Wednesday, January 20, 2010

2009 Survey

I love these. So I just had to copy my SIL Emily and do it, too. Thanks, Em.

(And I actually wrote this a week ago, but we have been posting so much other stuff, it was in the edit list) . . .

  1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before? Many things, but let's go with "Got a puppy" for this one.

  2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Ditching New Year's Resolutions has been one of the best things I've done in a while. I love the new "word of the year" approach. Much more Zen. I love it. And yes, I did a pretty great job living by my word for 2009.

  3. Did anyone close to you give birth? My SIL Lindsay and 2 good friends in our homeschool group.

  4. Did anyone close to you die? My uncle died. (Warning: not a happy post).

  5. What countries did you visit? Lots of states in the U.S. (24 in 2009, if I'm counting correctly).

  6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009? We're working hard on paying off more student loans.

  7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? I'm not sure, but maybe November 12-15th-ish -- for a lot of reasons, including that that's when we got Scout.

  8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Making some big decisions. Let's just leave it at that. Oh and going to Disney World, thanks to Jim! And a cross-country road trip to visit family. And visiting New England. And connecting with old friends (see, there are some good things about Facebook). And attending the National Book Festival. And making our backyard beautiful. Okay, so lots.

  9. What was your biggest failure? I don't view any of it as failure. It is what it is. I'm a big believer in people generally doing the best they know how at any given time.

  10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Thankfully, no.

  11. What was the best thing you bought? New fence for the back yard? Not a big shopper. Oh wait! The Wii Fit. LOVE that thing.

  12. Whose behavior merited celebration? My mom's. I have to hand it to her as always. She's a widow and it's not easy for her, but I'm grateful that she visits us so much and looks out for us. Even though we don't always see eye-to-eye, I think we have a pretty great adult mother-daughter relationship. My husband also deserves big kudos for being who he is and working so hard for our family in so many ways. Our kids are also growing so big so fast and they are delightful. I love them.

  13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Um. Not sure. California's? :P I guess I've felt rather annoyed by people who make assumptions, often based on rumor, rather than checking out facts with someone who is supposedly their friend, people who don't think for themselves, and I've also felt annoyed by what I perceive to be cold distance from people from whom I'd expect otherwise, but I'm learning to accept. I think. And honestly, these are somewhat minor annoyances. I had to really think hard to come up with them.

  14. Where did most of your money go? Backyard and cross-country trip as well as malpractice insurance and mortgages and student loan payments. It's remarkable really.

  15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Feeling happier and more at peace. And also reconnecting with my childhood friend Cathy. Didn't realize how much I missed her. I LOVE her.

  16. What song will always remind you of 2009? Say by John Mayer.

  17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
    a) happier or sadder? Much happier. Significantly.
    b) thinner or fatter? About the same.
    c) richer or poorer? Richer, but still very much in debt. But money aside, I feel like a very rich woman in other ways. I consider myself very, very lucky. And I'm grateful. Very grateful.

  18. What do you wish you’d done more of? I'm happy with how the year's been. Maybe had more chutzpah?

  19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Again, can't think of anything. I think this "living authentically" stuff contributes to a great deal of satisfaction.

  20. How did you spend Christmas? Here as a family. We loved having my Mom with us.

  21. Did you fall in love in 2009? Already very much in love when it started.

  22. What was your favorite TV program? The Amazing Race.

  23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? No. No one is worth creating that kind of negativity in me.

  24. What was the best book you read? For vastly different reasons, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and The Dance of the Dissident Daughter.

  25. What was your greatest musical discovery? Say by John Mayer? Or maybe Michael Franti and Spearhead?

  26. What did you want and get? I don't have a lot of wants, so a lot of the things I got and then liked were things I wasn't looking to necessarily get but other people thought I would enjoy and then it turned out that I really liked (KitchenAid, Zune, and Wii Fit come to mind). I also really wanted to attend the National Book Festival and did! Yay us!

  27. What did you want and not get? Somebody (Oprah?) to throw us a bone with that cross-country journey of ours --it really was a nearly impossible feat.

  28. What was your favorite film of this year? Julie and Julia -- loved it!

  29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I am getting to that age when you forget how old you are and have to do the math quickly to figure it out . . . 2009 minus 1974 equals 35. Yes, that's right. I turned 35. Mark and the kids got me a Zune. I am still trying to learn how to use it, because I'm technologically challenged that way. But I love it.

  30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Winning the lottery so that we could pay down student loans? A plethora of friends to help celebrate my birthday? A magic wand?

  31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009? Black, gray, and white. Jeans, shirts, and cardigans.

  32. What kept you sane? My husband and kids. My SILs. And recently, Cathy.

  33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I love the word "fancy" used as a verb. I need to use that more. I fancy the Obamas.

  34. What political issue stirred you the most? Mostly, I just enjoyed the process and the shift in power from 8 years of Bush to something so fresh and new. And I loved every minute of the excitement surrounding the election of our first black president. It was historic and, for me, moving.

  35. Who did you miss? My Dad.

  36. Who was the best new person you met? Kristie. She is a nice new friend and even invited us over for Thanksgiving which was really thoughtful. I also enjoyed meeting a new SIL (Lindsay) and several new nieces and nephews from Mark's side of the family.

  37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009. Listen to your heart and trust the divine within yourself.

  38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
"Walking like a one man army,
Fighting with the shadows in your head,
Living out the same old moment,
Knowing you'd be better off instead,
If you could only . . .
Say what you need to say . . .
Have no fear for giving in,
Have no fear for giving over,
You'd better know that in the end,
It's better to say too much,
Then never say what you need to say again . . .

Even if your hands are shaking,
And your faith is broken,
Even as the eyes are closing,
Do it with a heart wide open . . .
Say what you need to say . . . "



6 comments:

Emily said...

why are these so fun? I love them. Thought provoking and interesting and fun. And I forgot to mention Lindsay giving birth in my post, darn it. I also love the word "Fancy" as a verb. There are lots of british-ish terms like that that I wish I could use more often but feel pretentious doing.

Foltron said...

I feel quite sorry for you and Mark if winning the lottery will only help pay down and not pay off your student loans.

Vivian said...

I agree with the emily, "Thought provoking and interesting and fun." I'd love to know what big decisions you made and why California appalled and depressed you. But I know from a recent post that you don't like uncomfortable questions, so I'm not asking, I'd just love to know. I have to remind myself all the time--perception is not reality and "I'm a big believer in people generally doing the best they know how at any given time." Oh... and I, too, admire your mom.

Anonymous said...

Two things from your post--I can now ALMOST tolerate John Mayer. And you're right, it was a fun political year, but politics were never funner than when Clinton was in office.

J Fo said...

Loved this! It's like we just had a really deep and thoughtful conversation! hehe I think I might have to steal this idea soon before I forget all about 2009!

Boquinha said...

Emily, seriously. I love these! And agreed on the British thing. I mean, "Right-O, good chap (lass?)!"

Greg, eye-opening, eh? They are just slightly less than our 2 mortgages put together. It's like a gigantic monkey on our backs. Wild thing is, most of our med school colleagues borrowed twice as much as we did!

Vivian, the California thing (election) was slightly tongue-in-cheek. Yep, one of the things I teach my clients is "Our perception is *our* reality."

Jimmy, interesting! Why the John Mayer issues? I think when Clinton was in office, I was such an appalled Republican (at the time), that I didn't enjoy the fun. I do think Palin made things fun, though. :P (Though I thank God she didn't win--that would've been less "fun" and more "SCARY!").

Jess, do it! I'd love to read it. I love writing prompts like this! Not one bit surprised you do, too. ;)