Recap of 2010
Guys! It's that time of year again! It's the time when I ramble on forever about the highlights of my year. I never really know where to start. I have a list of writing points, so I guess that will work.
This has been a year like no other. I've branched out and made changes. I've learned a lot this year about myself, and about other people.
Last year the overwhelming thing was "weddings." This year? Babies! Babies and toddlers everywhere! Though I rarely see my friends' babies (my work schedule is conflicting with basically all of them) they're tiny versions of the friends I love. It's really fun to watch the twitter and facebook updates as these children reach milestones: smiling, laughing, teething, learning to crawl, stand, walk, run away screaming, etc etc. I love my little friends: Kaleb, Toby, Morgan, and even little Ethan!
Way back when my friend Brandi told us all that she was pregnant, I immediately had an idea for her baby shower gift. I saw a super cute unfinished alphabet block/small toybox thing at Hobby Lobby. I always wanted to get one but never had a reason. As soon as Brandi found out that she was having a boy, I picked the color scheme and got to work. It took FOREVER to paint. My friend Tish was due to have a girl only a month after Brandi was due, and the block/box turned out so ridiculously cute I had to do another one in girl colors for Tish's baby. Again, it turned out insanely cute and when filled with baby things and stuffed into a clear basket bag...it turned into *that* gift on the table. The one that people wanted a closer look at. I keep telling myself that I won't do another one but it's very tempting. There's no denying that it's a unique gift. Okay, now that I think about it the babies came along in the spring. Moving right along...
I haven't done a ton of other artwork-y things this year. I did spent one long day breathing in Mod Podge fumes making a collage of my collection of movie ticket stubs. I start these random collections never really knowing what I'll do with the items. A lot of times the little items they end up being thrown away. I'm currently collecting those plastic tab things that come on bread. I have a photo of them from way back but the file is too small. I want to re-shoot it. Other than that and the baby shower boxes the only other thing I did was paint a really time-consuming design on a round wooden box I bought at a garage sale. Actually, come to think of it, I don't think I ever finished that box. And I'm not sure where it is at the moment. I bought it not even knowing what I'd do with it when it was done and I still don't really have a clue. LOL.
Speaking of artsy things: I bought the best camera I've ever owned. I didn't really need a camera, but I borrowed the same model from Amanda back in February to take to a concert and fell in love with the model. I found a crazy deal on it and had to buy it. I had the extra money at the time, and just bit the bullet. Unfortunately the NEXT day my Jeep had to go into the shop for a huge problem in the steering column. I ended up dropping 3x as much money on the Jeep. *facepalm* I don't regret the camera though. Stiles and I took it out on a couple different occasions just to play with it. And by far the best little invention/accessory that I've ever had for a camera is the Eye-Fi SD card. It's wifi enabled, and automatically ships the pictures from the camera to the computer. I haven't had to plug in my camera for months.
Since I mentioned the expense of my Jeep I should also note that as of about a month ago I made my final payment on it. It's actually a little weird to no longer have a car payment. That won't last forever of course, but it will be nice to have that extra bit of money for a while.
And speaking of Stiles: earlier this year we finally got around to taking some of the random roadtrips that we've talked about for years. Literally, years. A visit to the lake where I spent so many weekends growing up, and a closer look at the wind farm in Beaumont, Kansas. And a trip out to Greensburg, where we eventually stumbled upon another wind farm. We may or may not have done a lot of trespassing on those trips. We had to test out the new camera, right? Why not do some exploring? :) At least a couple of really awesome pictures came from those Thursday Roadtrips. Unfortunately our schedules don't line up to be able to do another one. Perhaps they will again someday. I have at least 1 other random roadtrip destination I MUST visit, and who knows what all is on his list. It's really fun to explore a small, unfamiliar town. If you've never done it before...you should!
We took a couple other roadtrips this year, for concerts, of course. We traveled to Oklahoma twice to see Elton John. The first time it was the tour with Billy Joel in Oklahoma City. And Billy Joel poked fun at our nosebleed seats, asking how the view was from Tulsa. The second time we were in Tulsa to see Elton and his idol, Leon Russell. It may be controversial to say, but Elton John has now surpassed (based on my experiences alone) Garth Brooks as my "best concert of all time." He puts on an amazing show. Honestly, at OKC show I sat there for at least 4 songs (EJ/BJ duets) in the beginning kind of staring in disbelief. Luckily those 20 minutes or so didn't go wasted, because that concert was nonstop for over 3 hours. And at the Tulsa show, there was no solid indication that Elton was ever going to stop playing. He never slows down at all. He stands up and acknowledges the crowd and walks back to the piano, flips the tails of his coat back and starts playing again. Incredible. Unforgettable.
