2004 in retrospect

Goodreads just informed me that so far I have finished 25 out of self-imposed 24 books this year. This inspired me to sit down and have a quick look at the 2024 & how was it for me.

Books:

As mentioned, I am slowly returning to reading. There was a time - before internet, I guess - when I used to read 4 books per month, but since internet came, I am too distracted with it. So I am still reading but this time is mostly articles, news and blogs. I had stopped beating myself over not achieving same reading numbers like before and accepted that perhaps one or two books per month is more realistic. Here perhaps lies the truth of the happy life - accept the reality and make the best of it - so since I am not pushing myself to feel guilty, its going nicely. I did managed to read 12 books in both 2022 and 2023, so this time I lifted the bar slightly and read two books per month, which worked out fine and was realistic. I read some SF, biographies, a few classics, even some hard cover graphic books that earlier in my time we would call comics. 

Music:

Spotify has completely changed the way I listen to the music now, because gone are the days of walking to a physical shop and buying albums - everything is available online now so its just a matter of discovering something new that I have not heard yet. Contemplating various playlists became a part of my morning routine and I always carefully prepare what I will listen that particular day at work. I am always conscious of what I don't know so occasionally I add something classical just to check it out and this is how Bach came on the top of my 2024 list as the most played name - his body of work is huge so obviously I was busy with that. Not sure where Elvis Presley comes in here, particularly because I actually genuinely love only one of his albums ("From Elvis In Memphis", 1969) but perhaps I was listening his many various soundtracks so it has accumulated. Streisand had memoirs published this year so I was obviously listening her along the way and Ella Fitzgerald is an old favourite so no surprises here. I guess this can all change if next year I decide to research the music of for example, Brahms or Beethoven - than they might be on my personal top - otherwise I always return to my old favourites, but I always find new ones, like country blues album "Yellow Peril" by Nat Myers.

Movies:

Because I listed what impressed me here on this blog, its easy to see what I was enjoying in 2024. "Society of the Snow (La sociedad de la nieve)", ""Georgetown", ""The Zone of Interest" , "Wicked Little Letters", and "Pearl" were just some of the movies I have seen in the cinema (the last one was recently seen "Megapolis"). I have also exploring streaming platforms and particularly enjoyed "Baby Raindeer" and recently fell totally head over hills for SF series "Silo" but have also enjoyed Dutch historical documentaries about their Golden Age, Industrialisation Age, etc. A few cinema visits turned out less exciting than what people recommended me - I didn't care for either "Oppenheimer" or "Barbie" and genuinely disliked both "Poor Things" and hyped Demi Moore horror "The Substance". As for the next year, I am still not sure do i want to continue having cinema prescription since I go to cinema less and less - everything eventually comes to TV sooner or later. But there are always big movies that deserve to be seen on a big screen, I might continue.

Theatre:

Some improvement here: been to the theatre twice this year. The first play was a very bad production made out of Agatha Christie's "Murder on the Orient Express"  and that was a big disappointment that made me even question do I enjoy theatre at all. Luckily, it was all healed soon afterwards, when I saw an exciting and vibrant production of "House of Troy" by Euripides. These two were so drastically opposite of each other that I got a lesson - to be more careful what I am planning to see live on the stage. 

Travels:

I have been travelling for work and during roughly 15 years I have sailed the 7 seas and seen most of the planet. That is why I don't feel any excitement about packing again and going somewhere - I am perfectly fine here in Amsterdam, love the city and enjoying being here. Contrary to so many people wishing to be elsewhere, I am happy here and would rather be here than anywhere else in the world. However, I did embark a plane twice this year: first I visited Croatia because of the wedding occasion that I did not want to miss. It was surprisingly pleasant and not traumatic at all + wonderful to see my friends again. Second journey was to Portugal, which honestly was exhausting - I wanted to do so much in such a short time, instead of recharging the batteries and just resting. So my next vacation must be a quiet place with food, reading and sleeping. Maybe some walks in the nature. But definitely no big, crowded cities because they are tiresome.