Here's wishing a happy 2009 to one and all!
So, December rolled to a most excellent end, with many philosophical discussions, ethical debates, catching up with ol' friends, getting to know newer ones better, and being rather busy in a most excellent way. I saw a number of movies, got spoiled at great restaurants and ate great food, got to finally see the Exploring Science exhibition at the Art Gallery of Alberta, listened to new music (well, new to me that is!), read some great poetry and magazine articles, slept (!), burnt the candle at both ends, bundled up in the cold, and yes, had an amazing time.
New Years itself was amazing. I had never seen the First Night Celebration before, so it was fabulous to go and see the fireworks with great company, and of course catch some of the musical acts as well. We even caught a sleigh ride. I would definitely number it among one of the best New Years yet, if not the best — surely a far cry from January 1, 2004 when I started this blog. As much as I loved Hourglass Ball, this is definitely better.
And my work schedule even cooperated! I didn't work until nearly noon yesterday which was a boon: financially working on the 1st is awesome (double time plus holiday pay!), but I also got a full night's sleep after New Years eve, AND today is a day off. Of course the big downside is that my body decided midway through my shift to have breathing problems, which I continued to work during, having felt them before — of course it had been well over a year since I had dealt with this last, and there was definitely no trigger, so this was frustrating. It began with a sharp pain in the chest and then it just plain hurt to breathe — I actually had to concentrate on breathing — and began breathing more deeply than normal (since the alternative is wheezing and hyperventilating which is NO fun). It basically just felt like the air was just not getting in, as much as my chest was rising and falling. Still, I could talk through this and operate my cash register and whatnot, so it wasn't all that bad.
Last night I didn't feel like cooking anything (I have to go grocery shopping and have thus a very mediocre selection of food in my apt), so ordered in Grandma's pizza. I was GOING to eat half and save the rest for later, but just ate it all while watching That '70s Show (6th season) which I had received for Christmas. My computer wouldn't start up properly either, so, in frustration I read some more before chatting with a friend.
And now for something completely not-so different:
1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before? A bunch o' stuff: visit Disney World and Universal Studios, go to Florida and Denver, bartend, build a Kiwanis club, apply to Grad school, etc.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I don't really make New Years' resolutions: instead I make goals and have dreams that are not directly related to the new year.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Hmmm… at least one co-worker, and one former co-worker… but realistically I wasn't terribly close with either at the time.
4. Did anyone close to you die? My paternal grandfather.
5. What countries did you visit? Canada and the United States
6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008? More balance, better writing, more seeing of friends, more exercise, more great food, acceptance into Grad school for the fall, scholarships?
7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Uh… I don't know at this point. Perhaps one from December?
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Graduating from my second degree? We'll go with that.
9. What was your biggest failure? Uh… not staying in better touch with those who matter and make me feel great about myself at times.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Not particularly.
11. What was the best thing you bought? I buy particularly great things? Hmmm… interesting concept! Great Christmas presents for others.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? A considerably large number of people.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Hmmm… a few people but it was very temporary.
14. Where did most of your money go? bills, school, travel, fun, investments…
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? People and experiences.
16. What song will always remind you of 2008? Anything by Vampire Weekend.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Happier!
ii. thinner or fatter? Probably fatter but not significantly…
iii. richer or poorer? Well… my investments are probably worth less than they were last year at this time given the economy… but I think I'm probably better off at this point than last year, due in part to making more money at my job and having fewer financial drains.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of? Done more purely FUN things.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of? Worrying.
20. How will you be spending Christmas? I spent it with my family. It was good.
22. Did you fall in love in 2008? No comment.
23. How many one-night stands? Not applicable.
24. What was your favorite TV program? I'm supposed to have one when I really haven't watched TV? Criminal Minds then.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? I don't hate people.
26. What was the best book you read? Good question… There are a bunch of stand outs in this category.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery? Vampire Weekend
28. What did you want and get? New friendships, a new computer chair, great times spent with friends who matter, unexpected yet awesome adventures, new learning and experiences, great food….
29. What did you want and not get? perfection.
30. What was your favorite film of this year? Hmmm… that's a difficult question… as for films that came out in 2008 I'll say that I rather liked The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Bolt, Blindness and Zack and Miri Make a Porno, each for completely different reasons.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I had people over to play board games and a potluck. It was great to see so many of my friends. I was 26.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? A timeturner a la Harry Potter! 😉 No really, being double (or worse) scheduled less frequently would have been awesome!