What other fun events have I been to this year? There were a couple blow out Shocker baseball games. I saw my second ever live grand slam. Pretty awesome. There was also a trip up to Lawrence for a basketball game. KU/Baylor, both teams ranked in the top 25 at the time. I had to go into my mobile uploads photo album on facebook to confirm that even took place this year. January seems like forever ago. lol. Something else I've already written about previously was an OKC Thunder rally. Seriously, one of the coolest sports-related events I've ever been to. I got to hang out with a couple of my all-time favorite former Jayhawk players. Okay, okay, "hang out" is a loose term. But I did get to watch them do their thing on the court, on the sideline (literally) for a couple of hours. Eee!!! Sorry, giddy girl moment. I'm fully on the bandwagon for that team. I've never been a fan of the NBA before, but the league seems to be much younger now. And I can dig that. Based on facebook posts alone, the fan base in Oklahoma City (and even extending into Tulsa) seems to really accept and enjoy the team. Even though they're a transplant. I definitely want to get down there for a game or two sometime. Anyway. There were also a TON of things at the new arena right here in Wichita. First of all, I got to take the VIP tour of the place the day after the public grand opening. My mom is an employee of Intrust Bank and since they are the corporate sponsor...they got to have a company party there. My mom and I went to the Walking With Dinosaurs show which was really fun. We also went to see Brooks & Dunn (with Jason Aldean) which I was great! B&D is one of her favorites. I walked away from that concert a much bigger Jason Aldean fan. We also went to see Tim McGraw which ranks really high on my list of great shows as well. Like, bucket-list type stuff. His opening act was Love & Theft and Lady Antebellum. Both A+++ live! My mom won tickets through work to see Carrie Underwood. Beautiful. Talented. Another great night. Her tickets were so expensive I had originally passed on the chance to see her. I know now that was a mistake. She's worth seeing. Stiles and I went to see: Bon Jovi, Jeff Dunham (hilarious) Daughtry (who I've now seen 3 times) with Lifehouse (great!), and last but certainly not least: Zac Brown Band - one of my latest obsessions. I'm super excited that we have Cirque Du Soleil tickets in just a few weeks. And again...well, a year and a few weeks from now. But that's another story that I've already told. lol
And while I'm on the topic of music...the albums I've played like crazy this year: Zac Brown Band - You Get What You Give and Jason Aldean's - My Kinda Party. I'm sure there are more, but they're not coming to mind. Oh, and even the Inception soundtrack. It's all instrumental, but it makes excellent background noise while reading intense adventure-y books.
This year I think I've started reading more books than I've actually finished. I'm currently 2/3's of the way through The Hunger Games series and once I finish that I'm going to restart the other 3 or 4 books that I haven't completed yet. I hope. And I'm also 4/7's of the way through Harry Potter audiobooks! My first time through the books and the movies. And don't worry, I'm only watching the movie after the book even though it's very tempting to have a marathon and just breeze through dvd's. Harry Potter is what will make crazy overtime hours at the Post Office pass a little faster. Again, I hope.
I'm not feeling all that great right now. So I guess it's the perfect time to write about the worst cold (or some sort of infection) of my entire life! Seriously. There's no doubt in my mind that I caught that crap from work. It started as a cough and within a day I coughed so hard and so much I just wanted to cut my head off. My voice was gone for at least 3 days. I didn't sleep much. I went to the doctor and he put me on a week's worth of antibiotics, mucinex and industrial strength cough syrup. Which, by the way, I've never really had before. Not that strong anyway. I took half a dose one morning before work and an hour-ish later I felt awesome. Drugged and tired as hell, but awesome. I actually called my mom and arranged for her to be my designated driver because there was no way that I'd have been able to get home after work. I felt so freaking drunk. lol. It's one of the couple of times in the years I've had my job when I wish I had sick leave. I would've called in for a week straight. After a week I went back to the doctor and got another round of drugs and I think it was a total of 16 days before all the "ick" was all out of my system. Ever since then I've taken Lysol wipes to work and cleaned my desks like crazy. Thanks a lot, my disgusting coworkers! I haven't felt that miserable in years.
I'm accident prone, but I very rarely do any permanent damage. I have a large mirror that has raw edges and I tried to move it by myself one afternoon. It slipped and sliced open a couple of my fingers. It didn't hurt at all, so I was really confused when I saw all this random blood. I immediately got to the kitchen sink and started rinsing it clean and then I nearly passed out because the pain was blinding. Literally. I was seeing spots and decided that sitting down and putting my face on the counter was my best bet. I've never passed out before, so that was a little scary. I should've gone to the minor emergency office and had a few stitches, but I survived. All that's left is about a half-inch long scar on my left middle finger and a lesson learned. Me and my hands don't always get along.
To be honest I don't really remember wanting to write about that story, but I put it in my notes for writing points almost 2 months ago so, oh well. Ugh, this is kind of annoying. My writing seems to have no flow at all right now but I want to keep going, and so far this has been pretty boring. Sorry about that.
I've been a journal/blog writer for about 10 years now. But at some point last year, I quit writing regularly. It only lasted a few months. I was actively looking for a different site to use for a long time. I didn't realize it at the time but I was very frustrated about not writing. It's my outlet. It's how I work out a lot of things. It's a catalog of memories. Anyway. I joined tumblr after I kept hear Bobby Bones talking about how much he liked it. As it turned out, Stiles was sorta using it too. I tried to like it, but honestly, at first I hated it. It just made me frustrated that I no longer had a blog-home. After some serious consideration I did a complete revamp of my "old" blog. I went back through the archives and changed a lot of security settings. Most things that were "friends only" before, were changed to public. And some of the more personal things were changed to "totally private." In my search for a different blog site I discovered that there's no reason for me to have left the old place. My twitter (essentially a micro-blog) is public, there's no reason why I can't adapt the everyday blog to be public too. I love that I have more real-life friends who I trust with access to that side of my life. I freaked out when I was making the decision. I worried that people would go back and read things I had written and be offended or upset by things I said. But I got over that pretty quickly. If you're gonna hold a grudge toward me about something that I wrote years ago (hello - everything is dated) then um...well, I really don't know what to say about that. Like I said, it freaked me out at first, but I got over it. And I've told more than one person that it is (and always will be) their right to request that I don't blog about them or certain things publicly. I can't promise that I won't write entries about anything I want, but I can guarantee that some things will be for my eyes only. I've been in the public blogging game for several months now and it's not so bad. Anyway. After I re-established my blog home on the internets I started to understand what tumblr is about. It's such a great community! And then in October I had the chance (and jumped at it) to sign up for the second round of a year-round secret santa-esque project called: Tumblr Buddies. I filled out a little survey about myself and my interests and was thrown into the mix with everyone else. It's been very cool to see all the interactions on the group page. I really enjoy reading my buddy's posts, and it makes me silly giddy when she gets a package I send and genuinely seems to like it. I also get ridiculously excited when my buddy leaves me anonymous messages. And I have to keep posting things on my own page, so that my buddy (whoever was given my name) can learn about me. By the time all this round is over next fall I'll have no less than 2 new far-away friends. One that I know very well, and one that knows me very well. I know that this Buddies thing is a huge reason why I enjoy Tumblr so much now. Huge shoutout to Ashley C for somehow making it all work. I guess it's still kind of early on, but it seems to be a huge success. I don't know that I'd have the brain power or patience to work it out myself. Anyway. I know that I told a couple of people the steer clear of tumblr...because I just didn't get it. Now I want more people (that I actually know) to follow. So HEY! you should join tumblr and add me!
