It was my birthday on Monday and because no one enjoys having the working week kick off the same day as their birthday, much of the celebrating was last weekend (which means I've been head down, bum up with study this weekend).

A birthday too means I am thinking about all the things that will happen in this fresh new year of my life. You're familiar with the soul list. Last year's was the first I actually published here, and my wrap up of what I ticked off is published here.

So, at 44, here's the list of this year's 44 things to feed my soul.

44 'soul' things

1. Continue to read a book a month, totally unrelated to work or study.
2. Divest of stuff. We’re looking to downsize and move to a smaller property. Stuff has got to go.
3. Find a professional mentor, or two. I’ll be looking to get traction on the MBA and a few other things I’ve added to my busy professional life this year.
4. Put myself in front of the camera a little more. I am very much comfortable on the eyepiece side, not so much the lens side.
5. Set up and use Mum’s table loom. I’ve salvaged it from her garage, but I’ll be honest, the damn thing is intimidating.
6. More country road trips.
7. A camp in autumn.
8. A camp in spring.
9. More walks in the bush.
10. More long rides, preferably with friends.
11. Get back into the pool and swim laps after work.
12. Get back into the routine of going for a run before breakfast.
13. Book regular massages - not one every three years, or thereabouts.
14. More weekend curry cook-ups to have packed lunches ready for the working week.
15. More having friends around for easy weekend lunches. Pot-luck will be my friend this year.
16. Make kombucha.
17. Make sourdough bread.
18. Make more wardrobe basics: simple tanks, tees, shorts, pants – that kinda thing.
19. Grow more granny flowers. I’ve been reading old garden guides and have been persuaded by the language of colour, movement and scent. I’ve already thrown in a couple of dahlia rhizomes.
20. Visit libraries more. The best reads I’ve had over summer I borrowed from the local library.
21. Phone friends more. It’s so much more immediate than writing a letter.
22. Try out all the new eateries popping up where I live on the Central Coast. This place has really changed since we moved here 16 years ago. So much more to choose from.
23. Surprise grandkidlets with pick-ups from preschool and school. Who doesn’t love an afterschool trip to the pool, milkshake or ice-cream?
24. More after-work walks along the beach. Salt air and sand underfoot are incredibly salves to a rough work day.
25. Take my study outdoors. I get WiFi access out there. Why have I not been doing this more?
26. Make better use of the work commute so I don’t have to do so much study or other work when I get home.
27. Write in my diary more regularly.
28. Play music when I am at home. It’s always so quiet and I used to have music on all the time before the kids own music, television and general exuberant chatter drowned it out.
29. Find time to stay in the city and catch up with friends. I jump in and out on work commutes and there’s been no time to properly meet and catch up with people.
30. I would really like to go here. Maybe in September. https://ockpoptok.com
31. Have the grandkidlets over for ‘movie’ and ‘camp’ sleepovers. Pile up mattresses in the loungeroom. Pop popcorn. Put a DVD on and snuggle in for the night, or a campfire with marshmallows and tent in the back yard.
32. Do another local food tour. We went to Auburn for a Middle Eastern tour last year. Korean this year, I think. http://www.flavoursofauburn.com.au/food-tours.html
33. Spend an average 5mins in the garden each day. Those with an eagle eye will notice I’ve dropped from 15mins a day, to 5mins.
34. Op shop out of my hood. There’s a wealth of great op shops north and south of me. Time to explore new treasure troves.
35. Hike to the top of Mount Kosciusko. I’ve never even been.
36. Plan some serious adventures for when the study slows down at the end of this year. It’s amazing how being curtailed makes you want it so much more.
37. Press flowers.
38. Make paper.
39. Get the kayak, and myself, onto the water more often.
40. Grow lavender. I picked up a few sprigs at a produce swap recently and let them dry. The smell is amazing.
41. Comment on blogs more. Are you guilty of skim-reading too?
42. Print more family photos. Everything is stored on drives, in clouds and on the phone. Printing them and sharing them with the family makes me very happy.
43. Lose 10kg. Please don’t let this double again this year, but given the amount of eating out, eating in with friends, cooking and food tours on the list, I’ll be up against it.
44. Pass the second year of my MBA. It’s all-consuming, boring, but it’ll make me very happy to have finished it.