New Year’s Meme

I haven’t got the energy to summon up a real entry tonight.  I’m not feeling well.  I started feeling really off by the time we headed home from the mall (we had to get out of the house after being snowbound yesterday), and by the time I got home, I just felt rotten.  Ugh.  I hope this passes.

Instead I will do the New Year’s Meme, stolen from The Purple Chai and Cocoabean, though I won’t be doing photos in mine since I am just not that cool.

What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before? I traveled to San Jose to meet up with my Flickr group.

Did you keep your new year’s resolutions and will you make more for next year? I didn’t make resolutions last year.

Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes, I did.

Did anyone close to you die? No.

What countries did you visit? Amazingly enough, both Kurt and I kept our travels to the continental United States of America.

What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008? Patience.

What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? September 9th, the day I gave birth to Mary Ellen.  That, and September 7th, the day my friends threw me the best baby shower ever.

What was your biggest achievement of the year? I’m starting to sound repetitive here, but I’m going to say giving birth.

What was your biggest failure? Not having enough patience, losing my temper, letting it get the best of me, and worrying far too much about what other people think of me.

Did you suffer illness or injury? No, I was very fortunate on that front.

What was the best thing you bought? My laptop.

Whose behavior made you appalled or depressed? My own.

Whose behavior merited celebration? Kurt’s for putting up with me for so long.

Where did most of your money go? On random stuff.

What did you get really, really, really excited about? I’d have to agree with the election.

Compared to this time last year, are you:

• a. happier or sadder? Happier.
• b. thinner or fatter? Fatter.
• c. richer or poorer? Poorer.

What do you wish you’d done more of? Spent time on projects for myself, and read more.

What do you wish you’d done less of? Being angry/upset/depressed.

How did you spend Christmas? At home with my parents, who were visiting.  Dad and I went out photographing Newport, which was more fun than it had any right to be.

Did you fall in love in 2008? No.

How many one-night stands? I’m too old and too married for that crap.

What was your favorite TV program? Um.  This is hard.  I guess I’ll say Top Gear.

Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Mmm, no.  I don’t hate anyone.

What was the best book you read? Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor.

What did you want and get? Spending more time with my family.

What did you want and not get? A new point & shoot camera, but that’s because I don’t really need it yet.

What was your favorite film of this year? WALL-E.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I was 29.  We went to a carnival over on the base, friends came over to enjoy Kurt’s lasagna and share cake and ice cream, AND there was a lunar eclipse going on.  Amazing.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? If we had paid off most of our credit card debt.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008? I wear what is comfortable but also what flatters my curves.

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I’m not sure what we mean by fancy, but the most fascinating was Barack Obama.  (I’m just going to steal this directly from Chai because it’s so true.)

What political issue stirred you the most? The election.

Who did you miss? My friends back in Washington — Jill and Laurie, Colleen, Judy, Debbie, Terri, Steph, Susan.

Who was the best new person you met? Hand’s down, my friend B who is a fellow “Army Wives” girl.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008. Don’t sweat the small stuff — and it’s all small stuff.

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year. “It’s like a book elegantly bound but / In a language that you can’t read.”  I think I’m doing one thing, and I’m coming across entirely differently, so it seems like life’s a book written in a language I don’t know.