2016 isn't entirely over yet. There are still four days left in which an awful lot could happen. I would not be surprised to hear that some people are currently hiding under their duvet, waiting for those four days to pass. Everyone around me is telling everyone who will listen that 2016 was a terrible, no-good monstrosity of a year. Yet here I am, looking back on the past year thinking: That actually went pretty damn great for me.

I don't think I ever went into a new year with as much optimism as I did in 2016. I set myself 8 goals and wanted to experience as many new things as possible. Did I reach my goals? Well, not all of them. Other goals seem insignificant now. Some goals were reached in ways I'm still proud of. So let's just see how I did, shall we?

In late 2015 I had trouble enjoying anything. I just didn't see the good things in life anymore. Then I learned about the 100 Happy Days Challenge, where you post a picture on Instagram of something that made you happy that day for 100 days in a row. I accepted the challenge and yes, I did complete it in early 2016! It did make me happier, although my Instagram looked like crap afterwards.

I didn't reach 150 followers. I was right on track until late August. That's when college took over my life. I couldn't give my blog the attention it deserved, so I got stuck at 134. I don't really mind since I'm more focused on engagement now anyway, but my dad is very sad about me not reaching this goal. I'd promised I'd buy him cake when I made it. He's obviously still waiting for that cake. Sorry dad!
At some point last year I realized I could fall back into the downwards spiral I escaped from by accepting the 100 Happy Days Challenge. I wrote this goal down as a replacement, but soon found out that it didn't work. Now I only write happy thoughts and memories down when I'm truly happy. It makes my Peanut Butter Happy Jar much more valuable. I'm actually planning on doing a post on its contents soon, so stay tuned for that!

This one is hard to judge, since I didn't have a clear idea of what the collabs should look like when I came up with this goal. In terms of guest posts I didn't do anything. My boyfriend posted on here, but it wasn't a guest post swap thing the way I know it. However, Kanra from The Lunar Descent and I worked together on some projects. I also made YouTube videos with two bloggers, interviewed three bloggers and there's something special coming up, but more on that later. Either way, I think I did well enough on this one.

Ready for my biggest accomplishment of this year? I went to Slovenia all by myself! I met my blog buddy Jerneja from Sparkly Kid and it was so freaking awesome. Sometimes I still can't believe I actually did this. People thought I was crazy for travelling by myself, but it ended up being one of the most amazing experiences of my life.
I did plan a second trip, but couldn't go because I didn't have the money or time. I guess I'll have to go to Norway some other time.


I did exactly 5 things from my list. Just click on them to read how it all went :D
#11: Buy a Marvel comic book at the local comic book store and be proud of it
#13: Make a YouTube video
#28: Go to Comic Con
#29: Meet a blog buddy in real life
#31: Play Fishy all the way to the end

A quick recap of my 2016. I went to Berlin and Ljubljana. I visited five new countries. I started vlogging. I lived alone for two weeks in August. I landed a translation job. I started discovering South Asian cuisine and cinema. I'm in a relationship. Twelve months ago all these things were far outside my comfort zone and would have scared the crap out of me. I've said 'yes' to so many things this year. I've received letters from all over the world. Life outside my comfort zone is amazing.

I reached about half my goals for 2016, but looking back on them I realize that what made me happy this year wasn't reaching my goals. It were the people who joined me on my way to reaching my goals. Shubhaish, Kanra, Jerneja and my boyfriend Marc have made me so happy this year. I'm thankful for having them in my life and hope they'll join me every step of the way in 2017.