I’ve never done this questionnaire before, but RA posted her responses, and I thought I’d play along.
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1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?
Presented at three conferences (yay!) and sleep in the bathtub (boo! Long story. And no, I wasn't drunk.)
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Hmm. Looking at these, I did ok. I made new friends/got closer with those I had already made, got a little better at cooking for one--I rotated meals a bit more frequently, at least, though Paul Newman's Supreme Pizza made a too-frequent appearance, maintained the 4.0 and kept the apartment cleanish. I guess I got better at complimenting myself and tried to be a good Auntie Hil and actually dated myself quite a bit. I did not, however, take a Facebook break or keep up with my journal (or even blog, really).
For 2012, some of those are still on the docket--cooking, cleaning, dating myself, grades. New ones? Hmm. 2012 is likely to be a pretty damn stressful year what with going through exams this spring, doing my proposal and IRB in the summer, and doing my dissertation research in the fall. There is at least one wacky adventure planned, though, which is something to look forward to.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Ohmyword, yes. This year, I welcomed Rowyn Fleissig, Jack Bradley and Ella Piro within five months of each other. It's an epidemic, I tell you.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Thankfully, no.
5. What countries did you visit?
Just various parts of the good ol' US of A: Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Texas, Virginia and Missouri. I did accidentally end up in Illinois, too. Whoops.
6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you didn’t have in 2011?
Hmm. A date? Sex? A winning lottery ticket? World peace? A teaching-only assistantship for the following school year? A really good eyebrow waxer in Columbus since I won't see my dear Hans until summer? The Phillies getting to the World Series?
7. What dates from 2011 will be etched upon your memory, and why?
August 11th will always be the date of my legal divorce. I'm ok with it, but it's still a little weird. My 3 conferences were pretty neat, and those dates are on my C.V.
8. What was your biggest achievement of this year?
I am pretty psyched that I got accepted to a big, international conference for March. I also seem to have some of my medical symptoms under control, thanks to a smart endocrinologist.
9. What was your biggest failure?
I didn't blog nearly as much as I would like and probably watched more tv than I should have. I didn't really aim to do much that was super huge or important, so I also didn't really fail. Isn't life safe that way? Blech. It's also boring. Let's fix that.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I had two small summer colds in June/July that were annoying, but not debilitating by any stretch of the imagination. I had some minor surgery a couple of weeks ago, too, but honestly, I remain one of the healthiest people I know (knock on wood).
11. What was the best thing you bought?
I bought a CrockPot, a hair straightener and some cute, bargain-priced clothes that all come in handy and help my team. I didn't buy anything remarkable that comes to mind. Oh wait--NKOTBSB tickets! That was so fun.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My mom made it out of surgery in August and recovered quickly, which was nice. My friends are always being fantastic, too.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Jerry Sandusky, the Kardashians, the GOP as a whole, the Eagles...
14. Where did most of your money go?
Bills. After that, conference travel (grad students don't get reimbursed nearly enough).
15. What did you get really excited about?
The Hunger Games trailer. Putting my dissertation committee together and seeing the light at the end of the (very stressful) tunnel. The Muppets.
16. What song will always remind you of 2011?
Ooh, good question. I've blogged about songs before, and I'm sure there is a ton from this past year that will take me back to 2011 for years to come. Honestly, I probably can't name just one. That's cheating on this question, I know.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer?
Happier, thinner, poorer. Though the latter is such a relative term that it hardly matters.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Writing. Reading. Cooking. Teaching (with that assistantship I wish I'd had). Dancing. Outdoorsy stuff.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Torturing myself for less than stellar decision making? Spending time trying to control things beyond my control? Stressing out about things that end up being ok?
20. How will you spend Christmas?
I was with Kitty on Christmas and then saw my friend Claire's family for cookies. I have this uncanny ability to show up just as dessert is being served. Kitty and I keep it pretty low key--breakfast and just a few presents and then a yummy dinner.
21. Did you fall in love in 2011?
Not unless you count my celebrity crushes on Ryan Gosling and Rachel Maddow. (Jason Segel was already cemented as celeb #1.)
22. What was your favorite TV program?
Well, Rachel became part of my morning routine, but I still love How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, The Daily Show, and The Colbert Report. I broke up with Glee.
23. What was the best book you read?
Oh dear, I read a lot and am currently having literary amnesia. Fun Home was pretty fantastic. Not all of these are from 2011, of course, but if I read it, it's here.
24. What was your greatest musical discovery?
I know it's lame to say this, but I'm sort of "meh" about music. I was introduced to a podcast that keeps me entertained though.
25. What did you want and get?
Accepted to the conferences, this one professor to be on my committee (I was worried he'd say no), tall boots in a color other than black (grey), a couple close new friends, a couple decent haircuts...
26. What did you want and not get?
Hmm. A better price for our house? (I wouldn't have seen any of the money, but it would have been a happier ending.)
27. What was your favorite film of 2011?
I see so many movies that it's hard to keep track, honestly. Crazy, Stupid, Love was good enough to see twice in the theater, as was The Muppets. Tree of Life is highly recommended, too. But really, I saw a lot of good, pretty good, and really good movies. (And a bunch of crappy ones, but I rented those.) It's pretty much my favorite thing to do for fun (on a regular basis, at least; I also like going dancing, but I can't do that more than once every now and then).
28. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 32, went out for drinks and apps with girlfriends after class.
29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Seeing some of my best girlfriends more often. And obviously some political things. Idiots.
30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept of 2011?
Straight jeans, solid tees and cardigans with long, dangly necklaces and a seasonal shoe variation (sandals/flats/tall boots). Winter means sweater dresses and leggings.
31. What kept you sane?
My girlfriends, Morris (though near Thanksgiving, he caused a lot of stress), lots of sleep, BodyAttack class, sitcom reruns, fantasizing about celebrities, Starbucks Awake tea, and M&Ms.
32. What political issue stirred you the most?
I have to pick one? HA! The federal ban/BS about gay marriage and the (idiotic and thankfully defeated) Tennessee Personhood amendment come the most immediately to mind; politics in general get me riled up, so I'm sure there's more.
33. Who did you miss?
My long-distance girlfriends.
34. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.
Life is a lovely mix of what actually happens and how you react to what happens. I knew this already, but it was reinforced.
35. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Wow. That's hard and I can't think of anything. I will share a funny instead: a girlfriend and I were driving around yesterday and "Flagpole Sitta" by Harvey Danger came on the radio. I admitted that I used to think the lyric was "put me in a hospital for nerds and then they had to commit me." That is where I belong--committed in a hospital for nerds. The next 18 months are likely to be the cause of that...
Neil Gaiman, I do plan on some good madness for 2012.
"May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, and don't forget to make some art -- write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself."
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