It's an annual tradition, after all
2007 in Review
1. What did you do in 2007 that you'd never done before?
Recorded a bunch of music on a computer, doing the engineering myself.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Um, didn't make any for '07, but for '08 I resolve to keep in better touch with my parents.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yeah, a close family friend (her dad was the best man at my parents' wedding) had her first child, a son, in '07, a very cute one at that. I believe that was back in early June or so. Also, a former housemate gave birth to her first son in like, November I think. And the rabbi who officiated my wedding give birth to her second child, a son. I don't remember when that was. I think that covers everybody.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
I just learned last week that an old friend & former boss, Cindy Clark, died of heart failure in '07. I guess she wasn't taking very good care of herself. She & I lost touch after I moved out here, but then she tracked me down on the internet and left a comment here at my LJ one day back in '06. We exchanged catching-up emails, then I owed her a reply for a long time, kept meaning to write back, then, BOOM -- "Oh, didn't you hear? She died." Pretty sad. She was a good friend to me for a time, in my mid-20's, when I was going through some hard shit. Rest in peace, Cindy.
5. What countries did you visit?
Just Canada in '07, but wait 'til 08!
6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
I gotta say, I did pretty well in '07, when I really think about it. I guess I'd like more time with my wife, most of all.
7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
January 22 -- first wedding anniversary.
Also, June 23 -- birthday show at the Mama Buzz. I never did do a proper write-up of that. Thanks again to everyone who came, it was a blast. Here's an mp3:
Waitin' for the Robert E. Lee
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Finished the tracking, finally, for 11 new Collisionville songs. On 4 of them, I played drums myself.
I also overcame some personal hurdles that had been daunting me for most of my life, but I can't figure out how to talk about that here.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Again with the negative question! I feel pretty good about how '07 went, really. I guess the thing that bums me out is that we didn't finish mixing those 11 songs, but we're almost done -- literally, we should be done by the end of the day this Saturday.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Another bad bout with an injured RMS-y right forearm this year. It almost ruined the Mama Buzz show. But I've been fine ever since. Oh, and I had a HORRIBLE stomach flu in Hamilton, Ontario. HORRIBLE. Won't tell any details. Shifra should win the Nobel Peace Prize for the way she took care of me.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Tie: The Crowley & Tripp Studio Vocalist microphone I got for myself, and the mandolin slicer I got Shifra for Chanukah. It made her so happy.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Shifra, not just for what I talked about in #10, but for the way she stuck with me through what I didn't talk about in #8, for the way she found a kick-ass new job, and for a million other reasons. Sweetheart, my love and admiration for you is boundless.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
There are narcissists, like Barry Bonds. There are deranged psychopaths, like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It's depressing to witness the behavior of such people, when it's clear that the dementia in their heads is so strong, their grip on their twisted version of reality so unbreakable, that there's just no way of getting through to them.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Maybe next year I'll change the wording on this question to "besides rent." The answer for '07 would then be the Crowley & Tripp Studio Vocalist, worth every penny.
16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
Lots of songs from the new Bruce, Magic. And I guess those 11 songs from the forthcoming Collisionville, since I spent so much time with them.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? WAY happier
b) thinner or fatter? Probably a couple pounds fatter
c) richer or poorer? Our household is richer, although you wouldn't always know by looking at us
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
More time with Shifra. Should've gone to more shows. But really, as far as how much time I had to spend on making music, it's hard to complain much about 2007.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
One of the new Collisionville songs has a brief banjo solo on it. When it came time to overdub, I got a pretty good pass on the 3rd take. I saved it, and kept trying to see if I could do better. 20 takes later, I got one more pass that was almost as good as the 3rd take.
Wish I'd stopped after that 3rd take.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
I'm late filling this thing out, I know. We spent Xmas in Denver with my parents and my Aunt Mary this year. It was really nice. The weather sucked, though.
21. How will you be spending New Years?
We were both sick, so we stayed in, played our new Monopoly (Elvis version!) -- Shifra absolutely creamed me -- and went to bed early. We're both feeling better now, thanks. Poor Shifra stayed sick longer than me.
22. Did you fall in love in 2007?
Next year I will change this to "Did you fall in love more deeply..?", and yes.
23. How many one-night stands?
I'm getting dangerously close to turning 40, and have been very happily married for almost 2 years. This is not a question intended for me to answer.
24. What was your favorite TV program?
Buffy the Vampire Slayer! I know, it ended like 4 or 5 years ago. We just discovered it in '07 and figured out it would be cheaper to buy the 40-disc box set than keep renting the videos week after week. We're almost done! Sniff. We just have 2 episodes left of the last season. Everybody dies, right? (Don't answer.)
Also, fuck this writers' strike, I need my Daily Show back.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nah.
26. What was the best book you read?
Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke is pretty good, but also numbing at times with its huge amount of detail.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Nothing earth-shaking, but I definitely liked seeing Arcade Fire on SNL and am curious to hear their albums.
28. What did you want and get?
An iMac, Logic Express, the Crowley & Tripp.
29. What did you want and not get?
Really, I'm serious, I can't complain too much! If somebody gave me a Josephson e22S (aka "The Steve Albini-in-a-bear-suit-mic"), that would be cool and all, but I feel extremely fortunate these days.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
Same answer as elle_innuendo, "I'm Not There."
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Played that show at the Mama Buzz with benadrian, and shifra_ sat in for a tune, it was great. And I turned 25. Man I'm gettin' up there, whoo!
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
I guess having the new Collisionville album all finished by now, and having some new bandmate prospects. But then, that's all good stuff to be hoping for in '08.
Also, again this year with bemoaning my poor pitiful Denver Nuggets. For like, the 4th year in a row or something, they limped into the playoffs as a low seed, and got creamed 4 games to 1 in the first round by a much stronger opponent. It's probably going to happen again this year, but could they at least maybe push it to 6 games this time?
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
"I haven't had to change clothes when I get home from work since 2004!"
34. What kept you sane?
Shifra, and lots of hard work on myself.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Man, how about that Cate Blanchett?
And how about those Colorado Rockies? Holy shit, they won the NL pennant!! I still can't get over it -- back in the fall, two games of the World Series were played in Denver. My old home town, li'l Denver, CO, where my dad used to take the family to see the Denver Bears play their minor league games at Mile High Stadium, because that was all the professional baseball we thought we'd ever have -- Denver hosted TWO GAMES of the FUCKING WORLD SERIES. I know they got swept by the BoSox, but come on! The World Series??!? In Denver??!!?
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
I hate presidential election years, and it really pissed me off how the campaigning for '08 seemed to already be in full swing by the summer of '07.
37. Who did you miss?
My nephews, who we won't be going to see this month after all.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
I met a bunch of doofuses online. They really distracted me from updating my LJ. :thudown:
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007:
Yeah, look, I don't know how to describe it to you. It just sounds corny and stupid and obvious when I try to think of words. Something along the lines of "What if what you need is already there, underneath, just waiting to sprout?"
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
I want to rock your gypsy soul
Just like way back in the days of old
And together we will float into the mystic