Annual New Year's quiz thing time! I love reading other people's responses to this quiz every year, and here's to hoping that you do too. 2007, 2008, and 2009 versions, should you care to look.
1. What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before? Got a job that I did not hate. Started a (*cough*prize-winning) garden. Celebrated a year of marriage. Started composting. Crafted a homemade Christmas wreath. Learned how to (sort of) knit.
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?I have fallen out of the habit of making real resolutions because I didn't really like the pressure I put on myself to achieve each and every one of them. Since one of my resolutions several years running was to be less hard on myself, I'd say that means yes, yes I did keep my resolutions.
I did informally resolve to go to yoga more this year, meaning I wanted to clock at least 53 classes during 2010. Going once a week has been my norm for several years and it's pretty easy to fit in one class on the weekends, but it gets tricky when we go out of town or have company and I then have to try to "make up" the missed class. In 2009 I just barely squeaked out 52 classes, thanks to the month I took off for the wedding/honeymoon, the three weeks I was incapacitated after my knee surgery, and the ridiculous amount of traveling I did for work, my brother's wedding and related activities, my wedding shower/bachelorette party, friends' weddings... etc. Anyway, this year was much calmer on the travel and wedding side, and I clocked in 64 classes. I'm quite proud! I am signed up for a teacher training course that starts in February, and the course requires that I go to three classes per week (OMG) so next year's tally will be even higher.
I also kind of resolved to lose some of the extra weight I'd been carrying and get into better shape, and I'd say I did fairly well at that. The last time I weighed in at the gym I'd lost a total of about 6-7 lbs. Sadly, that weigh-in was almost a month ago and I haven't been to the gym since then. I have no good reason other than I just never feel like going, even though the damn gym is right in my office building now.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes, the newly pregnant friend mentioned in last year's survey gave birth to an adorable baby boy!
4. Did anyone close to you die? Thankfully, no, but I am a little afraid that Madison's name will be in this space next year. The old badger is not looking so good lately, and by that I mean he is looking even worse than usual. He's due for his annual vet visit this month which should be a rocking good time, as always.
5. What countries did you visit?This is the first year in a good long while that has not seen a stamp on the old passport. We did go to Colorado for our anniversary in July, and we made a visit to Vermont in October... but other than that and several weekend/daytrips to New Jersey, we pretty much stayed put.
6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010? A new job for Joel, complete with a new location for us.
7. What dates from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? April 2nd, my last day at my old job, and April 12, my start date at my new job.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Getting a new job; realizing that it is possible to not only not hate your job, but to actually like it.
9. What was your biggest failure? I'm really not sure.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? I am getting really sick of listing my knee for this question. Guess who's back in physical therapy? THIS GIRL. My settlement had better be very large is all I'm saying.
11. What was the best thing you bought? I'm having trouble coming up with something for this question, possibly because we tried really, really hard to put as much money into savings as possible this year. I did buy this pursein August and I love it, like, a lot. The Groupon for 5 Bikram yoga classes for $20 was an excellent purchase, and we've been getting a lot of mileage out of our Netflix via Xbox live acount as well.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Same answer as last year: Joel's. I would be lost without him.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Appalled: People who cannot shut the hell up in the movies. Depressed: Apostrophe abusers.
14. Where did most of your money go? The mortgage was far and away our biggest expense this year.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Quitting my old job. I miss certain things, most notably my old coworkers, but on the whole I am so, so, SO happy to be free of that place.
16. What song will always remind you of 2010? Zero, by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Help I'm Alive and Stadium Love by Metric.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
(a) Happier or Sadder? Happier.
(b) Thinner or Fatter? Thinner.
(c) Richer or Poorer? Richer.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Hiking. Writing.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Sitting around wondering what we should do on the weekends.