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008? Put-together casual.
34. What kept you sane? People who care, good books and poems, great food, and new experiences combined with the constants of apt, work and school.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I fancy celebrities/public figures? Really? Hmmm…
36. What political issue stirred you the most? The environment.
37. Who did you miss? A whole heck of a lot of people. Also my grandfather.
38. Who was the best new person you met? Uhh… difficult question! John, Jessica, Toby, Amanda, Kate, etc. There are a lot of great people… and lots of them have very common first names!
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008: Sometimes the unexpected can be remarkable.
2008 is quickly coming to an end.
So tell us exactly what happened in this unforgettable year.
How old did you turn? 26
What school did you go to? U of A.
Tell us about something good that happened: I developed some great friendships, met some great people and gained some new skills.
Tell us about something that you shouldnΓÇÖt have done but enjoyed doing: I let myself get ridiculously stressed about things.
Did you change much? Of course. I grew up and matured, and understood new things.
Are you happy with who you have become? Right now, yes.
Did you fall in love? No comment.
Did you kiss anyone? Yes.
Did you go on any holidays? Yes: to New York, Saskatoon, Orlando, Denver, and Swift Current
Did you go to any camps? Nope.
Did you see any movies at the theatres? Yes, quite a few including: Blindness, The Dark Knight, Bolt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Zack and Miri Make a Porno, RENT (The Musical Filmed live on Broadway), etc.
Tell us a song you were hooked on: Gosh… quite a few of them… The Vampires of New York by Marcy Playground, What I Want by She Wants Revenge, If You Wear that Velvet Dress by Bono, My Place or Yours by Must Be Tuesday, Porcelain by Better Than Ezra, Are you Lonely by Denison Witmer, Some Postman by The Presidents of the United States of America, etc.
Did you go to the beach? Nope. I'm not a huge beach person, really.
Did you get really dressed up for anything? Of course! Winter Waltz, CKI stuff, and I'm sure some other events.
Tell us a funny thing that happened? Went to the Real World House in Denver with a bunch of awesome gay guys. It was one of those random things that just made my trip to Denver all the more entertaining.
Tell us the saddest thing that happened? There was the week of deaths/funerals. That was really hard and sad.
What do you want for Christmas? Well I got pretty much the Christmas I could have hoped for, given what I expected and desired.
What are your plans for New Year? I went to First Night. It was amazing.
Will you be getting a midnight kiss? I did.
What are you most looking forward to next year? More awesome adventures… and probably a bit more growing up too.
Are you happy with what happened this year? yes.
Was 2008 your best year? I don't know if it was my best year… but it would certainly be numbered among my best! 🙂
And the first sentence from each month of LJ posts meme that is highly entertaining…
January:
So, my latest contest win is a couple of tix to the Three Days Grace Concert in Edmonton on the 30th at the Shaw (doors at 6:30 concert at 7:30), and while I'm not a HUGE fan of the band, I'm thinking of going to the concert (hey it's sold out I think too). (It was an okay concert — having Nancy there was by far the best part of going!)
February:
It's been a busy week. (What else is new?)
March:
So the Murder Mystery was a success. (I had almost forgotten about this. Wow.)
April:
Last Monday (not yesterday, but the Monday before that!) I finished my degree. (that was an accomplishment!)
May:
Hey all! (*laughs* this sentence is oh so useful!)
June:
I promised SO MANY of you who are looking for a place to live and/or move out into that if my building EVER had vacancies, I'd let you all know about it. (This resulted in my having an AWESOME next door neighbour in Angela!)
July:
Yes I went to Orlando Florida for Kiwanis International Convention and managed to catch a Pirates Dinner Show, Universal Studios & Islands of Adventure, the convention, a district dinner, time with friends, Disney's Hollywood Studios, and Disney's Magic Kingdom. (Orlando was even better than I had imagined.)
August:
… and another CKI LSSP and ICON. (some things never change…)
September:
Wow… The first week of September (aka the first week of school) has come to a relative close. (another things never changing post… ;))
October:
You know that tired feeling after your body has become ridiculously physically exhausted that it….
… is echoed in your mind? (I was tired…)
November:
So this Halloween was busier than most. (*smiles*)
December:
So this morning I try to listen to a few new CDs. (*smiles* CDs are good.)
Once again… Happy New Year!