The 28 things I learned before my 28th

Hooray, today I can eat as much cake as I want without shame, because I just hit twenty-eight trips around the sun. Yehess, it’s my birthday and okay, that thirty is getting really close but oh well, I’ve heard that it’s really not as bad as everyone thinks. To say that I’m officially really an adult now, pfff, far from it, but I have learned a lot in the past few years…

1. Make sure you have a handful of good (real) friends in your life. They don’t have to be dozens, a few is more than enough.
2. Failing feels kaa-uu-tee, but it’s really good for you.
3. Staying ‘in shape’ is quite different than when you were eighteen. You really have to put in the effort now.
4. But hey, exercising also means you can eat more pizza and pizza is good for people.
5. Heartbreak? Yes, hell. But you’ll get over it, I promise. And by the way, a break-up in your twenties is actually good.
6. Hangovers? They really do get worse with the years. But oh well, smart people just drink a lot.
7. The trend of gluten-free eating (if you don’t have gluten intolerance) and I are not made for each other. A life without French baguettes, I can’t do that to myself.
8. Melted cheese is life. Actually, anything with cheese is great.
9. Dating a man who doesn’t like truffles is doomed for failure. Trust me, there’s something off with these types.
10. Never make eye contact when you are eating a banana.
11. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing and with whom; ‘Piano Man’ by Billy Joel is always appropriate.
12. Some people can do cool tricks with their eyebrows, whistle, or balance a spoon on their nose. And me? I have a photographic memory when it comes to song lyrics. That’s a talent too, right?
13. Everyone has their own sadness. Don’t measure things against each other.
14. That with the phrase ‘yes but’ you really won’t get further in life. Get (constructive) criticism? Say thank you.
15. That it’s completely okay if you’re just not really in the mood. Feeling like crying? Do it.
16. That all clothing labeled as hand wash only, really must be hand washed.
17. There is no sincerer love than the love for food. I just saw that pass by quickly and that’s quite a wise lesson on my birthday. Where’s the cake?
18. Are you struggling with something? Write it down. It works like a kind of therapy and it’s free too.
19. #StayClassy. A life motto learned from my homeboy Theo.
20. That you really have to learn to say no. It will make your life a lot nicer.
21. But also say yes to things you’re intensely afraid of. Anything that falls outside your comfort zone, so to speak.
22. Accepting that some people will never admit they are wrong. That can lead to heated discussions you don’t want to have, so the golden rule here is: agree to disagree.
23. That an offline life is really good for peace in the body and mind. You can really go a day, what am I saying, a week without Instagram.
24. A Friday afternoon drink can also be perfectly fine on a Monday afternoon. Or Tuesday, or Wednesday or…
25. That John Mayer has a fitting song for every emotion you’ve experienced in your life so far.
26. Hey, it’s okay if not everyone you meet likes you. The world won’t end because of it.
27. Maybe the best advice ever comes from Steve Jobs: ‘Stay hungry. Stay foolish.’ – in all aspects of your life.
28. And last but not least: drunk people, children, and leggings always tell the truth.