2015 - New Year, New Crusade

Happy New Year, Everyone!  (Image source: Orlando Local Guide)

2014 has been an awesome experience for yours truly. There have been lots of things that happened, including part of things that I have finally done in the previous year. From joining tournaments, both physically and submit-your-results-online-ly (cannot make up in a shorter word unfortunately lol), to doing and learning things like redesigning my blog, my site, and making stuffs, not to forget that I also made new friends both online and physically in that year.

IT'S BEEN A RIDE

Starting from joining in a college organization (from last 2 years) and, at one time, stream Dubai 24 Hours while I was at it. Then as I progress through the year, I joined my first Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4 tournament (which doesn't seem to be a success as I was knocked out at the second round), embraced the Bathurst 12 Hour really much and managed to make a series of GIFs, taking a different approach in enjoying Fashion Weeks, and going all giddy in my second year of Fandom March Madness to the point that I made a write up that doubles as a reference to V8 Supercars driver Scott McLaughlin's catchphrase: "Jandal". Unfortunately, last year's March was also exactly when I was sick of Typhus, interfering most of my activities, especially my college life where the new even-numbered semester started and I fortunately managed to get normal quickly, only missed approximately a day in almost every class I joined in that current semester.

An in-college art exhibition that I do, along with tens of other figures. Glad that I could be a part of the show, though don't bother to search for my artworks; they're located very far away in this picture.

In the middle of the year, I was able to revisit Bandung one more time, writing a series of posts where I take on Indonesia's negative things at that time, able to watch 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans uninterrupted (save for occasional breaks), able to do an in-college art exhibition, and even developing a long-ass depression due to failed coding of a final project in one of my classes in the previous semester that I had a blogging hiatus for a while earlier, and finally ending my cross-posting habit which resulted in my using Facebook and Google+ more evenly than I only use Twitter for everything. It was all ups-and-downs as I go through the middle of 2014, even though the pace went more normal in later months. Cut to the closing quarter of 2014 where I lost everything in my laptop due to hard drive crash, but thankfully I used my old one once again and that the crashed drive is temporarily "resting" up to now until I have the required money to repair it, forcing myself to start over, yet the process doesn't seem so painful after days. In fact, I can get to play other games as a distraction, like Minecraft. Still, my love to top down racing games, racing simulators and racing games don't change.

Despite that, 2014 is the year where shocking moments happen, especially, in motorsport, for Jules Bianchi, who crashed heavily in a heavy rain-filled Formula 1 race at Suzuka Circuit, Japan. Tom Kristensen meanwhile already hung his helmet after the Sao Paulo race, the last round of FIA World Endurance Championship. Though it is not technically a loss for motorsport as Tom Kristensen continues to work in motorsport albeit different job. In the fandom world meanwhile Edward Herrmann, known as Richard Gilmore a.k.a Rory Gilmore's dad in Gilmore Girls, passed away on the last day of 2014 due to brain cancer. Richard Gilmore's death is one of the deaths happened prior to 2014, the rest I couldn't list unfortunately.

MY 2015 RESOLUTION (WHICH I DON'T BOTHER TO NEED)

It is very common to see people making New Year Resolutions as the current year draws near. I can see people whose resolutions include getting a better life, losing weight, getting a dream job, getting whatever they desire et cetera. No, there's no wrong in having a resolution or two; I was one of those who does New Year Resolutions like almost everyone do. But then suddenly as I thought to myself and surf the internet even more, I realized that the "New Year, New Me" thingy doesn't fit me, so does the New Year Resolutions thingy. In the end, I came to a conclusion where I can even do whatever most people resolute without buzzing it. In short, action speaks louder than words; concrete action is much better than a New Year Resolution or two you posted online, especially in social media.

The first time I thought to myself within the final days of December, I initially thought "What are my resolutions going to be???" a couple of times, and it almost broke my promise to not destroy my philosophy. But then I checked my mind if there are resolutions available for me to post. And I found one:

"Now that it's already the first day of 2015, I did look back at how my 2014 went. It was full of rollercoaster, from suffering Typhus, meeting new friends, cracking a failed joke, kicking ass, et cetera; I am totally grateful.

