A letter from August 29th, 2016

Dear FutureMe, Here is your second letter from the past. I first did this five years ago and received that letter like a bolt from the blue today. Completely forgot that I had done this in 2011 so I'm pretty confident I will have forgotten all over again by 2021. In my 2011 email I was staring down the barrel of my 26th birthday and was complaining about my upcoming redundancy from work. This time around I'm thirty - nearly thirty one, and when the hell did this happen? At least work is looking a bit more positive now. I've had a full time job for past two and a bit years... which has had its ups and downs, but I'm feeling really positive about it right now. I just have to get through next week covering on the MI team and then I can properly focus on my career and doing the things which I am interested in - inside work and outside. I've made so many positive changes since I wrote that last letter - I've quit smoking, and started exercising, and made real efforts to eat more healthily. I've planned out daily routines to help me include important activities in each day. That's all having its ups and downs as well, but on balance it's two steps forward one step back. Difficult, and slow progress but still progress all the same. How are *you* doing with all that stuff? I really hope that in five years time you'll have had a promotion on work and being managing your own team. You'll have kept up the exercising and healthy eating and be feeling good about yourself. I hope you're feeling better too - stronger and more energetic and looking good. Right now I feel tired a lot, and although my skin is a ton better since quitting smoking - and better again when I manage to drink enough water during the day - my hair is thin, and brittle and lifeless. It's supposed to be a good indicator of your general health, but doctor's run blood tests and says I'm fine so... just keep with the water and the fruit and veg and have patience. What progress will you have made? I feel more positive than apprehensive. If there's anything I feel bad about it's getting older, and there's nothing that I can do about that. I'm *going* to get older and the only thing to do is make the best of it - fit the most into life as possible. Have you done this? Please say that you've done this. So what else has changed? Difa is currently sleeping on her chair, Danni's on the windowsill and Stewart is still in work - Swansea - even though it's a bank holiday. I'm just about to start training courses in work to learn management. We're about halfway through watching Season 9 of Supernatural, and the last film I saw in the cinema was Civil War. The UK just voted to leave the EU, I just voted for Corbyn as Labour leader, and America is about to have to choose between Trump and Hilary Clinton. The book I read most recently is "The Ranch Girls at Boarding School" which I had shipped in from America for probably too much money. I've just finished my left biomech half-sleeve - next plans are for Harry Potter half-sleeve, Hermione and Furiosa on my sides and a Pratchett back piece. Furiosa is my spirit animal, by the way. I hope she's still inspiring you. I hope you're still inspired full stop.