The first package that I got from my tumblr buddy was huge. It included a small leather-y bound journal. I wasn't sure how I'd use it, and I don't know exactly how my buddy may have intended for me to use it but I've turned it into a quote book. I've been saving quotes in random places for years. Every couple of days I'll grab a pen and write in a couple from my stash. Every one of them is something that I find useful in some way. And scattered in are others that just make me laugh. It's a mix from books, tv shows, song lyrics, movies, and friends I know in real life. It's going to take me a very long time to finish, but that's okay. I think it's going to be very cool when it's complete.
Let's move on to traditions! There are so many things under that category!
By far my favorite new tradition is known as "Cheap Date Night." This actually started last November and it was discovered purely by chance. Angel and I had a bonus day off in the middle of the week because of Veterans Day. We planned to go into Old Town to see The Box. When we got there, we found out that it was $5 Wednesday. Though the movie kind of sucked, we were glad that we didn't pay full price to see it. And I made note that they do this discount every week. We met a couple of our friends at Margarita's Cantina afterward for delicious dinner. In January of this year my friend Briana and I decided to go see Avatar. Wednesday night worked out best for us and since we were going after work we wanted to have dinner in Old Town too. The movie was awesome and we went to Old Chicago for dinner and drinks and had a lot of fun. I think that was the first time she and I hung out outside of work. She joked that her husband doesn't take her out on dates, so she just arranges dates with other people. That routine became our "usual." Eventually we started inviting other people to join us. And now when I make a post of Facebook or Twitter saying, "Cheap Date Night" people know what's up. They know that means we'll be having dinner and going to a movie on a Wednesday night. I think the biggest group we had was 9 or 10 people. Over the past couple of months we went so many weeks in a row that the "new" people thought we do it every week. Which is not the case. There just happened to be a bunch of good movies coming out. I love Cheap Date Nights!
When I looked at my movie stub artwork to find out when we saw The Box, I was amused to learn that 2 years in a row, unknowingly, Angel and I had seen an obscure movie and had dinner at Margarita’s on Veteran’s Day. Needless to say, I told her that next Veteran’s Day is reserved. Amusing? I think so. Another tradition...this year we (me and Angel) have finally introduced a few of our other friends to European Sunday. When we say those words to each other, we know that it means fancy pizza (from Avivo) and wine on a Sunday. The one we had with a bunch of our friends was homemade pizza. And oh, it was deliciousness all around.
The Summer Piñata Project at Audra's this year was an elephant. I actually helped on this one twice as much as I did with the first one. We barely had the framework for Polly Potata (the elephant - they all have names, duh) before we decided that next year's piñata will be a giraffe. With that being said: start submitting names now! Nothing obvious like "Geoffrey."
I must also note that on the first night of Polly's creation I also got to learn the basics of Backgammon. It's a skill I've wanted to learn ever since I became a LOST fan. Read: Locke teaching Walt how to play. I really like non-trivia board games, but without LOST I'm not sure that I ever would've had the desire to learn that particular game. It's really fun though. And shoutout to Audra. Girl, you have some really awesome friends. I'm so proud of things you've accomplished. I thank you for sharing everything that we've shared. We've had some really great talks. And believe it or not, I truly learned some things from you that I will never forget. I look forward to crossing more items off your various lists of projects and parties next year.
Several months ago, a friend that I met through Audra/Laila named Jeana posted an article on facebook about a bar in old town that was introducing a breakfast menu. The place is called The Anchor. I've seen it in Old Town countless times but never knew it was a bar. Immediately, I wanted to try it. And I was not disappointed. And nobody else who's been there either. Probably ever. The food is delicious. Well, I was disappointed by a grilled cheese sandwich from there one night but I'm assuming that was just a fluke. There's a huge beer selection. The atmosphere is different. It's my favorite bar. I've never had a favorite bar before. The reason I mention this, is because one Sunday a bunch of us met up for a late lunch and we were sitting along one wall that has pews for seats. The term, "Food Mass" was tossed around. We had another food mass at Jimmy's Egg that was a huge failure on many levels. So maybe that term needs only apply to The Anchor the same way "European Sunday" applies to Avivo.