Resolutions? Well, to be honest I lived the philosophy of "Who cares about New Year resolutions when you can run your 'resolutions' right off the bat?" as I grew up. All I was wanted is that I live my life more properly than I did last year (i.e., less procrastinating on stuffs, getting a job, making proud of my parents and friends, more social engagement, etc). I thought to myself "Hey, my resolutions are so repetitive, I don't bother posting it!" as I live by this rule, which brings me to the fact that I always bring my plan on the go. Yes, even those outside the so-called "New Year's Resolution" context, but hey, I want to finish what I've started, and I don't need to wait until the new year to realize it.

Fireworks have been exploded in the air, horns sounded loud, celebrations overloaded, let there be lights. Let the New Year become a continuation of the continuous life process. Let's finish what you've started, even if it's so obsolete by today's standards."

In short, New Year Resolutions is non-existent for me. Even if the year changes, 1st January of the new year, unsurprisingly, is a run-of-the-mill day. I know that at 12 o'clock you would still be at the party site where you witness the fireworks and the horns sound really loud and then continue the festivity with the environment around you, but in return you will go home and probably overslept as the result of your New Year's Eve party, and there you are, back in your usual life. Maybe you have a plan to go somewhere or do something special, but still, 1st January is 1st January. That being said, life is actually a continuous process until you die. You are left with a to-do list that goes with you in your very mind, among all other things.

Another reason why I don't bother having a New Year Resolution is that my resolutions are too repetitive to post. They include "being better than last year" and "make more friends", among other things, which, due to the fact those including others ARE my resolutions every year, fit being "to-do goals" more than being a set of resolutions. Therefore, there's no more option left other than to do those things and minimize my series of get together moments I had last year. It is always a must for everyone to be better every time at anything however they see fit, but not to forget being better at life, both personal, family and social. Finally, Oliver Emberton's answer to a question about working New Year Resolutions on Quora finally furthers my philosophy, and that I glad that I didn't break my philosophy that I should hang.

This explains why it's not "New Year, New Me" every time, but "New Year, New Crusade". If you are so lazy, you want to let computer decide your resolution for memetic purposes, Zimbio has you covered.

A BARRAGE OF BIG EVENTS AWAITS

And with January kickstarted the 2015, many events are slated in early weeks of the first month. In motorsports, there's the grueling Dakar Rally and Dubai 24 Hours. I could provide fan commentaries on my Twitter as I witness the race being run. Not to forget that in three days, 2015 People's Choice Awards will also be held. I did provide commentaries for last year's Critic's Choice Awards, Primetime Emmy Awards and Teen's Choice Awards, all for the sake of the fandom world. I didn't knew that commentating fandom-related awards would be this exciting, so I would give 2015 PCAs a go. This time, I will try summarizing the results of the show, but on my LiveJournal. Fandom talks has its place already ;).

Later this year, Bathurst 12 Hour, with its bold-and-better entry list, will start in early February, despite the fact testing days for V8 Supercars would run the same date as the 12-hour race. The plot is simple: FIA GT3 cars, GTC cars, sports cars, touring cars and homologation specials battle for supremacy within their respective categories at the famed Mount Panorama track, with Maranello Motorsports being the one to defeat in order to deny its reigning status. For fashion fans there's the Fall/Winter Fashion Week, which once again I would deliver commentaries on certain models who walk certain shows AND take it to the extreme as I will provide mathematical statistics on the run. No one would think that mathematical statistics would be THIS feasible for even an event like fashion week. March will also be a busy month due to the running of different March Madness competitions, especially Fandom March Madness. Unless I state that I couldn't do commentaries for any of these events due to real life and college matters, I will try my best to commentate these things as good as possible. All including the upcoming Dubai 24 Hours and 2015 PCAs will be done on my Twitter so you can follow me right away if you were to follow any of the mentioned events.

In the end, bring on 2015!

~[R]