The Five Goals

During my birthday last year, one of my gifts was a small jar. It was delicate in design - a transparent plastic round jar, filled up partially with handmade stars, a few small tied up notes above, while a white crepe paper covered the contents from above. The design was just like any other birthday present you would find in a gift store.

The only thing setting it apart from other "birthday presents"? - The little pieces of papers inside didn't carry wishes. It didn't carry wishes like "Happy Birthday!" or "Friends Forever!", or other words that make you smile when you read it, but get lost among the tides of time, and the pressures of daily life. No, they carried far more than wishes; they carried 16 challenges - 16 methods of pushing myself to my own limits, to improve myself, whether as a person, as a photographer, or as a friend etc :).

I did as I was told, opening up the small notes once per month - always on the 16th of every passing month, sometimes taking one, sometimes taking two notes at once, while the small little notes consequently reveal their secrets to me one by one, revealing the challenges they have in store for me, where I was given a period of a month (30 days) to complete it, before I open up the following challenge.

This blog post is about a challenge given to me by a piece of note that I have opened recently (to be exact, on the 16th of December). The small piece of paper was dark purple in colour, tied up with a black string, and it said:

List out 5 must-achieve goals, and complete it by one month. Write a summary about it by the end of the month about how you feel about the goals, how it changed you etc.

Well, beware, here goes my list :).

1) Successfully plan a trip + systematic itinerary.

2) Upload a video (guitar / piano / vocals).

3) Cook / bake.

4) Mini-DIY-studio photography.

5) Get less involved in the Internet, and more involved in life itself.

And, I'm proud to say that I have achieved all five of them in the timespan given (yay! :D) so here's a summary of the stuff I did from December 16 - January 16.

Ahem.

1) Successfully plan a trip + systematic itinerary

I've always wanted to go to Malacca again for a trip - one day, no commitments, no tourguides, just to immerse in the local culture, to taste the local food, to marvel at the local architecture. Soooo, I decided to plan a trip there. And write a systematic itinerary too, haha. I dug out some old itinerary files that my sister sent me for another trip last time, referred to it for information on what to add in, what to leave out, what to advise trip-members on etc. And, well, it turned out okay :).

2) Upload a video (I picked piano for this challenge, haha)

Piano wasn't one of my greatest strengths (wait no, at least it's better than my voice) - I mean, I officially learnt only the C progression chords from my sister last time, and I was left to fend for myself (hehe, as I was lazy to learn how to read scores), so yeah. I slowly explored by myself, learning other progressions too, and played happily to songs that I like.

So after listening to a nostalgic Cantonese song (Raymond Lam - Love Is Not Enough), I decided to give it a try - playing the song using piano; using the C-chord progression, the progression I'm most familiar with.

How much would you rate it, in a rating of 0 to 5 stars? :)

3) Cook / bake. I chose to bake.

I'm a guy who doesn't really know how to cook. I mean I've tried before, cooking some eggs to prevent myself from starving, and yeah of course, instant noodles where you can go however creative you want. But to imagine me cooking? Meh no.

Sooo, I decided to go for baking instead, as they're way safer than cooking, and there's bound to be someone who'll finish up what you bake, however it tastes (hehehe :D). I told mom my wish, and she dug out several recipe books of hers, even including a yellowing old book that she filled with written recipes she copied down since her schooling years - over thirty years ago. I flipped through and through, till I finally found a recipe that caught my eye.

Hazelnut Cookies.

Well, it isn't exactly a complicated recipe, truth be told, and I decided not to push myself too much over my limits. I wanted to bake edible cookies, not failed ones, haha. So after buying and preparing the required ingredients for the cookies, I started my endeavour, my leap of faith.

Mom's old cookbook :D

Butter and sugar!

The stuff :D

Flour(s)!

And, hazelnut powder :D

Haha, not that bad ain't it?

Truth be told, the first batch of cookies turned out a bit damp and too large, but then the following batches (improved by making them smaller) tasted awesome.

Successful first try, I'd say :). All thanks to my dear Mom's guidance, hehe.

4) Mini-DIY-studio photography.

I did this before actually, with a daisy I bought for RM1.50. In case you haven't seen those photos, well..

All did with a RM1.50 budget! (water and freezing fees excluded, haha)

So, I decided to go for another trial of studio photography.

Done with an apple, watersprayer, A4 paper, and a torchlight.

5) Get less involved with the Internet, more with life instead.

Compared to the months in Wangsa Maju, KL, I have been spending less time on the Internet I guess, owing to more morning-walks, cycling, photographing, and family outings. I don't regret doing this, as it opens the window again in my life, for fresh air to replace the stale Internet air.

The joy and beauty of non-city life.

And a spider. Sweet dreams guys! :D

Well, I guess that's all :). The Five Goals have changed me in a subtle but positive way, and I'm glad I did it.

Looking forward to the next challenge :D

Signing off,

Ruiyou.