Speaking of my friends...I appreciate them so much more this year than I ever have before. I've learned so much about a lot of different people in my life. For the lack of better words, I've seen some "true colors" this year. For example: over the past few years I've tried to merge my different groups of friends together on several different occasions. For the most part, I was met with resistance? I guess that's the right word. I made plans with coworkers, and invited non-coworkers who would often give me a "yes!" or a "maybe" and then flake out for one reason or another. And vice versa. I'm not saying that I want all of my random friends to love each other and hang out all the time but I was finding that things are fun in a group. And I knew that certain people would enjoy the company of other people. So why wouldn't I want to introduce them?! But yeah, I was met with resistance and it never really happened. Anyway. All that changed this year. I have friends who are way more social than I'm used to. Their attitudes are incredibly refreshing. These people branch out and are willing to meet new people, and bring along others who are new to me. Then there are couple who go above and beyond. I know that this extra effort is what makes the occasional "merging" so easy. I love that my friends can basically fend for themselves. I don't have to feel responsible for and/or feel the need to babysit anyone. In theory, I could go out with a group of people and bail early and nobody would feel uncomfortable. Know what I mean? I'm not necessarily what you'd call a "people person" but I'm making a conscience effort to be more approachable. I'm picky about who I associate with. But I'm trying to branch out a bit. To follow the example set by these other people that I kind of admire. And in the bigger scheme of things I'm trying to maintain and project a positive attitude. And one thing I've really started to fully understand and embrace is the fact that some people just don't deserve to be my friend. For me, that's a difficult task. I don't give up on people easily at all. I'm proud that I'm patient enough to wait for someone else to catch up to my brainwave. I learned that I overestimate people. That I stress way too much about things that are out of my control. I'm too patient and too optimistic sometimes. Learning that lesson was rough. It still makes me kind of sad. I'm surrounded by people who constantly want to learn, and to grow, and improve themselves and the lives of those around them. Who offer and accept solid advice and criticism. People who know how and when to apologize. It's incredibly comforting to know without a doubt that I have emotional and mental support from anyone that I turn to and I hope that they all know I'd do the same for them without hesitation.
I like to end these things with a few shoutouts:
Ted: You're not a "new" friend at all, but I've talked to you more this year than ever before. I'm so proud of (and jealous of) all the things you've done with your photography this year. Like I told you a while back, people I directed toward your "fan" page who have absolutely no connection to you at all have got back to me to say how impressed they were with your work. I'm very excited for all the new opportunities and project you have ahead of you. And y'know...woo woo wee woo revolution. I'm IN.
Josh: Dude! I'm so glad to have finally met you this year. You're kind of a trip, and I swear that's a good thing. :P Thank you for teaching me how to play backgammon! I asked several people to teach me, and nobody came through. And it's just an added bonus that you're a fo realz teacher! We really should play again sometime soon. And thanks for the laughs, and I'm sorry that your Walmart marriage didn't work out. We'll have to go to Target and see if we can find you a new wife.
Jeana: Just like Josh...you're a trip! Your laugh is contagious. I have you to thank for introducing me to my favorite bar. It's only a little ridiculous that we haven't been there together yet. Perhaps some afternoon before we go to some Shocker sports event! We really need to work on that next year.
Briana: My hooker! I can't believe that we've really only started to get to know each other and hang out this year. But I stopped thinking of you as a "friend from work" long ago. We've had so much fun in old town, and out in Hot Shot. You have the best stories! It sucks that we're no longer working the same hours, and the order of the parking lot is all sorts of wrong...but that's okay. I love ya, hooker!
Angel: I can't possibly thank you enough for the countless pieces of advice, encouragement and support you've given me. My standard for someone who falls into the category of one of my best friends is a person who I can laugh with, and who has seen me truly pissed off, and who I've cried to...etc. You've seen all the extremes. You told me a long time ago...I know we don't have a mushy gushy friendship, blah blah blah...but you know I love ya like a sister. Keep up the good work. And since it's December and only you truly know and appreciate the sentiment: HOLLYGALOLLY!!!
Stiles: You know, I wish I had started writing some of these "end of the year recap" things before I met you. Because ever since we became friends, most of the crap I write about involves you in some way. It kinda makes me feel like I have no other friends! Which is so not true. Well, actually, I only have a handful left that are exclusively mine. Damn you! lol, I'm kidding of course. As we've discussed just recently...our friendship...what did I say? It's truly something foreign to me. It's so complicated it's easy, it's so weird it's awesome. I'm terrified that I'll do something to mess it up somehow, which, I know is ridiculous. We're tighter than I give us credit for. And just as I told Angel, my standard for someone to qualify as a best friend is someone who has helped me through a variety of situations, and seen me through a range of emotions. You're above and beyond all that. We've definitely set some personal records this year for new and fun things, and time spent. How the hell is it possible that we've only known each other for such a short time? Weird, I tell you. We're very weird. It's an ongoing [not-really] argument between us that I owe you so much for all the ranting/complaining/bitching that you've absorbed. Especially when some of it is aimed directly at you. Seriously, I don't know how you put up with me, but I'm glad that you do. I don't tell you enough how much I care about, and appreciate you. So, thank you for being one of the effortless friends.
Ashley L: I'm ashamed that our little group was right there in the break room with you for so many months and we never really talked. Though you're not a completely "new" friend in my life, I'm SO glad to have you as a friend now. We missed you like crazy while you were out on maternity leave. But I guess that just means we had to appreciate the lunch-time laughs even more when they returned. Your son is so freaking cute. Your mom really should start "Ethan's Blog." What else? Ah...the conversations we've had over the past couple of months...I thank you for listening to my ranting and confusion. Our situations are very very different, but I'm proud of you for the way you handled your situation. And know that I'm always a text, a phonecall, an email away if you want to rant or bounce ideas off me. Oh and don't be surprised if one day you get a follow-request on twitter when I create an account for all the ridiculous things you blurt out. You are AWESOME, Ashley. Simply awesome.
Alright. Enough of the mush. This thing has gone on WAY too long.