20. How did you spend Christmas in 2010? Christmas kind of blended in with the rest of my week-long vacation this year, which is just fine with me. We stayed home, slept in, watched Scrooged (which I'd never seen before) and then I screwed up our Christmas Ham (which was actually a shoulder roast, but whatever) but it turned out delicious anyway. Christmas was lovely.
21. Did you fall in love in 2010? With Raylan Givens, yes.
22. What was your favorite TV program? Justified. Walking Dead is a close second.
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Every single one of the stupid hooligans that ruined a movie for me this year by yelling through the whole damn thing.
24. What was the best book you read? I didn't have a standout best book this year, but here are the books I really enjoyed:
Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
Watership Down by Richard Adams (This was a re-read, and I think I loved it even more than I did in high school.)
Peace Like a River by Leif Enger
The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
Island Beneath the Sea by Isabel Allende
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
Shiver and Linger by Maggie Stiefvater
Hey, speaking of books, are you on Goodreads? Me too! Want to be my friend?
25. What was your greatest musical discovery? Metric. My god, they are good. Also, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
26. What did you want and get? A new job!
27. What did you want and not get? A new job for Joel. And a new house.
28. What was your favorite film of this year? I always have to ask Joel for help with this question, so here are our combined favorites:
How to Train Your Dragon. You guys, this is the cutest movie ever.
Inception. Lived up to the hype!
True Grit. As discussed.
The Town. Even though this movie was totally ruined for me, once again, by loud punk-ass kids in the theater. At the 2pm showing. IS NOTHING SACRED.
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 29, and I cannot remember for the life of me what I did.
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Having more than one closet and a dedicated parking space.
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010? Jeans, Jcrew tshirt, hoodie and Privos.
32. What kept you sane? Quitting my old job. This is getting a little repetitive, but I don't know how much longer I was going to survive in that basement dungeon.
33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Tie, between Timothy Olyphant and Georges St-Pierre. Did I mention that not only did I get totally into Ultimate Fighter this past season, but we went to watch the pay-per-view finale? At a sports bar? I never thought I would care about a sporting event -- let alone a fighting sport -- in my life. But between my love for polite, Canadian Georges and my burning hatred for Josh Koscheck, I was no-shit nervous about the outcome of that fight. (Georges won!)
34. What political issue stirred you the most? Ugh, I don't know. I hate politics. I am pretty psyched about the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell, though. I hope one day my kids will be unable to believe that such a stupid policy was ever real.
35. Who did you miss? My two best friends, who live way too far away.
36. Who was the best new person you met? Raylan Givens.
37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010. If the other person pulls first, it's justified.
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2010 was a great year for us, and I hope it was for you all too. And if it wasn't, well, hooray! It's over! Here's to a happy and healthy 2011. Happy freaking new year, internet.
you hit the #17 trifecta! That is a sure sign of a pretty good year :)
I have How to Train your Dragon waiting for me at home, just need to make time to watch it finally!
Posted by: janet | Monday, January 03, 2011 at 05:25 PM
Ooh, I liked Peace Like a River, too. Wasn't it kind of haunting and lovely?
Way to go on your yoga!
Posted by: RA | Monday, January 03, 2011 at 05:58 PM
I love reading the answers to this quiz! So fun! And it's so awesome that you love your job. I hope that 2011 brings you - and Joel - everything you want.
Posted by: Life of a Doctor's Wife | Wednesday, January 05, 2011 at 12:04 PM
Very excited about all the developments for this year- especially for you to become a yoga instructor (yoga retreats at your house!)And I LOVE the happier/thinner/richer trifecta (as mentioned by janet)
Posted by: beth | Wednesday, January 05, 2011 at 06:14 PM
We should start a UFC blog. =)
Posted by: -R- | Thursday, January 06, 2011 at 12:07 PM
So glad your new job gave you such a happiness boost in 2010. And hey, you read "The Fountainhead"! I do love me some Ayn Rand (her fiction, not her philosophy).
Posted by: Frema | Wednesday, January 12, 2011 at 01:10 PM