A friend said to me lately that in order to make your dreams come true, you have to tell as many people about them as possible. Which kind of got me thinking. I’m not sure everybody would really like to hear about my dreams. Most of them are weird. The other night I dreamed a pregnant Angelina Jolie was walking vertically up a wall next to a friend from school I hadn’t seen for ages, and I watched her, thinking “wow, she has really great legs”. Not once in my warped world of sleep, did I wonder why a human of any kind was walking vertically up a wall.

Anyway, I think the point he was making, was that in order to make your “achievable” dreams comes true, you have to tell lots of people, because the more people you have out there expecting you to make things happen, the more likely you are to actually push yourself.

This said, I am putting something out there that I would like to do. I think it’s quite achievable, but so far I have not exactly pushed myself to do it. Life got in the way. So did a whole heap of restaurants, brunches and bars.

THE DREAM: I would like to get really fit. Now, I know this a common dream, especially here in Dubai, and I have floated my around it with great success for most of my twenties. But I can feel bits wobbling now and it’s getting rather serious. To remedy this, I am going to continue hitting the gym every morning before work – I have been up there for the past two mornings but the granny who cycles on the bike next to me is putting me to shame. (Seriously, she’s about 75 and peddles reeeeeeeally slooooooooowly).

I am also going to start boxing training! As of next Sunday I am going to start punching bags and doing sit ups and all the other nasty stuff that a scary man in a warehouse somewhere in Al Quoz is going to make me do (ooh er).

I am fully aware that this may not ever happen, or that I will attend one session and decide that running around getting sweaty isn’t for me, so I am writing it down in the hope that occasionally, someone will ask me how my training is going, and I’ll either be proud of my energetic response, or guilted into actually turning up for the next session. Tonight I am buying some better trainers in anticipation. Ones that weren’t just designed for fashion purposes with pretty flowers on the side (ahem) My friend, who recently competed in the White Collar boxing at the Habtoor Grand (I spoke of this in my corner a few weeks back), says that boxing training in Al Quoz is harsh. Another friend went the other day; he’s quite big and tough already, and he even he got scared. I’ll let you know how it goes, maybe take a few pictures for next week – proof that Dubai dreams can be realized, even by skinny girls with no upper arm strength to show whatsoever, outside of lifting a wine glass, obviously.

So there, I have put this out there, in the hopes that I can achieve something. I think everyone should do the same thing now, like in that movie ‘Pay it forward’. Surely, as the long arduous summer approaches and slows us all down, everyone has a dream they need a kick up the proverbials to help come true?

Posted: 26 June 2008