2010: You were pretty awesome.
Until next time...Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!
x-posted on facebook
This has been a year like no other. I've branched out and made changes. I've learned a lot this year about myself, and about other people.
Last year the overwhelming thing was "weddings." This year? Babies! Babies and toddlers everywhere! Though I rarely see my friends' babies (my work schedule is conflicting with basically all of them) they're tiny versions of the friends I love. It's really fun to watch the twitter and facebook updates as these children reach milestones: smiling, laughing, teething, learning to crawl, stand, walk, run away screaming, etc etc. I love my little friends: Kaleb, Toby, Morgan, and even little Ethan!
Way back when my friend Brandi told us all that she was pregnant, I immediately had an idea for her baby shower gift. I saw a super cute unfinished alphabet block/small toybox thing at Hobby Lobby. I always wanted to get one but never had a reason. As soon as Brandi found out that she was having a boy, I picked the color scheme and got to work. It took FOREVER to paint. My friend Tish was due to have a girl only a month after Brandi was due, and the block/box turned out so ridiculously cute I had to do another one in girl colors for Tish's baby. Again, it turned out insanely cute and when filled with baby things and stuffed into a clear basket bag...it turned into *that* gift on the table. The one that people wanted a closer look at. I keep telling myself that I won't do another one but it's very tempting. There's no denying that it's a unique gift. Okay, now that I think about it the babies came along in the spring. Moving right along...
I haven't done a ton of other artwork-y things this year. I did spent one long day breathing in Mod Podge fumes making a collage of my collection of movie ticket stubs. I start these random collections never really knowing what I'll do with the items. A lot of times the little items they end up being thrown away. I'm currently collecting those plastic tab things that come on bread. I have a photo of them from way back but the file is too small. I want to re-shoot it. Other than that and the baby shower boxes the only other thing I did was paint a really time-consuming design on a round wooden box I bought at a garage sale. Actually, come to think of it, I don't think I ever finished that box. And I'm not sure where it is at the moment. I bought it not even knowing what I'd do with it when it was done and I still don't really have a clue. LOL.
Speaking of artsy things: I bought the best camera I've ever owned. I didn't really need a camera, but I borrowed the same model from Amanda back in February to take to a concert and fell in love with the model. I found a crazy deal on it and had to buy it. I had the extra money at the time, and just bit the bullet. Unfortunately the NEXT day my Jeep had to go into the shop for a huge problem in the steering column. I ended up dropping 3x as much money on the Jeep. *facepalm* I don't regret the camera though. Stiles and I took it out on a couple different occasions just to play with it. And by far the best little invention/accessory that I've ever had for a camera is the Eye-Fi SD card. It's wifi enabled, and automatically ships the pictures from the camera to the computer. I haven't had to plug in my camera for months.
Since I mentioned the expense of my Jeep I should also note that as of about a month ago I made my final payment on it. It's actually a little weird to no longer have a car payment. That won't last forever of course, but it will be nice to have that extra bit of money for a while.
And speaking of Stiles: earlier this year we finally got around to taking some of the random roadtrips that we've talked about for years. Literally, years. A visit to the lake where I spent so many weekends growing up, and a closer look at the wind farm in Beaumont, Kansas. And a trip out to Greensburg, where we eventually stumbled upon another wind farm. We may or may not have done a lot of trespassing on those trips. We had to test out the new camera, right? Why not do some exploring? :) At least a couple of really awesome pictures came from those Thursday Roadtrips. Unfortunately our schedules don't line up to be able to do another one. Perhaps they will again someday. I have at least 1 other random roadtrip destination I MUST visit, and who knows what all is on his list. It's really fun to explore a small, unfamiliar town. If you've never done it before...you should!
We took a couple other roadtrips this year, for concerts, of course. We traveled to Oklahoma twice to see Elton John. The first time it was the tour with Billy Joel in Oklahoma City. And Billy Joel poked fun at our nosebleed seats, asking how the view was from Tulsa. The second time we were in Tulsa to see Elton and his idol, Leon Russell. It may be controversial to say, but Elton John has now surpassed (based on my experiences alone) Garth Brooks as my "best concert of all time." He puts on an amazing show. Honestly, at OKC show I sat there for at least 4 songs (EJ/BJ duets) in the beginning kind of staring in disbelief. Luckily those 20 minutes or so didn't go wasted, because that concert was nonstop for over 3 hours. And at the Tulsa show, there was no solid indication that Elton was ever going to stop playing. He never slows down at all. He stands up and acknowledges the crowd and walks back to the piano, flips the tails of his coat back and starts playing again. Incredible. Unforgettable.
