2009: that was the year that was!
so, hi friends! i am alive. below the cut is what happened while i was busy not writing here. :)
i thought i'd have a lot to write about christmas, but i don't, really: it was full of exactly as much family ridiculousness as i'd expected, and more food than i'd expected (i got re-acquainted with the gym yesterday, ouch), and better gifts than i'd even dared to hope for. all of the little things aside, i think i've reached that part of my life where the thing i most enjoy (aside from all of that lovely food) is just spending time with my family ( - and the boy's, as i finally met the entire contingent on a lovely side-trip on boxing day). there are kids growing up, and it's neat to watch them do that. part of me thinks this scary because it makes me wonder if i'm actually, you know, maturing or something, but then the part of me that gets greater joy out of playing with the kids' toys than they themselves do rears up and says, hi, some part of you inside is still 5. which is good, i suppose. :)
okay so!
1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
jumped off of a bridge. skied in the alps. eaten blackberries fresh off the plant. presented a paper at a conference.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
same as last year: nope, and probably not. i think they're overrated, and shouldn't be exclusive to the beginning of the year.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
a former colleague had a lovely baby boy a few weeks ago!
4. Did anyone close to you die?
thankfully, no.
5. What countries did you visit?
england and austria, both lovely places all-around.
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
an unlimited travel budget - not just for pleasure, but for conference travel, too.
7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
june 26. very close behind: january 20.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
completing my master's degree, though i insist that learning how to properly a) make pancakes and b) enjoy seafood are not nothing to sneeze at either.
9. What was your biggest failure?
same as last year: i am so. bad. at keeping in touch with my friends. i have no reason for it, i just am. sigh.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
not really, aside from random colds and that bout with poison ivy back in july.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
plane tickets to london, because they led to austria, which was amazing. that was my big expenditure for the year...
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
the d.c. city council, for ratifying the same-sex-marriage amendment.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
i wouldn't go so far as to say appalled AND depressed, but i do have someone in mind whose actions continue to amaze me, and not in the good way.
14. Where did most of your money go?
the usual: bills, credit card payments, um, the things in #11, rent, food...
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
teaching... conferencing (i realized this year that i'm a total nerd, and i'm okay with that)... skiing... spending time with family and friends.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
this one's easy, for once: lady gaga's "poker face". i kind of love it an embarrassing amount.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? happier, definitely.
ii. thinner or fatter? thinner. my exercise and diet habits have improved treeeemendously in the last 12 months.
iii. richer or poorer? about the same. still grad-school-impoverished, but i don't mind, because i love what i do.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
sleeping, per usual. calling people just to talk.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
homework. worrying. judging people.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
i went to north carolina two days prior; for the first time in about seven years, all of the girls and mom were able to be together, which was nice. more or less the day itself was a back-and-forth of present-unwrapping and eating ridiculous amounts of food, from 6:30am to midnight. it began sleepily, but ended contentedly. pretty awesome.
21. Who did you spend the most time on the phone with?
this one's easy: the boy. i know! aaaahhh!
22. Did you fall in love in 2009?
why yes, yes i did. *stupid blushy-grin*
23. How many one-night stands?
none. ...can i take this question off of this survey yet? eesh.
24. What was your favorite TV program?
oh hmmm. gossip girl is the perennial trashy favorite, but psych and white collar have been recent pleasant discoveries.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
no. dislike strongly / shake head in bemused ire, yes; hate, no.
26. What was the best book you read?
oh yikes. i think roy blount's "alphabet juice" may win this one, though yuz aleshkovsky's "kangaroo" is a close second.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
lady gaga. wow, i feel dirty just typing that. :)
28. What did you want and get?
great students, a master's degree, a ton of snow, a great ski season... i could go on. i've had a pretty lucky and satisfying year, now that i think about it.
29. What did you want and not get?
a certain form of comeuppance. and a pony!
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
based on repeated viewings, it's probably star trek, though i really enjoyed up, too.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
i turned 29. i skied in the austrian alps with kim; later that night we went to downtown innsbruck for dinner and drinks. beautiful, and fabulous.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
heh, this is the same as last year: i know that if i write down what i'm really thinking, the hand of jeebus himself will come down and smack me upside the head, so i'll keep this one to myself.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
i continue to discover colors, which is good. also, hats! yes!
34. What kept you sane?
coffee. skiing. late-night phone conversations. being able to maintain a sense of humor in the face of the absurd.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
oh, that'd be chris pine. i haven't watched star trek multiple times for the plot alone, you know. :)
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
that which is discussed in #12. also, health care? hello?
37. Who did you miss?
kim! and the marylandfolk.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
nobody has any idea who this is, and it probably doesn't count since it was a one-time interaction, but i met lyudmila petrushevskaya (a fairly famous russian author) in november and have decided that i want to be her when i grow up. her hats are amazing, and she sings cabaret. in russian. AWESOME.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009:
some risks are very much worth taking!
