A Year of Big and Small Adventures
Where life, love, and activism took me in 2024.
I just got my 2025 diary in the post and I'm beyond excited. A crisp, fresh new diary with 365 new pages to fill (page-a-day diaries for life!) - this is the stuff a writer nerd's dreams are made of. As it’s the end of the year and all, I had a quick skim through my 2024 diary, preparing to say goodbye. 2024 wasn’t a year I went into with great expectations - I mostly wanted to chill out and learn to be present - but what it delivered was large and small adventures, from breathtaking days in nature to new takes on my activism.
Starting the year with some of my favourite people
2023 ended and 2024 began in one of the best ways I could possibly imagine: with my husband and two of my closest friends, here in Brighton. Both these friends live in different countries so every day I get to spend with them is precious, and planning a full week of Christmassy activities to celebrate the New Year together was such a wonderful gift. One of my best memories ever and the best way to start the year.
Spending January in Playa del Carmen, Mexico
“What day is it?” I called out to my husband as I jumped into the blue Caribbean waves. “It’s the 12th of January!” he responded. Escaping the grey dreariness of January by booking a trip to a sunny spot is a life hack I’ll never go without again, and we kicked it off by jetting to Playa del Carmen. A trip that saw us swimming in caves, discovering historic ruins, eating our body weight in acai bowls, practicing our rusty Spanish, meeting people from all over the world, seeing pelicans and iguanas, and, well, getting so sick that I feared we’d need a Mexican ambulance. The ups and the downs - it’s all part of the adventure. This January, we have another one planned, which I can’t wait to share here.
Doing more public speaking
I’ve written about my love for public speaking, as well as guest-lecturing at universities. I’m so glad I got to do more of both this year. From returning to Coventry University - the very first university I ever guest-lectured at, years ago - to speaking to an audience of hundreds at the Vegan Campout, I was so proud to bring my message of compassionate, animal-free fashion to new audiences and showcase innovative vegan materials to design students as well as curious fashion lovers.
Reconnecting with a dear friend
2023 brought me the gift of rediscovering one of the best friendships I’ve ever had. A friend I’d fallen out with during lockdown and missed tremendously (it was worse than any romantic heartbreak I’d ever had) got back in touch. I’m so glad we reconnected and had many beautiful moments together in 2024. Every day we spent together I thought of how lucky it is that we found each other again. She is now off on an epic adventure in South America, and we’re closer than ever. I speak to her more often than I do some of my friends back here. And every time I hang up the phone, I thank the universe again that we’re back in each other’s lives.
Spending time in nature and hanging out with animals
From long hikes and sunflower fields to feeding horses and going for long beach walks with friends’ dogs, my year has been filled with nature and animals. And few things fill me with joy and serenity as much as reconnecting with the simplicity of nature and the innate joyfulness of animals. Sure, it wasn’t without its hiccups: I’ve had to take a friend’s dog to the vet, for example, after she hurt her paw on a walk. But in the end, having animals in your life (albeit other people’s), is worth any worry.
Starting my Substack
One of the intentions for 2024 that I wrote down in my diary at the beginning of the new year was “start a blog”. I didn’t really care that blogs were basically extinct - I just knew that after having a go at podcasting and planning a YouTube channel, all I wanted to do was write. To my joy, I discovered Substack! And I’m so glad I did. It’s my favourite hangout on the internet and a brilliant replacement for most other social media platforms. In the months I’ve been here, I’ve come across countless great reads and found a little gang of new readers. All without an algorithm, hashtags, or having to make videos. I love it here.
Singing in public again
I have stepped on countless stages to speak in recent years - but I haven’t sung in public since my late teens. I used to love singing, but I gave it up because I wasn’t good enough. Over two decades later, I’ve come to the conclusion that I don’t care! I don’t have to be good - doing it because I enjoy it is enough. My husband, a musician, put in the work to coax me back up onstage and I performed Crowded House’s Don’t Dream It’s Over in front of my friends at my birthday party. And that was only one of many performances to come. Will I ever go platinum? Definitely not. But singing is one of the few things that put me in that famous “flow” state, where nothing else matters. Bring on more music in 2025.
Being naked in public in Paris…for animal rights
I’ve written about this one too - the day I dropped my clothes (again) for animal rights in Paris, to speak out against the cruelty of Olympic sponsor LVMH and encourage passers-by to be happy in their own skins, rather than wearing animals. Just another day at my job! This was a highlight because not only is travelling for work my favourite thing, but I also love coming together with other activists and approaching advocacy in creative, theatrical ways. And if it involves getting naked? Count me in.
Seeing some of the best concerts of my life
I’ll admit it, I’m not the most culturally active person. I see maybe one museum exhibition every couple of years and I can’t remember when was the last time I went to the theatre (actually, I can. It was in 2012). But where I shine is gigs. Some of my best memories in life are the concerts I’ve been to - it might be due to having a musician husband, but concerts are centre stage in my life and I plan to keep it this way. This year, we travelled to Milan to see Slash and Myles Kennedy, which was absolutely unforgettable (Starlight is one of “our” songs as a couple, and seeing it live was such a romantic moment). And then, through my job, I also recently got the chance to see the one and only legendary Paul McCartney in concert. The organisation I work for had a stall at the last show in London, so after handing out animal rights leaflets for a couple of hours, I got to see the last two remaining Beatles playing together. A true bucket-list moment.
Visiting Lisbon
This is another of the intentions I put in my 2024 diary, and it came true! At the start of the year, I sold my business (a digital vegan fashion magazine) to an online vegan marketplace and used part of the money to book a trip to Lisbon, a city that’s been on my list for eternities. I’m not exaggerating when I say that these were three of the best days of my life. The culture, the food, the beach, the sheer beauty of the city - it all won our hearts. My phone is now 80% photos of tiles, and I’ll never forget that vegan brunch. We’ll definitely be back, and stay longer next time.
Reaching a career milestone
Getting promoted to PR manager at the animal rights organisation I work for was a very emotional moment for me. My job is so special and precious to me - after years of working in an industry that left me emotionally wrung out like a dishrag and attempting to “work for myself” which led to crushing loneliness and financial burnout, I found the career I belong in. Almost a decade later, I still never take it for granted. So this promotion was like the universe telling me, “you’re on the right track”. Best way to close off 2024, and I will spend my next working year living up to my new title and position.
Saying goodbye to a friend…and gaining a new one.
Among all these happy moments, there had to be a sad one. One of the friends I met in late 2023 passed away in 2024. This friend happened to be a cat.
Meeting this cat during the last year of his life brought a new friendship into my life, and I’m so glad. Through being there in his final days, I gained a wonderful friend - his human companion - who I hope will be part of my life forever. That’s the thing about friendships, they appear when you least expect them. And through the sad moments, something new might be born. That’s one of the lessons I’ll take with me from 2024, hoping for another year of unexpected joy.
…Plus, this was the year when I got bangs again. And if that isn’t an adventure, I don’t know what is! Happy New Year to you all.
this was a lovely read! Mexico in January sounds heavenly, but even better I love that it was a year with lots of nature and animals - I was reflecting that my 2024 was decidedly lacking in those things so need to remedy that in 2025!
I also had a little “adventure” in Mexico…😉