Out With the Old …

I’m thinking my first resolution for 2014 should be to write here more. Ah well, what better way to be consistent than to at the very least do this kind of post every year?

Hope you all had a fun and safe New Year’s Eve and aren’t sending the day too hungover, be it from partying to just lack of sleep! And sending our wishes that 2014 brings you love, laughter, joy and just the overall awesome life that you deserve.

Here is 2012 and 2011. I’ve got previous years hidden somewhere. How was your 2013?

1. What did you do in 2013 that you’d never done before? 2013 was an odd year for me in that it really felt like it flew by. All of our big events from 2012 seem like they happened this past spring and summer instead of the one before. We had some pretty serious things come up in the beginning of the year that I think kind of put a damper on the whole thing. But overall, it was a pretty quiet year. As a result, I really don’t think there was anything I hadn’t ever done before that I did. Unless you count superficial things, like having a girls weekend in Charlotte with my sister-in-law so we could see Pink or factory ordering a new vehicle. But there wasn’t any life changing accomplishments. Which frankly, I’m ok with. I’d rather have a quiet year than a tumultuous one. Though I did just remember that I tried yoga and loved it. Steve and I were doing it for a couple of weeks and will probably try to get back into in 2014. So that was a “new” thing.
2. Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I am a list maker by trade. My entire life consists of lists of lists of things to do, things to accomplish. So of course, I make resolutions. And some of them I kept, some I could have done better. I like to think of them as more guidelines anyway. Things I know I need to pay more attention to it in the following year. So that I look back and have something to reference as needed.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? No one in my family but a few friends had babies. Next year though, we’re expecting my first nephew and I’m so, so excited about that.
4. Did anyone close to you die? I always enjoy the years that I can give a resounding NO to this question.
5. What places did you visit? I’m changing this to places because every year, I expound on how I don’t go to “countries” and never actually thought about changing it. Of course, the year I do this is the year we really didn’t go anywhere at all. I made a trip to Charlotte and to my hometown in NC. Steve and I went back to Philly. I went to Atlanta for work. And we generally just putted around the Lowcountry here.
6. What would you like to have in 2014 that you lacked in 2013? Better will power and more energy. I am, as I have just now come to terms with, inherently lazy. Or perhaps unmotivated is the better way to describe it. I have grand plans to do it all and be all but at the end of the day, I just want to take my pants off and eat macaroni and cheese in front of the TV. I often wonder how many mountains I could move if I just tried a little harder. I would love to want to try.
7. What dates from 2013 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? A lot of these date are private because we had some downers in 2013 that kind of affected things. But a few of them are positive. January – the day our new boss started and work became a much better place to be. March 17th – the weekend I got to see Pink, my favorite singer, with my sister-in-law, my favorite bestie. September 7th – the day Steve bought his Jeep. November 16th – the day I ordered my Jeep and negotiated like a champ. December 26th – the day I picked up my Jeep.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? There were a couple at work that allowed us to move forward with a project that has been stagnant for awhile. 2014 will be the final push for those though. And as far as at home goes, nothing major. As I said above, I had a quiet year and it just kind of came and went. So there wasn’t much as far as huge achievements went. Maybe little things like finally replacing the lights in our kitchen and dining room. Though I’ve cut down on my soda intake drastically and replaced it with sparkling water. I’m not completely done with soda but I’m very close. So I think that could count as one. I was pretty much addicted to Diet Coke so it’s like overcoming an addiction.
9. What was your biggest failure? Falling off track with my fitness regime and eating healthy. All of the weight I managed to lose in 2012 just came right back in 2013. It is something I struggle with constantly and absolutely know I need to improve upon. So I’m hoping I can bring it back to life at a more moderate pace that I can easier keep up with.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Thank god there was none this year because we dealt with some serious illness with a close family member so I don’t think we could’ve done that and us at the same time.
11. What was the best thing you bought? My new Jeep! After ten years of driving my Hyundai up and down and all over the East Coast, it was finally time to say goodbye to the old girl. And I was determined to get exactly what I wanted since I knew I would be keeping the next car for quite a long time. And I couldn’t have made a better decision. I have never been so in love with a car. It’s amazing! Also, our Xbox One. And the giant seven foot bean bag that Steve got me for my birthday. (Though I didn’t really “buy” either one of those.)
