1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?

Cooked spaghetti, did my taxes, watched someone die.

2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
   
   Um, no. And yes, I have my TGP and I’m going to make it work.
   
   
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

My cousin gave birth to a fat baby named Eric.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
   
   Yes. And someone close to me has already died in 2010, so hopefully that will be it for this year.
   
   
5. What countries did you visit?

Zero.

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?

More money saved up. More dogs in my life.

7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

March 19 (day I lost my job), March 23 & April 4, August 10 (grandmother’s death)

8. What were your biggest achievements of the year?

New job, paid off my car, getting mentions (and photos) in Crain’s Chicago Business, getting rid of a lot of stuff

9. What was your biggest failure?

No savings.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Recurrent colds.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

Red suitcases, a Christmas tree, several plane tickets.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

I have no idea.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Mark Mangino.

14. Where did most of your money go?

I have spent a ridiculous amount of money on my relationship (he has too).

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Watchmen. It wasn’t worth the excitement. I was really excited about the Green City Market BBQ, which was worth the excitement.

16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
    
    I can’t think of anything.
    
17. Compared to this time last year, are you

i. happier or sadder?: both
ii. thinner or fatter? ugh
iii. richer or poorer? richer, sort of.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

Relaxing. Kissing and hugging. Learning.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Worrying. Freaking out. Feeling guilty.

20. How did you spend Christmas?

Cooking Christmas dinner with my mom in Bryan, Texas.

21. Did you fall in love in 2009?

Yes.

22. What was your favorite TV program?

Mad Men, Lost in a close second.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

I do not.

24. What was the best book you read?

Forty Million Dollar Slaves

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Didn’t really have any this year.

26. What did you want and get?

A new iPod, a couch, um…a boyfriend who doesn’t think I’m a total freak (maybe?).

27. What did you want and not get?

A Wii? I guess?

28. What was your favorite film of this year?

Probably Up.

29. What did you do on your birthday?

Birthday brunch, watched basketball, watched some movies, went to a bar, walked home barefoot.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
    
    A non-long distance relationship (no regrets!). A bazillion dollars.
    
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?

Um…wearing clothes that keep me from being naked?

32. What kept you sane?
    
    Wine. My cell phone and Google Talk.
    
33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Can I count Turner Gill?

34. What political issue stirred you the most?

Probably health care.

35. Who did you miss?

My family and my friends who don’t live in Chicago.

36. Who were the best new people you met in 2009?

Kevin. Pete. Green City Market girls.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009:
    
    Make sure the people you love know you love them before it’s too late.
    

December 27 Social web moment. Did you meet someone you used to only know from her blog? Did you discover Twitter?

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I had a few of these this year. Meeting Paige Worthy for the first time thanks a Facebook exchange about Spring Awakening (she and I had Twitter discussions, G-mail discussions, friends in common and we studied Journalism at KU at the same time so it was only a matter of time). Meeting Pete, who has turned out to be a good friend, thanks to Twitter and the Phog. Winning a $50 lunch to Balsan at the Elysian thanks to Ellen Malloy.

I suppose the biggest social web moment would be recognition for my work at Green City Market. I had an interview with Spiral 16 about how small, non-profit organizations use social media. Green City Market was named one of the 21 best small or medium-sized Chicago organizations to use social media. I was interviewed (and photo-fied) by Crain’s Chicago Business for a story on non-profits using media (to come out in Jan. 2010). It’s just a good morale booster to know your work is being appreciated, so for me that’s one of my favorite social web moments in 2009.

Well, I turned twenty-five this Saturday.

It was a pretty good day. I went to brunch at Sola with Courtney and her mom, and I’ve been wanting to go there for a long time. The food and blood orange mimosas were delicious, of course. After that, I went home and watched KU basketball and followed the breaking news about our new football hire, Turner Gill. I watched a Hitchcock movie, talked to loved ones on the phone and ended the night at the Long Room with my good Chicago friends.

Oh, and walked home in 30 degree rain with no shoes on. Cool.

Twenty-four was interesting. I don’t know that I need to review it for myself, so I’ll spare all of you.

What will twenty-five be like? Who knows. I have my set of resolutions that I’m calling The Grand Plan. I hope to be a healthier, debt-free (lol), decent cook with a better idea of what I want to do with my life. I’ve set my direction, now I just have to…move that way.

Thanks to everyone who made my twenty-fourth year enjoyable.

December 8: Moment of peace. An hour or a day or a week of solitude. What was the quality of your breath? The state of your mind? How did you get there?
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My entry for this one covers not quite a moment of solitude, but instead a peaceful moment that I really needed to share with the people I love. I don’t know how many of you have been able to experience death when it “happens.” I have. As I wrote on my blog about four hours after my grandmother died, “I gasped and then yelled and ran out of the room. I crawled into a corner and started to hyperventilate. I’ve never felt like that before. Once I finally calmed down, I felt so much relief. Her pain was gone.”

I mean what I said about relief.

The two hours I spent in the hospital room were stressful. I cried so much that I ran out of tears. I got angry at selfish family members. I looked at my dad and hoped that, for once, I’d be able to comprehend what was going on in his head. My step-grandpa left about four minutes before she died, and once she left my dad ran to get him. He walked in slowly on his walker and said, “Is she gone?” We nodded and he screamed “PUDDIN’!” and collapsed in a chair next to her bed, sobbing. My dad cried (and I’ve only seen him cry twice before) and whispered,  “I’ve lost my best friend.” In the middle of all of this, I had the most intense panic attack of my life. It was like something out of a movie— but hey, I come from a family of actors and we do drama right.

Once the room cleared out and my wonderful great-aunt Ann made the arrangements to have her body taken to the funeral home, I sat in the room with my Mee-Maw and my dad, his sisters, my mom and my sister. And we just sat, in silence and looked at her. My grandmother had been slowly suffering for the last two years of her life and we all knew. And it was finally over. My head was clear. And (especially after the two most intense and painful hours of my life) I just appreciated the quiet and the peace and the amount of love in that room. And the relief. We just sat, waiting and breathing, with heads on each other’s shoulders and hands squeezing each other’s hands. And we loved.

So in order to not totally hate on 2009 and also not have a completely bad attitude, I’m going to participate in the Best of 2009 Blog Challenge. I think this will get me to start writing more frequently and also maybe appreciate more of 2009 than I do currently.

Since I’m starting late and don’t really have anything to write for the Dec. 7th entry, I’m going to go back and write for December 1st.

December 1 What was your best trip in 2009?

My best trip would have been the day trip I took to Milwaukee with Courtney sometime this spring. It was a very cheap and quick trip. We spent time doing something every single moment (good thing about a day trip, you’re rarely bored) and really enjoyed the places we visited (the art museum, the cute little Westport-like area). Courtney did a lot of research on places to visit and I really appreciate the thought she put into this trip. I’d really like to go back and visit— maybe next time the art museum won’t have to close its flaps early. I think this goes to show you that you don’t have to spend a ton of money or a ton of time somewhere to enjoy that place.

My second best trip would probably have been my Kansas City trip in mid-November. It was really good to be back in my hometown, visiting Kevin, and also be able see people I hadn’t seen in a long time. I’m starting to enjoy weekend trips and this was a good example of a really wonderful weekend away.