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
nothing's coming to mind, so instead i quote elbert hubbard here: "don't take life too seriously; you'll never get out of it alive."
i thought i'd have a lot to write about christmas, but i don't, really: it was full of exactly as much family ridiculousness as i'd expected, and more food than i'd expected (i got re-acquainted with the gym yesterday, ouch), and better gifts than i'd even dared to hope for. all of the little things aside, i think i've reached that part of my life where the thing i most enjoy (aside from all of that lovely food) is just spending time with my family ( - and the boy's, as i finally met the entire contingent on a lovely side-trip on boxing day). there are kids growing up, and it's neat to watch them do that. part of me thinks this scary because it makes me wonder if i'm actually, you know, maturing or something, but then the part of me that gets greater joy out of playing with the kids' toys than they themselves do rears up and says, hi, some part of you inside is still 5. which is good, i suppose. :)
okay so!
1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
jumped off of a bridge. skied in the alps. eaten blackberries fresh off the plant. presented a paper at a conference.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
same as last year: nope, and probably not. i think they're overrated, and shouldn't be exclusive to the beginning of the year.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
a former colleague had a lovely baby boy a few weeks ago!
4. Did anyone close to you die?
thankfully, no.
5. What countries did you visit?
england and austria, both lovely places all-around.
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
an unlimited travel budget - not just for pleasure, but for conference travel, too.
7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
june 26. very close behind: january 20.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
completing my master's degree, though i insist that learning how to properly a) make pancakes and b) enjoy seafood are not nothing to sneeze at either.
9. What was your biggest failure?
same as last year: i am so. bad. at keeping in touch with my friends. i have no reason for it, i just am. sigh.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
not really, aside from random colds and that bout with poison ivy back in july.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
plane tickets to london, because they led to austria, which was amazing. that was my big expenditure for the year...
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
the d.c. city council, for ratifying the same-sex-marriage amendment.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
i wouldn't go so far as to say appalled AND depressed, but i do have someone in mind whose actions continue to amaze me, and not in the good way.
14. Where did most of your money go?
the usual: bills, credit card payments, um, the things in #11, rent, food...
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
teaching... conferencing (i realized this year that i'm a total nerd, and i'm okay with that)... skiing... spending time with family and friends.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
this one's easy, for once: lady gaga's "poker face". i kind of love it an embarrassing amount.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? happier, definitely.
ii. thinner or fatter? thinner. my exercise and diet habits have improved treeeemendously in the last 12 months.
iii. richer or poorer? about the same. still grad-school-impoverished, but i don't mind, because i love what i do.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
sleeping, per usual. calling people just to talk.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
homework. worrying. judging people.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
i went to north carolina two days prior; for the first time in about seven years, all of the girls and mom were able to be together, which was nice. more or less the day itself was a back-and-forth of present-unwrapping and eating ridiculous amounts of food, from 6:30am to midnight. it began sleepily, but ended contentedly. pretty awesome.
21. Who did you spend the most time on the phone with?
this one's easy: the boy. i know! aaaahhh!
22. Did you fall in love in 2009?
why yes, yes i did. *stupid blushy-grin*
23. How many one-night stands?
none. ...can i take this question off of this survey yet? eesh.
24. What was your favorite TV program?
oh hmmm. gossip girl is the perennial trashy favorite, but psych and white collar have been recent pleasant discoveries.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
no. dislike strongly / shake head in bemused ire, yes; hate, no.
26. What was the best book you read?
oh yikes. i think roy blount's "alphabet juice" may win this one, though yuz aleshkovsky's "kangaroo" is a close second.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
lady gaga. wow, i feel dirty just typing that. :)
28. What did you want and get?
great students, a master's degree, a ton of snow, a great ski season... i could go on. i've had a pretty lucky and satisfying year, now that i think about it.
29. What did you want and not get?
a certain form of comeuppance. and a pony!
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
based on repeated viewings, it's probably star trek, though i really enjoyed up, too.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
i turned 29. i skied in the austrian alps with kim; later that night we went to downtown innsbruck for dinner and drinks. beautiful, and fabulous.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
heh, this is the same as last year: i know that if i write down what i'm really thinking, the hand of jeebus himself will come down and smack me upside the head, so i'll keep this one to myself.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
i continue to discover colors, which is good. also, hats! yes!
34. What kept you sane?
coffee. skiing. late-night phone conversations. being able to maintain a sense of humor in the face of the absurd.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
oh, that'd be chris pine. i haven't watched star trek multiple times for the plot alone, you know. :)
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
that which is discussed in #12. also, health care? hello?
37. Who did you miss?
kim! and the marylandfolk.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
nobody has any idea who this is, and it probably doesn't count since it was a one-time interaction, but i met lyudmila petrushevskaya (a fairly famous russian author) in november and have decided that i want to be her when i grow up. her hats are amazing, and she sings cabaret. in russian. AWESOME.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009:
some risks are very much worth taking!
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
nothing's coming to mind, so instead i quote elbert hubbard here: "don't take life too seriously; you'll never get out of it alive."