What other fun events have I been to this year? There were a couple blow out Shocker baseball games. I saw my second ever live grand slam. Pretty awesome. There was also a trip up to Lawrence for a basketball game. KU/Baylor, both teams ranked in the top 25 at the time. I had to go into my mobile uploads photo album on facebook to confirm that even took place this year. January seems like forever ago. lol. Something else I've already written about previously was an OKC Thunder rally. Seriously, one of the coolest sports-related events I've ever been to. I got to hang out with a couple of my all-time favorite former Jayhawk players. Okay, okay, "hang out" is a loose term. But I did get to watch them do their thing on the court, on the sideline (literally) for a couple of hours. Eee!!! Sorry, giddy girl moment. I'm fully on the bandwagon for that team. I've never been a fan of the NBA before, but the league seems to be much younger now. And I can dig that. Based on facebook posts alone, the fan base in Oklahoma City (and even extending into Tulsa) seems to really accept and enjoy the team. Even though they're a transplant. I definitely want to get down there for a game or two sometime. Anyway. There were also a TON of things at the new arena right here in Wichita. First of all, I got to take the VIP tour of the place the day after the public grand opening. My mom is an employee of Intrust Bank and since they are the corporate sponsor...they got to have a company party there. My mom and I went to the Walking With Dinosaurs show which was really fun. We also went to see Brooks & Dunn (with Jason Aldean) which I was great! B&D is one of her favorites. I walked away from that concert a much bigger Jason Aldean fan. We also went to see Tim McGraw which ranks really high on my list of great shows as well. Like, bucket-list type stuff. His opening act was Love & Theft and Lady Antebellum. Both A+++ live! My mom won tickets through work to see Carrie Underwood. Beautiful. Talented. Another great night. Her tickets were so expensive I had originally passed on the chance to see her. I know now that was a mistake. She's worth seeing. Stiles and I went to see: Bon Jovi, Jeff Dunham (hilarious) Daughtry (who I've now seen 3 times) with Lifehouse (great!), and last but certainly not least: Zac Brown Band - one of my latest obsessions. I'm super excited that we have Cirque Du Soleil tickets in just a few weeks. And again...well, a year and a few weeks from now. But that's another story that I've already told. lol
And while I'm on the topic of music...the albums I've played like crazy this year: Zac Brown Band - You Get What You Give and Jason Aldean's - My Kinda Party. I'm sure there are more, but they're not coming to mind. Oh, and even the Inception soundtrack. It's all instrumental, but it makes excellent background noise while reading intense adventure-y books.
This year I think I've started reading more books than I've actually finished. I'm currently 2/3's of the way through The Hunger Games series and once I finish that I'm going to restart the other 3 or 4 books that I haven't completed yet. I hope. And I'm also 4/7's of the way through Harry Potter audiobooks! My first time through the books and the movies. And don't worry, I'm only watching the movie after the book even though it's very tempting to have a marathon and just breeze through dvd's. Harry Potter is what will make crazy overtime hours at the Post Office pass a little faster. Again, I hope.
I'm not feeling all that great right now. So I guess it's the perfect time to write about the worst cold (or some sort of infection) of my entire life! Seriously. There's no doubt in my mind that I caught that crap from work. It started as a cough and within a day I coughed so hard and so much I just wanted to cut my head off. My voice was gone for at least 3 days. I didn't sleep much. I went to the doctor and he put me on a week's worth of antibiotics, mucinex and industrial strength cough syrup. Which, by the way, I've never really had before. Not that strong anyway. I took half a dose one morning before work and an hour-ish later I felt awesome. Drugged and tired as hell, but awesome. I actually called my mom and arranged for her to be my designated driver because there was no way that I'd have been able to get home after work. I felt so freaking drunk. lol. It's one of the couple of times in the years I've had my job when I wish I had sick leave. I would've called in for a week straight. After a week I went back to the doctor and got another round of drugs and I think it was a total of 16 days before all the "ick" was all out of my system. Ever since then I've taken Lysol wipes to work and cleaned my desks like crazy. Thanks a lot, my disgusting coworkers! I haven't felt that miserable in years.
I'm accident prone, but I very rarely do any permanent damage. I have a large mirror that has raw edges and I tried to move it by myself one afternoon. It slipped and sliced open a couple of my fingers. It didn't hurt at all, so I was really confused when I saw all this random blood. I immediately got to the kitchen sink and started rinsing it clean and then I nearly passed out because the pain was blinding. Literally. I was seeing spots and decided that sitting down and putting my face on the counter was my best bet. I've never passed out before, so that was a little scary. I should've gone to the minor emergency office and had a few stitches, but I survived. All that's left is about a half-inch long scar on my left middle finger and a lesson learned. Me and my hands don't always get along.
To be honest I don't really remember wanting to write about that story, but I put it in my notes for writing points almost 2 months ago so, oh well. Ugh, this is kind of annoying. My writing seems to have no flow at all right now but I want to keep going, and so far this has been pretty boring. Sorry about that.
I've been a journal/blog writer for about 10 years now. But at some point last year, I quit writing regularly. It only lasted a few months. I was actively looking for a different site to use for a long time. I didn't realize it at the time but I was very frustrated about not writing. It's my outlet. It's how I work out a lot of things. It's a catalog of memories. Anyway. I joined tumblr after I kept hear Bobby Bones talking about how much he liked it. As it turned out, Stiles was sorta using it too. I tried to like it, but honestly, at first I hated it. It just made me frustrated that I no longer had a blog-home. After some serious consideration I did a complete revamp of my "old" blog. I went back through the archives and changed a lot of security settings. Most things that were "friends only" before, were changed to public. And some of the more personal things were changed to "totally private." In my search for a different blog site I discovered that there's no reason for me to have left the old place. My twitter (essentially a micro-blog) is public, there's no reason why I can't adapt the everyday blog to be public too. I love that I have more real-life friends who I trust with access to that side of my life. I freaked out when I was making the decision. I worried that people would go back and read things I had written and be offended or upset by things I said. But I got over that pretty quickly. If you're gonna hold a grudge toward me about something that I wrote years ago (hello - everything is dated) then um...well, I really don't know what to say about that. Like I said, it freaked me out at first, but I got over it. And I've told more than one person that it is (and always will be) their right to request that I don't blog about them or certain things publicly. I can't promise that I won't write entries about anything I want, but I can guarantee that some things will be for my eyes only. I've been in the public blogging game for several months now and it's not so bad. Anyway. After I re-established my blog home on the internets I started to understand what tumblr is about. It's such a great community! And then in October I had the chance (and jumped at it) to sign up for the second round of a year-round secret santa-esque project called: Tumblr Buddies. I filled out a little survey about myself and my interests and was thrown into the mix with everyone else. It's been very cool to see all the interactions on the group page. I really enjoy reading my buddy's posts, and it makes me silly giddy when she gets a package I send and genuinely seems to like it. I also get ridiculously excited when my buddy leaves me anonymous messages. And I have to keep posting things on my own page, so that my buddy (whoever was given my name) can learn about me. By the time all this round is over next fall I'll have no less than 2 new far-away friends. One that I know very well, and one that knows me very well. I know that this Buddies thing is a huge reason why I enjoy Tumblr so much now. Huge shoutout to Ashley C for somehow making it all work. I guess it's still kind of early on, but it seems to be a huge success. I don't know that I'd have the brain power or patience to work it out myself. Anyway. I know that I told a couple of people the steer clear of tumblr...because I just didn't get it. Now I want more people (that I actually know) to follow. So HEY! you should join tumblr and add me!
