Year in Review, a few days early
In the last year, on the person front, I:
-learned to bellydance
-learned to bake bread, from scratch, with yeast.
-learned to make applesauce, from scratch.
-learned a few new cookie recipes, and pumpkin bread recipes
-taught myself to knit and made two hats
-took an art class for drawing
-started a garden of plants and herbs and what not in the summer
-made a network of friends, branching off of one friend
-hosted a sit down Thanksgiving dinner for 8 without any problems
-connected with my second cousins and started regular dinner parties
at work I
-got a promotion
-developd and wrote a method for analytical testing
-had blood wok done and got clearance for highly potent materials
-became system admin and trainer for two instruments (raman and particle size)
-learned most of the equipment inside and out including daily calibrations for over a dozen different instruments
I think over all I have developed quite a life on my own two feet. I'm proud of myself and Tristen that we are on our own and without any loss in quality of life from what we were raised with. We did not have to live on ramen or sleep on futons or suffer bad roommates and dirty run down apartments in order to transition from "college student" to "work adult," and for this I am thankful and wonderfully proud. We live in a nice area, have good jobs at least somewhat tangentially related to our degrees, have nice new cars, lovely new furniture, and most important to me, no real consumer debt, beyond car payments, both of which could be paid off tomorrow with what we have in savings, if need be. We are frugal and creative and if we had to, could live on one salary or the other (I did the math, as I freaked out about the new NYS budget proposals, and despite my lower salary it would be tight, but doable, without touching our savings on my salary alone). My annual review is upcoming and hopefully will entail and a nice raise. I'd love a promotion but given how HR acts I doubt it, but possibly at mid-year "review" time, so around June/July.
I am also dang glad to have developed a real social circle in Albany which includes friends from all over and my cousins, alongside friends across the state and the country who I continue to keep in touch with. I'm still working on crossing a coworker or two into friends territory, but maybe in the new year.
I honestly don't think I would have done it if I hadn't taken the leap to be on "my own" in the dorm several hours from home a and from anyone I knew. I'm especially thankful to have escaped Rochester, even if I have yet to escape NYS.
So looking back, despite a few bumps in the road, 2008 has been far far better than 2007 was. Looking foward I think 2009 may be a litte questionable, given the economy and all, but since we have a solid foundation we will make it through just fine. And hopefully things continue smoothly and I will continue to aim to return to school for a conservation masters in fall 2010, simply because I want to, and I know now I won't be doing it just because I am afraid of standing on my own two or because I can't get a job.
So here's to 2008, a few days ahead of our New Years Party at Our Place!
-learned to bellydance
-learned to bake bread, from scratch, with yeast.
-learned to make applesauce, from scratch.
-learned a few new cookie recipes, and pumpkin bread recipes
-taught myself to knit and made two hats
-took an art class for drawing
-started a garden of plants and herbs and what not in the summer
-made a network of friends, branching off of one friend
-hosted a sit down Thanksgiving dinner for 8 without any problems
-connected with my second cousins and started regular dinner parties
at work I
-got a promotion
-developd and wrote a method for analytical testing
-had blood wok done and got clearance for highly potent materials
-became system admin and trainer for two instruments (raman and particle size)
-learned most of the equipment inside and out including daily calibrations for over a dozen different instruments
I think over all I have developed quite a life on my own two feet. I'm proud of myself and Tristen that we are on our own and without any loss in quality of life from what we were raised with. We did not have to live on ramen or sleep on futons or suffer bad roommates and dirty run down apartments in order to transition from "college student" to "work adult," and for this I am thankful and wonderfully proud. We live in a nice area, have good jobs at least somewhat tangentially related to our degrees, have nice new cars, lovely new furniture, and most important to me, no real consumer debt, beyond car payments, both of which could be paid off tomorrow with what we have in savings, if need be. We are frugal and creative and if we had to, could live on one salary or the other (I did the math, as I freaked out about the new NYS budget proposals, and despite my lower salary it would be tight, but doable, without touching our savings on my salary alone). My annual review is upcoming and hopefully will entail and a nice raise. I'd love a promotion but given how HR acts I doubt it, but possibly at mid-year "review" time, so around June/July.
I am also dang glad to have developed a real social circle in Albany which includes friends from all over and my cousins, alongside friends across the state and the country who I continue to keep in touch with. I'm still working on crossing a coworker or two into friends territory, but maybe in the new year.
I honestly don't think I would have done it if I hadn't taken the leap to be on "my own" in the dorm several hours from home a and from anyone I knew. I'm especially thankful to have escaped Rochester, even if I have yet to escape NYS.
So looking back, despite a few bumps in the road, 2008 has been far far better than 2007 was. Looking foward I think 2009 may be a litte questionable, given the economy and all, but since we have a solid foundation we will make it through just fine. And hopefully things continue smoothly and I will continue to aim to return to school for a conservation masters in fall 2010, simply because I want to, and I know now I won't be doing it just because I am afraid of standing on my own two or because I can't get a job.
So here's to 2008, a few days ahead of our New Years Party at Our Place!