Alive as Always: Habits I Wish to Keep in 2019

The start of a new year always inspires me to change my life somehow. Usually, it comes in the form of looking for ways I could move back to Germany. This year, however, with the changing of my life being a definite promise, I don't feel the pull to do that again. Instead, I'm starting to really look at the here and now—and what I can do about it. These aren't one of those resolution posts—I did that one already, remember?—and it's certainly not a miraculous happy-go-lucky transformation of my daily life. It is a bit of wishful thinking combined with enough self-reflection. It is meant to remind myself to keep to these habits—and why—as well as to hopefully inspire some of you to make small changes to your life, without waiting for the grand gestures to do so. It's true what they say: it's the small things that count.

Pre- and Post-Facial Care

I'm going to say something that a lot of you would probably hate me for: my skin is pretty low maintenance. That means all my life I've never had to do much to take care of it. Minimal care, like facial wash—could go a long way. However, as I grow older, I start to notice that it is—inevitably—starting to fall apart. Pimples show up more frequently—and bigger than ever—and the texture dries up quite easily these days. I think, aside from aging, a major factor is my lack of care for it. Often I would ride motorcycle and come home without washing my face—leaving soots and pollution to suffocate it. It's really simple, but I neglect it. That's why I want to make it a habit to wash my face straight away as soon as I get home. For extra care, I'd like to also apply aloe vera gel to soothe and moisturise my skin before I leave. A little care here and there, you know.

Daily Sit-Ups

As a girl who wants to get fit and lose weight, I am exceedingly unwilling to actually exercise—as some of you probably are too. I hate the idea of going to the gym. I'd rather be involved in a sports game—something like baseball or basketball. Swimming is as close as it gets to me actually having a regular workout. However, the time—and money—aren't always readily available. What I believe very heartily is that small things, done frequently, can create a difference. So, instead of having a full on workout session—that will eventually fall to the wayside, I've decided to do small things like doing sit-ups everyday. It can be as small as 20 times or as big as 100 times, but if I do it regularly enough, I'll get used to the load. Why sit-ups? Because I want to focus on my abs and sit-ups come in various styles.

Keep a Budget

Money has been strict for me in the past few years. Being a freelancer, it is hard to tell when money will come in abundance and when it will be barely enough. Unfortunately, I am not yet in a position where I can count on financial stability just yet. Maybe, if I have an office job, it would be better, but it would at least be another year before I could even qualify—bachelor's degree and whatnot. So far, all I can do is make the most with what I have and manage it well. Budget-ing is something that I've been doing for a while, but it hasn't always worked for me—mostly, because I'm being way too generous on it. A friend of mine uses a weekly budget, so when she's spent too much in the weekday, she just stays home on the weekend. That seems to have worked out well for her, so I'd like to try that too.

Deodorise and 'Fume

Here's a little gross fact of yours truly: I haven't worn deodorant in around 10 years. Okay, yeah, there was the occasional body spray when I lived in Germany—and some other means of fighting body odour henceforth—but not actual deodorant. It's just that I know deodorants are potentially carcinogens—the anti-perspirant types—and I'm not going to willingly put that substance on my body. What I've been trying to do for years is to find the all-natural alternative for it. Now, with my determination to go low-impact, the stakes have gotten higher. Fortunately, there are stores like Cleanomic, Dimanja Bumi and Green Mommy Shop, who provide all-natural, plastic-free options in Indonesia. If you're looking for one too, I'd recommend checking them out. Also, I've been using an old perfume of my sister's lately (lol).

Bring My Reusables

As you know, I've been reducing my single-use plastic and waste emission. There are so many really easy ways to do this, just FYI. So yeah, one of the first things I did was use as many reusable items as possible. From straws, to cutlery and bags, I've become used to lugging those things around. Sometimes I would go so far as to bring empty lunch boxes for the main purpose of becoming the container to a snack I'd buy later on. What I haven't been really good at, to be honest, is being a visionary about this. Meaning, if I don't feel like I'd need my cutlery or straws or bags, I almost never bring them. The problem is that, more often than not, I'd need them by the end of the day/trip. These days I'd really like to be more prepared and bring at least those three things, because I'll always need them.