea. (On top of this project, I've also been on top of my Instagram game.)

7. Read more books. As in non-textbooks. You might be in the same situation. Reading? Who has time for that? Or worse... Reading? What's that? I, too, walked those same shoes, but no more. I have a goal of reading fifty books this year. So far, I've read ten and I may or may not put up a post with some recommendations/thoughts. A multitude of treasures await. I'm excited!

Do you have any goals? You should. Look at me, telling you what I think is best for you. A big goal is nice to have so you know which direction you're running towards, but having little successes in your daily life is always a nice booster to keep you going. Today is the first day of sophomore year and I'm already in the library. Foreshadowing many lovely dates to come. All my love to everybody else in the same boat. This won't last forever, so promise to put your heart and soul into everything, okay? To a new semester.