end of year wrap up

It feels a bit like cheating to write an end of year blog post when I haven't been posting much, but I'm a sucker for tradition and a touch obsessive compulsive, so it's going to happen. And, well, I'm resolved to get this blog going again in 2009, so consider this a new beginning.

Anyway, this is my, I believe, fourth end of year post. I generally wait for Kristen to tag me, but she's pretty much abandoned her blog as well, so I'm not sure I can wait that long.

Here we go.

What did you do in 2008 that you had never done before?

• Spoke at a funeral

• Became really comfortable with public speaking — in fact, I get a rush from it now.
  

Did you keep your new year's resolutions and will you make more for next year?
Last year I said that I didn't make new year's resolutions and I kept to my word. Well, maybe I need to start making them and sticking to them because things NEED to get better. I've made 15+ resolutions for 2009 and things ARE going to get better.

Did anyone close to you give birth?
I feel like everyone around me is getting married and having babies, which makes sense because I am a single woman in her (late) 30's and we get like that. Anyway, a couple of friends with whom I was close in college had babies: Freyja and Kira. My new friend Ashton also pushed out a puppy and Mark's wife Maureen had a baby at the beginning of the year. I think that's it. Let me know if I missed anyone.

Did anyone close to you die?
My grandmother, Ruth Fields, died in February. And, yes, this has something to do with my answer about what I did this year that I have never done before. I read something at her funeral that she had asked to be read. I remember it rhymed and kinda felt like something you'd cut out of Reader's Digest and tape to your refrigerator if you were into taping things about not being sad after you're dead on your refrigerator. We're planning her unveiling now and I miss her horribly. I also know that, when I wrote last year that no one close to me had died, I would be writing about her death this year.

I miss you, Grandma, and I always will.

What countries did you visit?
I traveled a great deal this year, but primarily the 2,306 (according to United) miles between Washington DC an Seattle. Internationally, I only traveled to The Netherlands in August and to France in October.

What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Some success at business development would be nice. But there's one thing I spent way too much time in 2008 really really really wanting that I would love to have in 2009, but I think maybe it's better just to, instead, regain my sanity and perspective and stop wanting it so much.

Maybe I shouldn't want it at all, as a matter of fact.

What date from 2008 will remain etched in your memory, and why?
How can I say anything but November 4? Holy shit. Woke up godawful early to vote and ended the day in tears amazed, AMAZED when Keith Olbermann announced that Barack Obama was projected to be the next president of the United States. Wonderful, beautiful, hopeful.



What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I don't really feel like I pulled off any great achievement this year. It felt more like endurance; I kept going despite it all. Sorry to be such a drama queen but it just was not a banner year. The bar is low, but 2009 will be a marked improvement.

What was my biggest failure?
That I merely endured?

Did you suffer illness or injury?
I was pretty healthy this year. I'm sick now with a cold, but the body stood up pretty well. Keep going, baby.

What was the best thing you bought this year?
I have worn my black Frye boots so often this year that I had to have the heels replaced. I am embarrassed by how often I wear them.

Whose behavior merited celebration?
I cried when Hillary Clinton called for Obama to receive the Democratic nomination by acclimation from the floor of the Convention. I respect her tremendously and know how badly she wanted the nomination — and for the right reasons — but she rose above in a way that all of us should aspire to.



Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Sarah Palin is repulsive. She is an idiot. But even worse than Sarah Palin are the fools who fell for her crap. You should all be sent to Guantanamo and forced to stay there for seven years without a trial. Okay?

Where did most of your money go?
Buying other people drinks and dinner. And dresses. I bought a hell of a lot of dresses this year.

What did you get really, really, really excited about?
I got pretty damn giddy about the election.

What song will always remind you of 2008?
There are two songs: "I Found a Reason" by Cat Power



and "Beautiful Child" by Rufus Wainwright.



Compared to this time last year are you happier or sadder?
I think I might be sadder. It's been a tough year. But I'm hopeful, so the chin is up.

Compared to this time last year are you thinner or fatter?
I think I might be fatter. I'm definitely not thinner. That's next year.

Compared to this time last year are you richer or poorer?
Richer.

What do you wish you'd done more of?
Showed love.

What do you wish you'd done less of?
Worked. But more importantly, resented working. That's crap.

How will you be spending New Year's?
I celebrate on New Year's Day and generally just go to bed on New Year's Eve. I know it makes me sound like a boring old lady, but I want to capitalize on the hopefulness of the new year by waking up feeling good and spending the day doing something that makes me happy.

Did you fall in love in 2008?
I was in love when the year started . . .

How many one night stands?
No more one night stands for me. Late night text messages from friends with whom I have an understanding? Yeah, those, those happened. But I won't count.

What was your favorite TV program?
I tend to watch more television shows on Netflix now than on television. Whole series at a time. Discover a great show and then watch the hell out of it. Friday Night Lights is the latest. Season 1 was leaps and bounds better than Season 2, but I'll definitely be tuning in for the premiere of Season 3 on NBC on January 16.


Do you hate anyone know that you didn't hate this time last year?
I don't hate people. But I do dislike a couple of people whom I didn't even know last year. How's that?

What was the best book you read?
I loved Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail by Hunter S. Thompson, particularly in the midst of the election. I wish Hunter was around to cover this one.

What was your greatest musical (re)discovery?
My love for Liz Phair returned with a vengeance this year after I saw her at the 9:30 Club in DC in August. I had been listening to Exile in Guyville and then realized after the fact that Whip Smart was amazing.


What did you want and get?
A Democrat in the White House.


What did you want and not get?
I don't want to get into specifics, but I lost something I didn't even know I had. The biggest surprise was in realizing how much I wanted it when I realized I couldn't.

What was your favorite film of this year?
"He could wield a pretty effective sword against what's going on right now."

I loved Gonzo: The Life and Work of Hunter S. Thompson.



What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
I was at my grandmother's funeral on my birthday and I was as old as the hills.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Getting that thing I wanted.

How would you describe your personal fashion statement in 2008?
This year's uniform was a dress, black tights and black boots. And the headbands continue to go strong.

What kept you sane?
Who — Ray Page, Japanese salary man

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
I have to be too old to answer this question with any dignity. Jason Bateman remains my longest running crush. I've developed new crushes on Kyle Chandler, Zach Gilford and Taylor Kitsch on Friday Night Lights. Hunter S. Thompson is my dead crush.

What political issue stirred you the most?
I'm pretty much at a boil at all times when it comes to politics, so this question has never worked for me. I had tunnel vision this year. I just wanted to WIN.

Who did you miss?
Grandma.

Who was the best new person you met?
Ray Page, Japanese salary man

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008?
I've learned a fair amount of humility in 2008 and he'll hate to hear it if he ever reads this, but I credit my friend Ray Page. I listen to his feedback in a way that I have never been able to before because I sincerely trust the source and, in the process, have gotten better at listening to feedback from others.

It's a really mutually supportive friendship that makes me pretty damn happy — except when we rag on each other mercilessly and I want to scoop his heart out and eat it with a side of fries.

Quote a song lyric that sums up your ear.
Mental wounds still screaming
Driving me insane
I'm going off the rails on a crazy train.