Becca Marriner

2025 was easily the fastest year I’ve ever experienced. Every time I blinked, it felt like it was a new week and something else desperately needed my attention. It’s been a year of lists and reminders written on any scrap of paper I could find. There were things to do, items to pack, stuff to order and people to eventually message back. But the big one, 2025 itself? Tick! Completed it, mate.

The primary driving force behind my organisation crunch (if scraps of paper are deemed ‘organised’) is that I was promoted at work! I’m now the manager of my favourite coffee shop in Edinburgh and it’s been a little surreal. I left my two previous workplaces due to a lack of progression, so receiving two promotions in less than 18 months is almost unfathomable. There was a fair bit of learning on the job when I took over the shop but I think I have the hang of it now? Except for making the rota, that has never gotten any easier.

But with great power, comes great responsibility. I want to do this job well and I’ll admit that sometimes I put myself under too much pressure to get everything right on the first try. This time last year, I was bragging about finding a work-life balance and I’m not convinced that I’ve maintained it super well. I’ll always be the first to take on extra hours to cover holidays and busy periods and I was starting to burn out. Towards the end of 2025 I was managing the time I spent at the office a little better, but mainly because I’d overbooked myself socially instead. I had some lovely time off over the festive period and it was nice to spend a few days at home to see my family and friends.

It’s easy to look at all the trips I took, whether home or otherwise, as some of the highlights of the past year. If you read my blog post about staying at Claridge’s, you’ll understand what I mean. It was such a fabulous experience. One of my ‘ins’ for 2025 was to visit more museum exhibitions and I committed to it, perhaps even going too far. I saw the Tim Burton exhibition hosted by the Design Museum in London and planned a solo holiday to Paris, flying hundreds of miles for the installation of clinamen at the Bourse de Commerce. It was the second trip I took to Paris in 2025, having already visited in January for the shopping.

Edinburgh Airport was certainly sick of me because not only did I travel to Paris twice, I also visited Budapest and Ireland. The Emerald Isle was a new destination for me and it was really nice going on holiday and not being the only ginger person for miles. I travelled parts of the west coast, explored Galway and learned the history of the Claddagh ring. One of the best days (arguably, of the whole year) was the road trip we took along the shores of Lough Corrib to the coast before jumping on the Wild Atlantic Way. It felt like we were in the Mediterranean when we saw jellyfish in azure water at Old Head Beach.

But even with all the time I spent abroad, I can’t not mention how gorgeous the weather was in Scotland. In Edinburgh, the sun was shining almost constantly from March all the way through to October, meaning my summer dress collection was on full display. I was drinking iced coffee next to the Ross Fountain and pumpkin picking under clear blue skies. So even if I wasn’t on holiday 24/7 as I would have liked, the in-between bits were just as wonderful.

But later in the year, as it gets colder and the darkness begins to feel eternal, I find it hard to motivate myself to go outside when I don’t have to. Whilst I make the decision to be a homebody, my vitamin D levels are surely lacking with my step count almost entirely neglected. Contrary to 2023, when I didn’t live in a particularly nice flat, I was often out and about to avoid my gross kitchen. That, combined with the longer walk to work I had at the time, meant that I was averaging over 10,000 steps a day. Now that I spend more time cross-stitching and watching TV, my average step count for 2025 was only around 6500 per day.

I’ve noticed a difference in my physical appearance recently and I think it’s to do with my steps decreasing. It’s not a drastic change but it’s enough that I frequently feel insecure when getting dressed because my clothes don’t always fit me like they used to. As someone who is obsessed with her own wardrobe, this scares me because I refuse to throw things away that I love. Back when I was at university, I would trek across Edinburgh trying out new coffee shops for studying and I think it’s a habit I should bring back. If I swap writing essays for writing blog posts instead, I’ll be able to kill two birds with one stone.

This is the most passionate I’ve felt about my website in a long time. I haven’t posted excessively but it’s still the most active I’ve been on it in a number of years. I’ve always written the type of posts that I would enjoy as an audience member and I love that I can look back on the last 12-months and still laugh at my own jokes. Someone has to, right?

How much I love Paris seems to be my favourite topic of conversation on here. In case the mention of two visits in 2025 was too subtle for anyone. Whenever I’m there, I always try to be the best version of myself and with every new year’s resolution I make, I’m trying to get closer to whoever she is. In a traditional fashion – I’ve actually only done this once before – this is part one of a two-part series. Together, we’ve looked back on 2025 and seen what I’ve achieved but now it’s time to look to 2026. Who will I be next year? I’ll admit I hope I’m a little skinnier but honestly? A little less tired and even more happy will do just fine. See you then!

Becca x