The first package that I got from my tumblr buddy was huge. It included a small leather-y bound journal. I wasn't sure how I'd use it, and I don't know exactly how my buddy may have intended for me to use it but I've turned it into a quote book. I've been saving quotes in random places for years. Every couple of days I'll grab a pen and write in a couple from my stash. Every one of them is something that I find useful in some way. And scattered in are others that just make me laugh. It's a mix from books, tv shows, song lyrics, movies, and friends I know in real life. It's going to take me a very long time to finish, but that's okay. I think it's going to be very cool when it's complete.
Let's move on to traditions! There are so many things under that category!
By far my favorite new tradition is known as "Cheap Date Night." This actually started last November and it was discovered purely by chance. Angel and I had a bonus day off in the middle of the week because of Veterans Day. We planned to go into Old Town to see The Box. When we got there, we found out that it was $5 Wednesday. Though the movie kind of sucked, we were glad that we didn't pay full price to see it. And I made note that they do this discount every week. We met a couple of our friends at Margarita's Cantina afterward for delicious dinner. In January of this year my friend Briana and I decided to go see Avatar. Wednesday night worked out best for us and since we were going after work we wanted to have dinner in Old Town too. The movie was awesome and we went to Old Chicago for dinner and drinks and had a lot of fun. I think that was the first time she and I hung out outside of work. She joked that her husband doesn't take her out on dates, so she just arranges dates with other people. That routine became our "usual." Eventually we started inviting other people to join us. And now when I make a post of Facebook or Twitter saying, "Cheap Date Night" people know what's up. They know that means we'll be having dinner and going to a movie on a Wednesday night. I think the biggest group we had was 9 or 10 people. Over the past couple of months we went so many weeks in a row that the "new" people thought we do it every week. Which is not the case. There just happened to be a bunch of good movies coming out. I love Cheap Date Nights!
When I looked at my movie stub artwork to find out when we saw The Box, I was amused to learn that 2 years in a row, unknowingly, Angel and I had seen an obscure movie and had dinner at Margarita’s on Veteran’s Day. Needless to say, I told her that next Veteran’s Day is reserved. Amusing? I think so. Another tradition...this year we (me and Angel) have finally introduced a few of our other friends to European Sunday. When we say those words to each other, we know that it means fancy pizza (from Avivo) and wine on a Sunday. The one we had with a bunch of our friends was homemade pizza. And oh, it was deliciousness all around.
The Summer Piñata Project at Audra's this year was an elephant. I actually helped on this one twice as much as I did with the first one. We barely had the framework for Polly Potata (the elephant - they all have names, duh) before we decided that next year's piñata will be a giraffe. With that being said: start submitting names now! Nothing obvious like "Geoffrey."
I must also note that on the first night of Polly's creation I also got to learn the basics of Backgammon. It's a skill I've wanted to learn ever since I became a LOST fan. Read: Locke teaching Walt how to play. I really like non-trivia board games, but without LOST I'm not sure that I ever would've had the desire to learn that particular game. It's really fun though. And shoutout to Audra. Girl, you have some really awesome friends. I'm so proud of things you've accomplished. I thank you for sharing everything that we've shared. We've had some really great talks. And believe it or not, I truly learned some things from you that I will never forget. I look forward to crossing more items off your various lists of projects and parties next year.
Several months ago, a friend that I met through Audra/Laila named Jeana posted an article on facebook about a bar in old town that was introducing a breakfast menu. The place is called The Anchor. I've seen it in Old Town countless times but never knew it was a bar. Immediately, I wanted to try it. And I was not disappointed. And nobody else who's been there either. Probably ever. The food is delicious. Well, I was disappointed by a grilled cheese sandwich from there one night but I'm assuming that was just a fluke. There's a huge beer selection. The atmosphere is different. It's my favorite bar. I've never had a favorite bar before. The reason I mention this, is because one Sunday a bunch of us met up for a late lunch and we were sitting along one wall that has pews for seats. The term, "Food Mass" was tossed around. We had another food mass at Jimmy's Egg that was a huge failure on many levels. So maybe that term needs only apply to The Anchor the same way "European Sunday" applies to Avivo.
