(no subject)
1 Lewis Black stand up hour + 2 episodes of venture brothers = I havent laughed this hard in a long long time. I actually had to force myself to stop laughing, I was sounding like I was crying. It was kinda creepy.
Man I needed a good laugh
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I never did a year in review post. It's well... while a lot of things did go well for me, some things haven't. Putting aside the economy and all the screwed up things that happened in the world at large, there's been some ups and downs in my little corner of the world as well.
My second grandfather died this year. My first one died a year or two ago so, now I have no grandfathers left. I felt bad because I didn't know him. I spent two or three summers hanging out there, and spent all that time hanging out with my grandmother and my aunt, or reading, or doing whatever it is boys do at grandparent's houses for the summer. But I never got to know him, never talked to him at all. He barely said anything to me. All of the stories I have of this grandfather come from my other relatives. I don't feel guilty because, while I did not try to talk to him, he did not try to talk to me. It's really more of a sense of regret.
That very same aunt that I hung out with those summers has been undergoing blood transfusions because she has some form of leukemia. She suffered from a stroke (or two) last year, and has been steadily getting worse ever since. She underwent chemo and lost a lot of weight and looked pretty bad when we visited them last summer. She's probably not going to be around much longer, and I don't know what to do with that.
On the more positive side of things, I got to go on about a 2 week vacation last summer and me and my parents visited all of my immediate relatives for both sides of the family. I had a blast, caught up with my cousins, and even got to shoot off fire works! I got to spend about three days at this amazing house my aunt and uncle on the other side of the family has that sits on the edge of a lake in Indiana. I got to know them way better then I ever knew them, and learned I have some pretty cool relatives. That summer trip brightened up my life for months.
But even that trip had its tragic notes. I didn't get to see one of my cousins because he was off in Colorado getting treatment for a condition similar to the one my aunt has. On the other side of the family, the aunt with the amazing lake side house died about 3 weeks after we visited them. It didn't really come as a shock, as she was on permanent breathing tubes and walking 10 feet exhausted her. (Don't smoke kids. Ever. Evereverever.) Not a shock, but still sad. I felt a lot worse for her loss because I got to know her a bit. Sadly neither me or my parents could go to the funeral because we couldn't afford it. But her immediate family knew we cared (especially since they saw us so recently), which was what counts.
Also, I nearly broke my toe in mid September, which probably killed the buzz from my vacation the most.
Hmmm... Ups after that.
I read a book that helped me refine the concept of proper financial budgeting and which helped me see a way I might actually get out of my financial hole without winning the lottery.
I got to hang out with several friends that I haven't seen in a long time. And while those visits have been few and far between (my own fault, and a reason I feel guilty), they have been the highlights of my time since that summer vacation.
I have had a tighter relationship with my cousins since that summer vacation, as I found them all on facebook and have been keeping up with them through there. They are a bit more religious than I know what to do with, but we all have our faults.
I was able to buy something nice for my dad which I've been wanting to buy since last Christmas, and I didn't have to scrape or scrounge or put it on a credit card to afford it.
I bought most of the things I wanted or needed in the past two years and don't have any big other things I need to spend on (besides a car tune up, glasses, and maybe a not-glitchy graphics card), so I should start paying my credit card debt down, which I look at as a big positive for the new year.
2010, a year I will remember for the losses in my life, but also for the beginning of the turnaround in my approach to life.
Man I needed a good laugh
-
I never did a year in review post. It's well... while a lot of things did go well for me, some things haven't. Putting aside the economy and all the screwed up things that happened in the world at large, there's been some ups and downs in my little corner of the world as well.
My second grandfather died this year. My first one died a year or two ago so, now I have no grandfathers left. I felt bad because I didn't know him. I spent two or three summers hanging out there, and spent all that time hanging out with my grandmother and my aunt, or reading, or doing whatever it is boys do at grandparent's houses for the summer. But I never got to know him, never talked to him at all. He barely said anything to me. All of the stories I have of this grandfather come from my other relatives. I don't feel guilty because, while I did not try to talk to him, he did not try to talk to me. It's really more of a sense of regret.
That very same aunt that I hung out with those summers has been undergoing blood transfusions because she has some form of leukemia. She suffered from a stroke (or two) last year, and has been steadily getting worse ever since. She underwent chemo and lost a lot of weight and looked pretty bad when we visited them last summer. She's probably not going to be around much longer, and I don't know what to do with that.
On the more positive side of things, I got to go on about a 2 week vacation last summer and me and my parents visited all of my immediate relatives for both sides of the family. I had a blast, caught up with my cousins, and even got to shoot off fire works! I got to spend about three days at this amazing house my aunt and uncle on the other side of the family has that sits on the edge of a lake in Indiana. I got to know them way better then I ever knew them, and learned I have some pretty cool relatives. That summer trip brightened up my life for months.
But even that trip had its tragic notes. I didn't get to see one of my cousins because he was off in Colorado getting treatment for a condition similar to the one my aunt has. On the other side of the family, the aunt with the amazing lake side house died about 3 weeks after we visited them. It didn't really come as a shock, as she was on permanent breathing tubes and walking 10 feet exhausted her. (Don't smoke kids. Ever. Evereverever.) Not a shock, but still sad. I felt a lot worse for her loss because I got to know her a bit. Sadly neither me or my parents could go to the funeral because we couldn't afford it. But her immediate family knew we cared (especially since they saw us so recently), which was what counts.
Also, I nearly broke my toe in mid September, which probably killed the buzz from my vacation the most.
Hmmm... Ups after that.
I read a book that helped me refine the concept of proper financial budgeting and which helped me see a way I might actually get out of my financial hole without winning the lottery.
I got to hang out with several friends that I haven't seen in a long time. And while those visits have been few and far between (my own fault, and a reason I feel guilty), they have been the highlights of my time since that summer vacation.
I have had a tighter relationship with my cousins since that summer vacation, as I found them all on facebook and have been keeping up with them through there. They are a bit more religious than I know what to do with, but we all have our faults.
I was able to buy something nice for my dad which I've been wanting to buy since last Christmas, and I didn't have to scrape or scrounge or put it on a credit card to afford it.
I bought most of the things I wanted or needed in the past two years and don't have any big other things I need to spend on (besides a car tune up, glasses, and maybe a not-glitchy graphics card), so I should start paying my credit card debt down, which I look at as a big positive for the new year.
2010, a year I will remember for the losses in my life, but also for the beginning of the turnaround in my approach to life.