On maturity

Hello! Another rainy day here in Manila. It has been raining pretty hard since yesterday so I hope everyone's safe. This weekend is the opening weekend of The Dark Knight Rises a.k.a. best movie ever (even though I haven't seen it yet. Not gonna talk about it. FYI. Almost cried when all my plans to see it yesterday was foiled)

Anyway, rainy afternoons make me pensive. Today's thoughts circled around how I have changed (mostly for the better) and matured throughout the years. I'm only 20 and most of the following attitudes/characteristics/whatever may seem pretty shallow to you but I see them as "proof that Justine grows to be a wiser and more open human being"

Another list post! Yay!

1. I have now understood how important education is. It may sound silly that I now understand how important education is because when has it ever not been important?! But see, I'm 20. A lot of people in my age or generation are mostly talking about how they are so lazy to study, that they question the importance of certain subjects, and of course there are (a lot of) times when I question the world on how sine, cosine, and tangent is of any relevance to my life? I have observed that I rarely whine about my education and how I think something is irrelevant. Everything about education is relevant. I whine about how hard a project is or how tired I am but I have learned to not question the activity's importance. *Bow*
2. Good music is mostly found underground. That statement makes me sound like a proper hipster but its true. I have found so much musical gold underground that I often wonder why these songs aren't mainstream. I'm not going to list down the artists that I think deserve more than they do because I don't consider myself an indie/underground music master and I still have a lot to discover but yeah, you get my drift.
3. I now like peanut butter. I have avoided peanut butter for the majority of my life but surprisingly loved it when I tried it earlier this year. 
4. Books before boys. In relation to number 1. People meet someone at any stage in their life but you only get a couple of shots at college.
5. My preference in men. I now like boys with brains. Not that I used to like idiots (Oh, wait...) but I did like boys mostly for how they look like. I guess every girl goes through that phase. I admittedly looked for the superficial characteristics rather than the important stuff like does read, does he have goals in his life, is he kind to servers and maids... etc. Maybe it comes with my age and I'm already looking for someone who I quite possibly live the rest of my life with that's why I try to find the best of the best. Swag doesn't pay the bills!
6. Health-conscious. Still something I have yet to improve on but at least I have started doing it right. I used to be greatly conscious about my weight that I took the dangerous way. I did shed some pounds but when I found out what may happen to my body if I didn't stop, scared the shit out of me. Now I opt to eat right, lessen portions and stay healthy. I am no longer interested in risking my health for a few years of "skinny".
7. Spend my money wisely. Through the years I've spent so much on useless items like cheap make-up and phone credits. I refuse to try to calculate how much since it'll just make me sad and utterly disappointed with myself. Good thing that when 2012 came, I promised myself that I would improve in any which way I could and that includes my spending habits. I now understand that quality is better than quantity with regards to make-up. I research and read reviews before I buy items especially if I'm putting it on my face. I also think twice when buying clothing because I used to buy whatever I like and committing unforgivable acts such as buying a clothing smaller than what is comfortable for my body. (My belief was I could lose the weight then fit right into them perfectly... which never happened. I am an idiot.) Proud to say that I've buried my absurd spending habits and idiocy. Congratulate me.
8. The value of every centavo. If there's one thing I hate, it's being shortchanged. That is probably one of my biggest pet peeves. Last week I found myself paying the exact amount of Php 7.75. Some people may think that if they pay Php 8.00 and get shortchanged by Php 0.25, it wouldn't matter. But it matters to ME. I've always believed that you can't have a million if you lack 0.25. I seriously live by that. My dad shares the same sentiments but for him, he wouldn't mind being shortchanged IF stores allow being shortchanged by consumers as well. I guess that's pretty fair. So guys, please save your centavos... or give it to me!