Reflecting on 2025.

As the new year begins, I wanted to get down my thoughts on the previous year. I went from working part-time back to full-time. Completed a full year living alone in my apartment and signed the lease for another year. Kept the promise to myself of not going more than four months without seeing my mom. Read 22 books. Started this website/blog. Continued volunteering at the local animal shelter. Started to dog-sit. Turned 41.

I started the year by watching the January 1st sunrise from my balcony and watching the Texas Longhorns win the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in double overtime.

Going through my photos for 2025 was able to help jog my memory of things I had forgotten about. After viewing my Spotify Wrapped, I was able to determine I must have been praying/looking for spiritual guidance more than usual. My most listened to song was Into The Water by Jordan Moore. According to the singer, it "is a powerful country ballad about hitting rock bottom and finding redemption through faith." The song Good God by Micah Fletcher was also in my top five most listened.

Looking back, I see that I was so eager to go back to work full-time, I took the first job offered, and didn't really manage the pay situation as I should have. Within a couple of months, I realized I was no longer finding the job challenging. There are still no metrics provided to help me keep track of my performance. It is also an extremely small company and thus not much room for moving up.

Visited a local coffee shop and, during my many continuous visits, made my way through all the different 5" Personal Pies from Texas Pie Co. they serve.

The good thing about the job, though, is that it is close to my apartment. I leave work at 5 pm and by 5:15 pm, I am walking into my apartment. It is Monday - Friday, 8 am - 5 pm, and one hour lunch. I have even taken the opportunity to come back to my apartment to enjoy lunch. Although there are so many positives, I need something to continuously challenge me.

I have spent many therapy sessions discussing this, and if it is wrong for me to complain about the job, when there are so many people looking for work. I'm used to working with high-achievers, coworkers who push each other to perform their best. The working environment of the warehouse also appears to have started affecting me. I'm not pushing myself because I know if I do, the next group of coworkers will have an even bigger backlog to get through. They have already made comments that I'm working so quickly. When in reality, I've slowed down so as not create an even bigger backlog.

To help keep me challenged, I took on the task of documenting our shipping process. As nothing is written down and is only in the minds of two current employees, three, including myself, now. It has taken more than a couple of months, as I have been working on it when not working on orders or other pressing issues that come up. It has also taken time to screenshot every single step of the domestic and international process. I like organization, and having documentation helps everyone now and in the future. As that project soon comes to an end, I will need to find a new challenge.

Throughout the many hours of Animal Crossing I played, this was my favorite chat with a resident.

Financially, this job also will not be able to sustain me long-term. I still haven't had to dip into my three-month emergency savings fund, but my bank account is starting to reach a level where I'm feeling financial stress. I haven't had to deal with this feeling since 2016.

The number one overall goal for 2026 is to get back closer and then exceed the money I was making before I decided to move back to Texas. I would like to become a homeowner within the next couple of years and need to make good financial decisions now. I also plan to enjoy more workouts outside, not just in my living room or apartment gym. Read more. Volunteer more. Pet more dogs. Pet more cats. Cook.

I will end this with a favorite photo my older sister found and sent me in November. She knows my favorite Disney movie is Beauty and the Beast, and throughout the year, sends me random photos that she finds.