29

I turned 29 recently. I guess I really can't pretend I'm early to mid twenties anymore, right?

Turning 29 actually got me excited about turning 30 next year. It gave me great cause to reflect back on the past ten years or so. There's so much I want to achieve, personally and professionally, that I haven't done yet. And sometimes the "haven't dones" can overshadow the "have dones".

I almost wrote a bucket list (I hate that phrase, sorry), but instead decided to remind myself of the past decade and what I did achieve.

Here's how I summed it up:

I'm entering the twilight year of my twenties, and that's cool. I graduated, got a job, left a job, lost a job, graduated, wedded, worked, and emigrated, switched careers, faced fears, made friends, saw bands, learned my faults and the worth of my salt. I also took a thousand photos of fibreglass cows, visited the grave of the man who invented the word 'robot', lived in Harlem, and was published in an academic journal for a subject I never studied. My new goals are to work harder, play softer, and pay more attention to my family. Have at it, 29.

*The typeface here is Comic Neue, a brand new reinvention of the world's worst (and most misused) font: Comic Sans. Comic Neue is kind of genius and even a little bit beautiful. I thought it perfect for a short piece about realizing that you're grown up. It's free, so download and share it with everyone who needs a friendly, accessible tone in writing - from your kindergarten teacher to the dentist's office!