apart from the quick wedding dresses post, it’s taken me a while to get back into the swing of things around here. i only officially go back to work next week, so i guess my mind is still kind of on holiday (and i’m savouring sleeping in and having late breakfasts while i still can). but the real reason is that it’s simply taken me so long to catch up with what’s been happening online for the better part of a month. i think my bloated google reader is haunting my dreams.
like many i’ve been thinking a lot about what i want for myself, and what i want for the blog, in this new year. it’s always a good time to reflect on what you’d like to do more of, what you’d like to do less of, what you’d like to try out or experiment with. i read a post by Erin about slow blogging and it really resonated with me. Joy’s 2013 resolutions also gave me pause. well, there have been plenty of wonderfully insightful posts by bloggers who i admire about their hopes for the year, their work, their blogs, their life – too many to list here – so i thought i’d share some of mine.
1. cook more. keep it simple. share the recipes.
image: shaved cauliflower salad by happy yolks
i’d have to say that one of my biggest failures last year (and the year before that, and and and) has all to do with my eating & cooking habits. besides the fact that my jeans feel, ahem, a little tight after the holidays – i want to make a concerted effort to eat out less, plan our meals, stick to a budget, not waste what’s in the fridge, keep a well stocked pantry, eat less meat, eat less sugar, eat more veggies. basically be less lazy, take less shortcuts and be more prepared.
but above all learn more about food! what goes well with what, discover what my favourite herbs are, be able to whip up something delicious from scratch in 15 minutes. a skill that will serve me (and the people i cook for) well.
i like the idea behind Hugh’s Three Good Things – “Put three good things together on a plate and, somehow, the whole is always greater and more delicious than the sum of its parts.” yes, i really like the idea of that. Jessica and i are planning on starting up another food series – on the regular – so i’ll at least be getting a bit of professional help on this front.
2. discover and share more music.
have you heard the new bowie?
i know that people love the music mixes – and i love them too, but in the past year i haven’t found (or made) a lot of time to put them together as often as i used to. to be honest with you, i don’t think i’ll be making music mixes anymore. apart from the logistical reasons, i’d really like to talk about individual musicians or bands more often, focus on one at a time and encourage people to buy their music. the greatest response i always get to the mixes is that people discover new music that they end up falling in love with – so my goal will be to keep that up. all in all, expect more music posts!
3. take more photos. with an actual camera.
photo by me.
they don’t have to be amazing, but i’d like to learn more about photography and what my camera can actually do. when i look back at my photos the last time i picked up a real camera was for jessica & luke’s wedding in october 2011. and before that was when i was in Paris in 2010. twenty ten. every single photo taken since then has been with my iphone. which is wonderful in it’s convenience, i suppose, but actually pretty shameful considering how much i love taking photos.
4. expand the cape town city guide. get out more!
photo by me
boy oh boy can i be a homebody sometimes. not sometimes, all the time. i love being at home. i can go a couple of days without leaving the house (if there’s food in the fridge, that is). but this year i’d like to get out more. and what better place than cape town and surrounds? next time i’m out and about and i walk past that new coffee shop, or eat at that new restaurant in the winelands i’ll take along my camera (thanks goal no.3), snap some pics and share it with you all.
5. don’t panic about the wedding planning. too blessed to be stressed.
above: a lovely gathering photographed by Yossy Arefi
this is obviously a goal specific to this year, but i can already see that i must not allow myself to stress about planning our wedding. above all i need to relinquish control to people close to us who want to help – this is not the moment to just do everything yourself. i keep thinking “i just want everyone to have a great time”. but they will, of course, no matter where we get married, what food they eat or whether the DJ plays Gangnam Style when we specifically asked him not to.
what are your goals for the new year? i’d love to hear them. and if you have any tips for achieving any of the above – eating well, planning a wedding – please feel free to comment! i think 2013 will be a goodie.
