And in honor of that, I'm gonna start with a classic post on January 1. Take that, procrastinatey gene! I'm using Sundry's meme, of course. Somewhat abbreviated, because...well, because of that procrastination gene (I have to accommodate somehow). Plus the long form feels a little too much like doing Turbo Tax.
Buy a full-on family ski pass (dear GOD was that painful.) Buy skis and boots. Enroll a child in a private sports program. Have a close relative with stage four cancer (*kicks the wall angrily*). Visit my sister's place in St Louis. Probably a bunch of other things I've forgotten.
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Last year's resolutions:
1. Take the kids out into nature at least once a month.
I didn't keep a close enough record of this to be sure, but I think this was basically a pass.
2. Eat more wild food.
So long as we define "more" as "some juniper berries and a couple dandelion greens," we've got a pass.
3. Watch the moon rise at least once a month.
Yeah. FAIL.
4. Hike once a month.
Check! Here's the list, for anyone who cares (me):
- January: Coyote Song/ Swallow Hill trails, 2 miles
- February: Glendale Farm Open Space, app. 1 mile
- March: Greenland Open Space, 4.5 miles
- April: Lake Superior Waterfront, app. 4 miles; Kramer Woods trail, app. two miles; Briar Patch trail, app. 1 mile
- May: Cherry Creek Ecological Park and Happy Canyon Trail, app. 1.5 miles; Glendale Farm Open Space trail, 1.5 miles
- June: Lost Creek Wilderness, app. 1.5 miles.
- July: Puma Hills, South Park, app. 0.5 miles; Mystic Falls trail, app. 4 miles
- August: Glendale Farm Open Space, app. 1.5 mi., Cherry Creek Bike Path, 1 mi.
- September: Kent Denver school property, app. 1 mi.
- October: Castle, Parmalee and Tower trails, app. 4 mi
- November: Frasier River Bike trail, app. 4 mi
- December: Lee Lorraine Canyon, Bowen Canyon and Yetman trails, 3 mi; North Tenmile Trail, 3 miles
1. Tender at the Bone, Ruth Reichl
2. At Home, Bill Bryson
3. Dr. Zhivago, Boris Pasternak, translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky
4. Collected Short Stories of Raymond Carver
5. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz
6. Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell
7. A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, David Foster Wallace
8. Slouching Toward Bethlehem, Joan Didion
9. Little Heathens, Mildred Armstrong Kalish
11. Of Wolves and Men, Barry Lopez
12. The Story Behind the Story (various)
Here are the books I read:
1. Tender at the Bone, Ruth Reichl
2. At Home, Bill Bryson
3. Dr. Zhivago, Boris Pasternak, translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky
4. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz
5. Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell
6. A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, David Foster Wallace (in progress)
7. Slouching Toward Bethlehem, Joan Didion
9. Of Wolves and Men, Barry Lopez
Well, 9 out of 12. Seventy-five percent to pass!
As to resolutions for next year, I'm keeping it simple. I'm going to remember the in-laws' birthdays and send cards. I'm going to check my 401K balances quarterly, so whenever I get the urge to monitor my progress toward retirement, I will be able to answer myself with ringing authority: NOT VERY WELL, THANK YOU! I'm going to try to hike every month. I'm going to do a smaller scale TBR (to be elaborated later, because already this post is a monster). I'm going to print out more photos. And the challenge: I'm going to do more follow-through on writing projects.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
No. What's UP with that?
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No.
5. What countries did you visit?
The great old U.S. of A. I don't even have a current passport.
6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?
(sadly) More time with friends and family. Less house hassle. Less debt (*not* something that was lacking in 2011). More writing and more writing projects.
7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
None, really, although the fall of 2011 will go down as fretful and anxious and ultimately Bad.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Painting the front of the house. I wish I was joking.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not connecting with people as much I'd like.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Not really, although I suffered mental injury from the bill I got after taking Si to the emergency room for a sprained knee.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
The house & kitchen, although most of that was "bought" in 2010. Or now and for the next 30 years, take your pick.
12. Where did most of your money go?
The house, via mortage & the construction loan. Also baseball, skiing, and travel.
13. What did you get really excited about?
Hmm. I was excited about the finishing of the house and the return of its livability. Otherwise, though, "getting excited" is a state of mind I don't visit nearly enough.
14. Compared to this time last year, are you:
– happier or sadder? sadder, alas.
– thinner or fatter? the same to slightly fatter. Not so fat that I have to pay attention, though.
– richer or poorer? richer, although perhaps less in actual net worth than in the sense that the financial situation is under control.
15. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Made more connections; had more dinner parties; asked more people over; picked up the phone more. Wrote more.
16. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Fretting about the house. Working on the house. Moving parts of the house and its furnishings from one place to another.
17. How did you spend Christmas?
With the four of us, my parents and my sister at my sister's lovely little apartment in St Louis. We opened presents, ran in the park, and ate traditional Christmas food, including creamed onions and two pies.
19. What were your favorite books of the year?
Bossypants. Biographies of Abigail Adams and Queen Isabella.
20. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
On my birthday I skied, then came back to a rented condo and celebrated with M, the kids, my sister in law and my nephew. Since this was my big four-oh, I was supposed to have celebrated with my parents and sister as well, but--well, crap happened. I did get to see Mom and Dad and my sister AND my aunt, though, on the weekend before, which made up for them not being there on the day (but not, of course, for the reason they weren't there).
21. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Satisfying? Well. Made some huge trip and/or gotten some wonderful job, I guess. I would have been plenty happy (even "satisfied") with simply a different diagnosis for my mom, though.
22. What kept you sane?
I'm not totally sure I was.
23. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.
Life is too damn short.
1 comment:
I loved Bossypants so much. I was surpised.
Happy New Year!!!
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