Goddess, I Am.

I don’t do New Year’s resolutions. I do, however, make it a point to figure out my goals for the year. What’s the difference? I find resolutions more fleeting – insincere, even. Goals, on the other hand, are more concrete, serious, and often realistic, so I find myself more driven, more inspired, and more determined to achieve them. But that’s just me.

All in all, 2009 was quite a great year for me. No, I did not manage to achieve ALL my goals, but I did accomplish a great deal – some of which were totally unplanned and therefore, pleasantly unexpected! It only makes perfect sense that this year’s goals should be just a tad loftier. In fact, it seems like an insult to the year that passed to regress!

So enough babble. Here are some of the things that I’m hoping to accomplish this year, in no particular order:

1. Get my government paperwork FINALLY sorted out, so I can start processing the PAG-IBIG loan, which, in turn, will . . .

2. Start the house construction, and hopefully, let us . . .

3. Buy a car – nothing fancy, but something that works. I want a Suzuki Swift. The Husband wants a Honda Jazz, or a secondhand two-door Pajero. Whatever it’s going to be, it’ll most likely be secondhand for the rest of the list to come into fruition. (Read on, do!)

4. Have about a million (pesos) squirreled away. How we’re going to do that is beyond me, but it’ll happen, I tell you! And no, robbing a bank isn’t part of the plan.

This year, I hope to do away with unnecessary purchases – meaning, no more gadgets (unless necessary), weekly online shopping sprees for clothes, expensive dinners (do you hear me, T.G.I.Friday’s?), and two-way cab rides (one-way will do).

5. Build Innuendo, especially now that I own 50% of it (yey!). The company was fairly successful in 2009, and it gave us an idea exactly how huge its potential really is. We’re hoping to hit the ground running this year, what with Chris & Berns at Ayala Center’s The Maze now carrying our swimsuits and another bazaar in I.T. Park coming up on January 11 to 24 (I’ll see you there, yes?).

Progress is a bit slow on the Innuendo website, however. I’ve got so much work to do that I haven’t had a chance to sort out the ecommerce fulfillment and even the site design. Plus, we haven’t had a chance to shoot the new collection, so I don’t have photos to post. BUT all these will be sorted out before January ends, AND I’ll be doing a little giveaway on this site, so I hope you’ll watch out for the launch.

6. Travel, travel, travel. The fact that we traveled very little in 2009 was probably the year’s biggest disappointment, but we are determined to remedy that this year. We’re off to Donsol, Sorsogon for my birthday to swim with the migrating butandings (whale sharks), so hopefully the inevitable Mt. Mayon eruption won’t be too serious, considering that we have to fly to Legaspi City to get to Donsol. We’re also off to a 6-day Hongkong trip come June, yey!

7. Still on the subject of travel, another reason why I have to sort out my government and financial papers is that I’ll need them to apply for a Schengen visa this year, if we are to tour Rome (!!!) and the rest of Europe in 2011. I’m hoping the process won’t be too painful, considering that I am married to a British citizen, after all!

8. Invest. The thing about working online is that you never know when it’s going to end. You could be working on a project that you’ve been on for years, yet find yourself unemployed the next day. That’s reality. So though I know that my bosses intend to stick around for a long, long, LONG time (fingers crossed!), I still want to invest in something tangible. Presently, I’m considering a laundry franchise. (Just imagine: Iris, Goddess of Laundry.)

9. Get in better shape. Last year saw my weight going up and down like a freakin’ yoyo – literally. I was 102 lbs. at my thinnest, but I have now ballooned to 112 lbs. after the holidays. I intend to stay within the 100 to 105 lbs. bracket throughout the year. And. This. Starts. NOW.

10. Lastly, I intend to be more productive and better organized this year. Although I’ve worked extremely hard and gotten more things done in 2009 than I initially expected, I still have a tendency to slack, sometimes for days on end. I intend to do away with slacking for good. This means I will sleep earlier and wake up earlier to get more things done during the day. I will also learn to delegate more effectively, so I don’t end up climbing the walls in panic whenever I’ve got deadlines coming up.

So am I likely to achieve all my goals for 2010? The year is young, so we shall see. But if 2009 was anything to go by, I daresay, it’ll be a cinch!