..:::2012 In Review:::..

1. What did you do in 2012 that you’d never done before? Well, it’s the first full year I lived on my own.  I also went on a road trip for reasons other than wanting to go on a road trip.  All in all, a pretty good year.

2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?  I had four resolutions for 2012: 1. Drop below 200 pounds and stay there. 2. Get back out into the dating world. 3. Write novel number four. 4. Be kinder 5.  Find a job or volunteer job that you love. So…aside from the weight loss, I did very well.  80% success rate is great.

For 2013: 1. Integrate myself into Morocco.  2. Keep a journal during my experience abroad.  3.  Get below 200 pounds.  4.  Do everything in my power to help the people I come in contact with.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? My brother-in-law’s brother had a kid.  That’s about it.
4. Did anyone close to you die? Cassidy.  I still don’t think I’ve dealt with losing the dog that I grew up with.

5. What countries did you visit?  None.  But I traveled plenty.  Connecticut.  Iowa.  Albuquerque.  Washington, twice.  Portland sub-trip.

6. What would you like to have in 2013 that you lacked in 2012? A sense of purpose in my work (outside of writing).  Also, a larger, more diverse group of friends and acquaintances.

7. What date from 2012 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? November 10^th.  Less specifically, October 20^th through November 20^th.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? 1.  Falling in love again.  2.  Getting into the Peace Corps.

9. What was your biggest failure? My inability to know what I truly feel at any given point and making decisive decisions based off of those feelings.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? The panic attack during the summer was the only real illness.  I really don’t get physically sick unless I drink too much (which I did a few times this year).

11. What was the best thing you bought? I don’t buy many physical things.  My best purchase, in the end, would be a hotel room in Portland, Oregon.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Alan and Sofia.  It’s strange.  Two of the most important people in my life right now…a barely new prior to 2012.  Alan has become a great friend and is one of the easiest people to talk to…ever.  Sofia added so much to my life and I will be forever grateful that she let our month together happen.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?  Audy.  This one needs no explanation.

14. Where did most of your money go? Rent and food and movies.  This is the first year that I had to spent a majority of my money on living expenses.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Going to Tacoma.  And the election.  Which ended up overlapping. =)

16. What song will always remind you of 2012? Almost Lover by A Fine Frenzy & Some Nights by fun.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Happier.  I was in a bit of a slump this time last year.  This year, with Sofia, everything is different.
ii. Richer or poorer? I was pretty poor this time last year.  I will say richer.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?  I wish I had spent more time reading, walking, and reflecting.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Time wasting was bad this year.  Bad internet and phone!

20. How will you be spending Christmas? I will be with my family

21. How will you be spending New Years? As always, that is up in the air.

22. Did you fall in love in 2012? Yes.  In beautiful fashion.

23. How many one-night stands? Zero.

24. What was your favorite TV program? I really didn’t watch TV this year.  I never lived in a house that had cable this year.  The most TV I watched was The Broncos and Election Coverage.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? As always, I hate using the word hate.  There’s people I like less.  But not hate.

26. What was the best book you read? In the end, it is going to be Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.  I just loved the way he wrote.  I can’t wait for the movie.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery? Adding a piano to any music makes it a thousand times better.  A Fine Frenzy is the perfect example.

28. What did you want and get? A Kindle and a camera.

30. What was your favorite film of this year? 1. Lincoln 2. Argo 3. Moonrise Kingdom…although I have yet to see Zero Dark Thirty or Les Miserables
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I was 23.  This was the first year that I drank a lot on my birthday.  A lot.  It was a wonderful party.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Making the move out to the West Coast.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2012? I tried a bit while in Tacoma.  Other than that, I still barely care.  I am slowly becoming more professional looking.

34. What kept you sane? I’m not entirely convinced I stayed sane this year.  In the end, Minecraft actually helped a lot.  Then, more than anything, Sofia really helped.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Yet again, it was likely Rachel Maddow.

36. What political issue stirred you the most? Guns and Gun Control.  The spark was Aurora and the Dark Knight Rises shootings.  That one hit close to home.  But, after the shootings in Newtown, CT, I feel it again.  This intense anger towards a government that refuses to deal with mental disorders or limit the sale of semi-automatic weapons.

37. Who did you miss? Sofia.  I desperately miss her.

38. Who was the best new person you met?  Sofia and Alan.  Although I technically met both of them in 2011, I didn’t say more than a few word to them until 2012.  These two have changed my life my leaps and bounds.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2012?   You don’t decide who you fall in love with.  You decide what you get to do once you do fall in love.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.  “A hundred day have made me older since the last time that I saw your pretty face.”