The Advent Christmas Calendar is here again

Christmas balls, stars and light
Made with Canva

Day 1

Wow, this year has gone fast, and that’s what makes it so surreal. Today it’s December 1st. I had an advent calendar on this blog in 2016 and 2017, and I’ve decided to have one this year, too. It’s 23 days to Christmas Eve. It’s my first Christmas alone. I never thought last Christmas was the last with Dad around. Christmas won’t be the same, but one thing hasn’t changed. I’m taking a cruise to Tallinn this year, too. I don’t need to think about anything other than relaxing. In a way, I’m not alone since there will be other people. Christmas isn’t that important for me anymore. If I had a family, I would feel differently. My parents and I haven’t spent Christmas at home since 2010. In 2011 and 2012, we went on a cruise to Riga, Latvia. On a cruise, everything is done for you, including the food and the entertainment. A big bonus is a day on land. In 2013, we didn’t go anywhere since my mother died on December 15 that year. Me and my dad stayed at home. That was a sad Christmas. In 2020, we stayed home too. It was COVID-19 then, so no cruises were organised because of it.

The shipping company made cruises to Riga until 2017 and then to Tallinn the following year. I went with Dad on the Christmas cruises, the last time being last year. Because of the cruises, I have been abroad the most in Latvia and Estonia—unless you count Stockholm, but that’s summer trips and one advantage of living in Finland. Once, we went on a Christmas cruise to Stockholm. It’s two nights on the ship and a day on land. I’ve been to those places so many times that I almost know it by heart, at least in the town centres. So Riga, at least 6 times and Tallinn 5 times, so quite a lot.

So, this is the first post of the 2024 Advent Calendar. It won’t be all about Christmas. Here we go.

Failure is not an option

failure is not an option
Made with Canva by me

Ever had the thought that no matter how many times you try, you feel like a failure? You don’t get the attention you’re looking for. When no one else believes in you, giving up is easier. But nothing would be new if everyone thought the same, and the world wouldn’t have evolved as it is. Everybody won’t become great inventors, but we can do something about our lives. You can either work for others, or you can work for yourself. The latter is the hard way, which scares or worries people, including me. I don’t want to fail because that’s not an option. I don’t have time to start over again. That’s one reason I haven’t taken the step I wish to take, the fear of failure. I’ve failed in different ways. Whether it’s been education or finding a job. Certain things you can’t do yourself, like getting a job. That’s more about luck than failure. I’ve been luckier getting into a school I applied to than getting a job. They say you have a better chance of getting a job if you educate yourself, but in my experience, that isn’t true. Maybe it’s true in some occupations but not in mine.

My biggest fear the most is not being able to pay the bills if I become an entrepreneur. To be paid for a job, you need clients. It’s easier to search for a job but that haven’t happened to me, so I’m seriously thinking about becoming one. I’m already active on social media and have take courses about different approached to online marketing. But my worry is that despite doing what needs to be done, I still don’t get any clients. Am I wasting my time and should I forget about it? Maybe my business plan or dream clients doesn’t exist? What if I’m not good enough because I don’t have work experience and that’s the reason I don’t find clients? Those are the questions I keep asking myself. I don’t want to take the risk to have a business, if I have to wait couple of years to make a profit. Then a job with someone else would be better or being unemployment with benefits. Fortunally, with good planning and good confidence in my skills it won’t take that long. You don’t need to struggle with problems alone because there are people who can help.

I know I work better in an environment that I can control. I’ve been to workplaces where I didn’t feel I belonged. I don’t want to do a job I don’t want to do. Life shouldn’t be about doing things you’re not meant for. I believe you should follow your dreams even if they seem impossible in some other persons eyes. There are always people who hope you fail but that’s because they’re not brave enough to do anything about their own hopes and dreams. When my late Dad worked for another company before he started his own, there were people who were jealous because he made more money than them. But that didn’t stop him from doing a job. He started his company in 1990 and quit at least 2 years before his death this year. He had his ups and downs financially, but his occupation was different from mine. He was a goldsmith and that was an uncertain business. I followed from the sidelines how having a business worked, so I know how it is. He could chose his own hours and that’s more my style too. I’m not meant to do 9-5 jobs and people breathing down my neck. I want to be able to be myself and not try to act to be someone I’m not.

On a cosy Sunday

relaxed wool socks
Photo: ©Mia Salminen 2017

♫Sunday Monday happy days
Tuesday Wednesday happy days
Thursday Friday happy days
Saturday what a day
Rockin’ all week for you♫ – Happy Days, TV tune.

Sundays should be a cosy day, as it used to be. But now the stores are open every day of the week. For me, Sundays are cosy. If they weren’t, weekdays would be stressful. Being cosy doesn’t mean staying inside all day. If the day is sunny, you can be cosy outside. Sundays, my parents and I went for walks in the countryside. After my mum passed away, I still went out with Dad, but the walks weren’t as long as before. He played golf, so sometimes we went to the golf course to hit balls on the driving range. But that stopped a couple of years ago when things happened, and he couldn’t do it anymore.

I still drive to nature or take bike rides whenever possible. That’s my kind of cosy. But I also watch TV or on the computer. It happens every day of the week, not only on Sundays. Watching sports on TV is relaxing and being cosy, even if sports can be irritating from time to time.

I watch the Finnish version of Dancing with the Stars on Sundays, but the season will end soon. Even if I don’t dance, seeing other people doing it is cosy. My late mother used to watch it, so I also started watching it. The final will be next Sunday, but I will watch it at a hotel. I’m driving to Helsinki that day because I’m attending an event on Monday. Life can’t always be cosy, and driving long distances is not. But by car, you move at your own pace. That’s cosy in its own right.