Top Things We Are Looking Forward to in 2021
Every year around this time, the motto “new year, new me,” would pop up everywhere. The sentiments of being able to leave behind bad habits, tiring lifestyles, and any sources of negativity in 2020 is one that I find myself gravitating towards. No matter how optimistic I tried to be last year, 2020 was definitely a year packed with a rollercoaster of emotions that left me feeling drained. With new energy, new mentality, and a new set of resolutions, here are some things, activities, and events that I am personally looking forward to this year!
Starting a New Planner and Journal
Over quarantine, I saw this tweet where someone really nailed how I felt. The text spoke about how disconnected everyone feels from reality as the minutes, hours, and days are all blurred together. And that cannot be more real. Throughout the past year, each day grew to become monotonous. Even with daily tasks, classes, and new Tik Tok videos that occupied my mind space, 2020 could’ve ended in March for all I knew. With the upcoming year, I hope to keep my time on track and practice more mindfulness and intentionality with the things that I do.
And as a part of that effort, I invested in an Erin Condren LifePlanner along with a Dotted Notebook from Archer & Olive.
One of my New Year’s resolution for this year was to actively reflect on each day whether it be a couple sentences, bullet points, or just jotting down cool ideas that crossed my mind throughout the day. I purchased one of the duo-life planners from Erin Condren for more practical uses such as keeping track of academic and work deadlines, daily to-do lists, among other shenanigans. While I attempt a free style bujo journal, which is this big DIY trend where you basically design your own planner/reflection notebook. I am challenging myself to write EVERYTHING down, whether it be my 2021 resolutions, monthly/weekly goals, or just thoughts. I think with time passing by the way that it is, I just really wanted to keep a record of how I felt and my experiences throughout the year. And who knows, 3 years, 10 years, or 20 years down the line, it might be cool to be able to see your own development through your own words.
New FOOD Places to Try
I recently tapped back into the development of the Austin food scene and I didn’t realize how much was going on even during the midst of the pandemic. I’ve been scrolling through Instagram to see what new openings were happening this year and here are some that I am really really excited for.
- Sazan Ramen: This is a new ramen shop next to Airport Blvd and I’ve just seen way too many pictures and rave reviews about this on Instagram and Yelp. Everyone’s been saying how great the service, interior design, and more importantly the flavor. All the reviews are saying how creamy and rich the broth is without it being too heavy. Some even said that Sazan heightens the ramen competition in Austin. After reading and seeing all these pictures, how could I not want to try.
- Sweet Green: I have never heard of Sweet Green before in my life. However, it is a new restaurant that recently opened on The Drag on the UT campus, my campus, so it is officially on my radar. Based on the descriptions that I have seen, it seems like a super healthy version of Chipotle which I am not opposed of.
- JJIM – Korean Braised BBQ: This is one of my most highly highly anticipated openings for 2021. I’ve had way too many trips leaving Carrollton with insane jealousy because they have like 50 million KBBQ options. So I am extremely excited to see another authentic KBBQ shop open up in Austin.
Becoming More Active Through Blogilates
Honestly, this has always been a goal or resolution that I set for myself every single year but it hasn’t always been followed through consistently. However, this year will be different…hopefully. Blogilates is an online fitness channel that combines traditional pilates move with cardio and weights. I have been following Cassey Ho’s journey from the very beginning with her abs, legs, butt workout videos on Youtube, but recently she launched her merchandise at Target AND released a fitness app this year. I downloaded the app on January 1st and have been desperately trying to keep up with her 21-day toning challenge that she released for this month. Apparently, it takes around 21 days for something to become a habit and for this month, she challenged all her followers to be active for at least 21 minutes for 21 days.
Embark on New Austin Adventures
Despite living in Austin for a majority of my life, I realized that I haven’t been much of an Austinite at all. So, another one of my resolutions is to live the Austin life as a tourist by hitting up all the major hot spots for new and old Austinites.
- Ziplining over Lake Travis: This one definitely takes a lot of guts that I don’t even know if I have. I didn’t even know that this was an option initially but there’s this hour-long zipline that you can take across the entire Lake Travis and it just sounds like views for days.
- Paddle Boarding or Kayaking: This is a classic that I am ashamed to have not tried. Generally, open water scares me but it definitely one of those things where once you’re there, you’ll just remember the fun instead of the fear.
- Take pictures at all the major murals: I see these everywhere, but I have never took a picture in front of any of them. This seems super cheesy but there’s honestly so many beautiful art displays and murals hidden everywhere around Austin so it’ll be really cool to do a collage of all the ones that you pass by on your Austin Adventures.
Greetings From Austin – 1720 S. First St.
You’re My Butter Half – 2000 E. MLK Jr. Blvd.
I Love You So Much – 1300 S. Congress Ave.
Jeremiah the Innocent Frog – West 21st Street and Guadalupe Street
New Shows & Movies
One of my favorite ways to pass time is to binge. I literally have such an unhealthy habit of binging watching and binge reading. And lucky for me, 2021 is a year filled with new releases of shows, movies, book around the world. Here are a few things that are on my watch list for this upcoming year.
Shows:
Attack on Titan: The Final Season
Love Alarm Season 2:
Grey’s Anatomy Season 17
Promised Neverland: Season 2
The Queen’s Gambit
Trailer Link:
Movies:
Raya and the Last Dragon
A Quiet Place Part II
Black Widow
My personal focus for this year is centered around personal growth. I think that with quarantine, it is very easy to feel stuck in one place as we’re mainly in the same environment around the same people. So this year, I challenge myself and all Texas Tasty users to try something new this year. This could be anything from starting a new hobby, new skincare routine, new outdoor activity, eat at a restaurant that you’ve never been to, or even something as simple as trying out a new brand of toothpaste. Let’s shed off 2020 and start anew in 2021!