Is it December already?

The past few months have been really hectic at work so I do apologize to all the three readers I have for the lack of posts.  There wasn’t anything much to blog about anyway because short of “I’ve been working late again”, there really isn’t much more happening in my life.  Thanks for asking anyway.

I’ve never been happier at work.  Really.  

I embarked on a new position in the company in September and despite the longer hours, I’ve never regretted a moment.  There’s a big difference in working your butt off and working your butt off and feeling appreciated.  The difference is abundantly fulfilling.  

December is my favorite month.  It’s short because of the holidays and it’s a month where you make lists – christmas shopping, dinner menus, new year’s resolutions.  I’m a big fan of lists because it gives the illusion of order.  It’s almost as if feeling organized in your thoughts and to-dos will help you achieve them.  (But we all know most never tick off everything in our resolutions.)  Nonetheless, its probably my Virgoan nature that drives me to the brink of full-blown OCD.  Lists are a must.

December also means the weather is cooler.  Rainy wins blisteringly hot anytime in my books.  It poured again in the early evening.  And as I looked out the window, I let out a loud sigh.  December is here.

December also means I get to torture my family with my cooking.  In 2006, it was Roast Chicken with Chorizo.  2007 was Lucky Ducky.  This year, I get to carry out the torture at my sister’s new place as I promised to help break the kitchen in.  

December this year is slightly different as I’ll be heading to Taiwan for a short break.  I need to recharge my batteries after a few hard months and I can think of no better way than to hit the night markets to devour the greasiest, unhealthiest food ever prepared by man.

December is going to fly by and then it’ll be 2009.  I’m looking forward to the new year because other than the past few months, the earlier part of the year was terribly difficult.  I was plagued by wave after wave of unhappiness in many areas of my life.  But that’s another post altogether.  It’s December now, so I should embrace it.

What’s your December looking like?

Tonight is the second night I’m sleeping in the other room.

No, we didn’t fight or anything.  Sarah is ill with a nasty bug so I’m the one quarantined in the guest room for another night.  

Being alone here in the dark reminds me of the nights back in my mum’s place when I was growing up.  My own space, my private sanctuary.  I always enjoyed solitude and since young, I’ve learnt to appreciate the quietness of being by myself.

Every night, I would turn off the lights, put some music on and sit by the window with a cigarette in hand.  I would think about everything – how life would be when I grew up, how much I would miss being alone when I’m with someone else.

Tonight those memories are coming back.  But things are so different now.  Life was so much simpler back then.  The only worries I really had was whether I could save enough from my pocket money so I could buy the next game, and how I would be so screwed the next day because my homework was still unfinished.

Tonight I’m sitting in the dark, banging away on my laptop while iTunes is playing Alison Krauss and Robert Plant’s Raising Sand (brilliant album, by the way) and feeling an overwhelming torrent of melancholy embracing me.

Maybe it’s a combination of prolonged lethargy from work or maybe I just needed the silence to be able to hear my own thoughts.  Whatever it is, I do treasure this private moment I have to myself because when I wake tomorrow, this night will be over and I return to my usual life, back to the grind.

How beautiful this fleeting moment is.  

Carpe Diem.