Speaking of my friends...I appreciate them so much more this year than I ever have before. I've learned so much about a lot of different people in my life. For the lack of better words, I've seen some "true colors" this year. For example: over the past few years I've tried to merge my different groups of friends together on several different occasions. For the most part, I was met with resistance? I guess that's the right word. I made plans with coworkers, and invited non-coworkers who would often give me a "yes!" or a "maybe" and then flake out for one reason or another. And vice versa. I'm not saying that I want all of my random friends to love each other and hang out all the time but I was finding that things are fun in a group. And I knew that certain people would enjoy the company of other people. So why wouldn't I want to introduce them?! But yeah, I was met with resistance and it never really happened. Anyway. All that changed this year. I have friends who are way more social than I'm used to. Their attitudes are incredibly refreshing. These people branch out and are willing to meet new people, and bring along others who are new to me. Then there are couple who go above and beyond. I know that this extra effort is what makes the occasional "merging" so easy. I love that my friends can basically fend for themselves. I don't have to feel responsible for and/or feel the need to babysit anyone. In theory, I could go out with a group of people and bail early and nobody would feel uncomfortable. Know what I mean? I'm not necessarily what you'd call a "people person" but I'm making a conscience effort to be more approachable. I'm picky about who I associate with. But I'm trying to branch out a bit. To follow the example set by these other people that I kind of admire. And in the bigger scheme of things I'm trying to maintain and project a positive attitude. And one thing I've really started to fully understand and embrace is the fact that some people just don't deserve to be my friend. For me, that's a difficult task. I don't give up on people easily at all. I'm proud that I'm patient enough to wait for someone else to catch up to my brainwave. I learned that I overestimate people. That I stress way too much about things that are out of my control. I'm too patient and too optimistic sometimes. Learning that lesson was rough. It still makes me kind of sad. I'm surrounded by people who constantly want to learn, and to grow, and improve themselves and the lives of those around them. Who offer and accept solid advice and criticism. People who know how and when to apologize. It's incredibly comforting to know without a doubt that I have emotional and mental support from anyone that I turn to and I hope that they all know I'd do the same for them without hesitation.
I like to end these things with a few shoutouts:
Ted: You're not a "new" friend at all, but I've talked to you more this year than ever before. I'm so proud of (and jealous of) all the things you've done with your photography this year. Like I told you a while back, people I directed toward your "fan" page who have absolutely no connection to you at all have got back to me to say how impressed they were with your work. I'm very excited for all the new opportunities and project you have ahead of you. And y'know...woo woo wee woo revolution. I'm IN.
Josh: Dude! I'm so glad to have finally met you this year. You're kind of a trip, and I swear that's a good thing. :P Thank you for teaching me how to play backgammon! I asked several people to teach me, and nobody came through. And it's just an added bonus that you're a fo realz teacher! We really should play again sometime soon. And thanks for the laughs, and I'm sorry that your Walmart marriage didn't work out. We'll have to go to Target and see if we can find you a new wife.
Jeana: Just like Josh...you're a trip! Your laugh is contagious. I have you to thank for introducing me to my favorite bar. It's only a little ridiculous that we haven't been there together yet. Perhaps some afternoon before we go to some Shocker sports event! We really need to work on that next year.
Briana: My hooker! I can't believe that we've really only started to get to know each other and hang out this year. But I stopped thinking of you as a "friend from work" long ago. We've had so much fun in old town, and out in Hot Shot. You have the best stories! It sucks that we're no longer working the same hours, and the order of the parking lot is all sorts of wrong...but that's okay. I love ya, hooker!
Angel: I can't possibly thank you enough for the countless pieces of advice, encouragement and support you've given me. My standard for someone who falls into the category of one of my best friends is a person who I can laugh with, and who has seen me truly pissed off, and who I've cried to...etc. You've seen all the extremes. You told me a long time ago...I know we don't have a mushy gushy friendship, blah blah blah...but you know I love ya like a sister. Keep up the good work. And since it's December and only you truly know and appreciate the sentiment: HOLLYGALOLLY!!!
Stiles: You know, I wish I had started writing some of these "end of the year recap" things before I met you. Because ever since we became friends, most of the crap I write about involves you in some way. It kinda makes me feel like I have no other friends! Which is so not true. Well, actually, I only have a handful left that are exclusively mine. Damn you! lol, I'm kidding of course. As we've discussed just recently...our friendship...what did I say? It's truly something foreign to me. It's so complicated it's easy, it's so weird it's awesome. I'm terrified that I'll do something to mess it up somehow, which, I know is ridiculous. We're tighter than I give us credit for. And just as I told Angel, my standard for someone to qualify as a best friend is someone who has helped me through a variety of situations, and seen me through a range of emotions. You're above and beyond all that. We've definitely set some personal records this year for new and fun things, and time spent. How the hell is it possible that we've only known each other for such a short time? Weird, I tell you. We're very weird. It's an ongoing [not-really] argument between us that I owe you so much for all the ranting/complaining/bitching that you've absorbed. Especially when some of it is aimed directly at you. Seriously, I don't know how you put up with me, but I'm glad that you do. I don't tell you enough how much I care about, and appreciate you. So, thank you for being one of the effortless friends.
Ashley L: I'm ashamed that our little group was right there in the break room with you for so many months and we never really talked. Though you're not a completely "new" friend in my life, I'm SO glad to have you as a friend now. We missed you like crazy while you were out on maternity leave. But I guess that just means we had to appreciate the lunch-time laughs even more when they returned. Your son is so freaking cute. Your mom really should start "Ethan's Blog." What else? Ah...the conversations we've had over the past couple of months...I thank you for listening to my ranting and confusion. Our situations are very very different, but I'm proud of you for the way you handled your situation. And know that I'm always a text, a phonecall, an email away if you want to rant or bounce ideas off me. Oh and don't be surprised if one day you get a follow-request on twitter when I create an account for all the ridiculous things you blurt out. You are AWESOME, Ashley. Simply awesome.
Alright. Enough of the mush. This thing has gone on WAY too long.
2010: You were pretty awesome.
Until next time...Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!
x-posted on facebook