December 31, 2009
fifteen
1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?
Got divorced.
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I did. And I will. At the end of last year my primary goal was to officially end my marriage, find a new apartment and move out. And I did those things. I mean, in a way the resolution is a little lame because I had a whole year to move out and find an apartment but you know what? It was really hard, and I did it.
My resolution for this year is to be warmer; several months ago a friend told me that I was not a warm person and I was absolutely astonished. I had always thought that I interacted with the world in a warm and sincere way. I haven’t really been able to stop thinking about what she said–and this was months ago–so I’m resolving to be warmer. To people I know and people I don’t know. Maybe to myself. Who knows.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My sister is in labor right now.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No.
5. What countries did you visit?
Just the US (I went to California and NY each a handful of times).
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
A promotion. A good local (local!) friend.
7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Moving out. It took the movers twelve minutes to load all of my stuff into the van. Then I drove downtown. It was exhilarating and terrifying but mostly awesome.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
A lot of hard and painful things happened and I just kept trucking. Seriously. I would cry myself to sleep, cry and throw up on the way to work and then once I parked my car and walked into the building it was ON, MOTHERFUCKER. I excelled at my job and I did good work and even now I am a little impressed at how well I did.
9. What was your biggest failure?
When I was deeply, profoundly frustrated with a particular person, I allowed that to show. I should have kept it under wraps.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Well. I have been throwing up really frequently for about a year and I’m not sure why. So, yeah.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Hands down, every cent of money I ever paid to my cleaning woman.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Mine, sometimes.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
My sister.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Setting up a new household. Trying to find foods that would not make me throw up. Dog walker, dog walker, dog walker.
15. What did you get really excited about?
A few weeks ago I started to get really excited about taking a big trip. About halfway through the year I also got really excited about what I was wearing.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
Not a song, but a quote: don’t be afraid of failing; be afraid of succeeding at the wrong thing.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
– happier or sadder? Happier, by far.
– thinner or fatter? Fatter or the same.
– richer or poorer? Probably a bit poorer, since I moved from being half of a DINK couple to being single.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
More long walks with my dog, more going to bed early with a good book.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
I wish I had slept with my ex less.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
Heh. Oh, Christmas. Part of my job involves working about 18 hours a day the week before Christmas and then a good 6 or so hours on Christmas Day. So that’s what I did. I also took a long nap.
21. Did you fall in love in 2009?
With myself, pretty much. With Toronto.
22. What was your favorite TV program?
Glee, How I Met Your Mother and Project Runway. All very high-brow, of course.
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
No, actually, there’s a whole lot less hate in my heart.
24. What was the best book you read?
I read a real live print book that was published by an actual publishing house that I edited. That was pretty much tops right there.
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Uh. Tom Petty. Tom Petty Live.
26. What did you want and get?
A wonderful apartment, a really good pair of black boots (and a really good pair of red heels), a pair of gigantic sunglasses. That kind of thing.
27. What did you want and not get?
Of course I wanted to make headway on my Real Written Work; I think everyone on the internet does.
28. What was your favorite film of this year?
I am woefully, hopelessly behind on watching movies that people watch. I don’t think I have an answer for this.
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I had just come back from a business trip to Santa Barbara. I worked, and then I took myself to the movies to see 500 Days of Summer. I had some genuinely terrible movie theater popcorn, perhaps the worst movie theater popcorn of my entire life. Close to midnight I took myself out for a drink and a cheeseburger. I turned 29.
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Physical fitness.
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
Second half of the year it was skirts, boots, sweaters.
32. What kept you sane?
The internet. My dog. Being really good at my job. My bank account.
33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Obama, pretty much.
34. What political issue stirred you the most?
I was really not stirred by any political issue, one of the main benefits/drawbacks to living in Canada.
35. Who did you miss?
I missed the person my sister used to be and the person my husband used to be.
36. Who was the best new person you met?
I’m a giant asshole so I don’t really have an answer for this.
37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
Pls. see above about being a giant asshole.
38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
I am really not a song lyric person. REALLY.
kate 