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? As with every year, my husband. I am very fortunate to have found someone to be my partner and my cheerleader and my rock. He pointed out to me this year that a testament to our love is how often we high five. Which is a simple way of saying how in sync we are and how we always are in each other’s corner. And I hope to continue high fiving him for eternity.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Unfortunately, there are a lot of people in my life that I need to keep at an arm’s reach because if I let them in, there will be a lot more drama and issues than I need or want. These are usually the people who make me appalled and depressed. And those are the reasons that I just don’t let them in as much as I should or deep down, really want to.
14. Where did most of your money go? Our money always goes towards the bills, as I’m sure yours does too. We need to keep a roof over our head and food on the table and that shit’s expensive. And my goal is eventually to be debt free so that takes a lot of up front expenses.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? We had a staycation in February that I really looked forward to. And we knew we were going back to Philly for a wedding in October so that was something we looked forward to. And the six weeks between when I had the dealer order by Jeep and when it arrived was full of anticipation and excitement (and completely worth every minute)!
16. What song will always remind you of 2013? Wagon Wheel – Darius Rucker, Jolene – Zac Brown, Colder Weather – Zac Brown, Let It Go – Zac Brown, The Monster – Eminem, Doomsday – Nero (because of Borderlands 2)
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
    a) happier or sadder? It is always a wonderful thing for me to be able to answer this question with happier because even though life has thrown some curveballs, I am generally happy with it.
    b) thinner or fatter? FATTER! BOO! All the progress I had made went out the window because I got lazy.
    c) richer or poorer? I’m always comfortable floating along in the same money department. That will change when the car payment kicks in I’m sure but it’s manageable. As far as life goes, I’m richer. Infinitely.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of? I wish I had exercised more. I wish I had done more healthy living. Spent more time with the ones I loved. Told people I loved them more. All things that I’m working on balancing.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Wish I had drank less alcohol and eaten less awful food. I wish I had been less negative about things and people. And less time spent on the couch in my PJs doing nothing. Though I always enjoy that sometimes it’s hard to get motivated.
20. How did you spend Christmas? Surprisingly, we had no plans this year. All of my family is scattered and we don’t really visit Philly anymore so we were able to stay at home. Normally, we’d get together with my parents because they live in town but they were traveling this year so we just stayed in and enjoyed a quiet day. Watched our favorite movies on Christmas Eve, ate cheese and crackers. Then opened presents the next day, watched A Christmas Story, made dinner and texted and called people.
21. Who did you spend the most time on the phone with? I don’t talk on the phone much. Who does anymore really? But if I had to pick, as always, it was definitely my mother or sister-in-law.
22. What was your favorite TV program? Boardwalk Empire. Sons of Anarchy. Breaking Bad. Game of Thrones.
23. What was your favorite video game? (I substituted a question I wasn’t too keen on with one I’d rather answer.) Borderlands 2. Still. Always. (I just am not over it us being done with it.)
24. What was the best book you read? My reading was pitiful this year. I spend quite a bit of my day reading various things on the Internet for work or pleasure so actual book reading tends to fall to the wayside. Out of the three books I read this year, none of them are noteworthy enough of mentioning here. I aim to change that in 2014.
25. What was your greatest musical discovery or rediscovery? Sirius XM Satellite Radio (it’s in the Jeep and I forgot how much I love having it). Spotify, still, because it’s my primary source for music. And Steve won a Big Jambox from his work Christmas party, which is essentially a giant Bluetooth speaker. And while it’s not something we would’ve ever bought for ourselves, it was a great gift to win because we’re both in love with having a Bluetooth enabled speaker that sounds wonderful and can stream our music without us having to plug phones in or anything. So it has really opened us up to the idea of having music feature more prominently in our lives than just in the car on our way to places.
26. What did you want and get? A new Jeep! A second bean bag for us to play video games in. An XBox One.
27. What did you want and not get? An iPhone 5s. Because it’s time for a replacement. But it’ll just have to be in the budget for next year. And we flirted with buying a new house. Well, not a new house as the one we looked at was a bit older and dated. But it was bigger and had the garage of Steve’s dreams as well as a phenomenal outdoor entertaining space. But the inside just didn’t work as easily for us as the outside things and I wasn’t willing to lock us into a higher mortgage with a bigger property that we only half liked.
28. What were your favorite films of this year? Pitch Perfect! Catching Fire. Bad Grandpa. 
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? In 2013, I turned 32 and because I am now old and don’t need a huge celebration anyway, we stayed at home. Steve cooked me dinner and we played video games. That is the ideal birthday for me!
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? There are always quite a few things that could make things immensely better. I mean, winning the lottery obviously would’ve done amazing things for us this year. But you can’t always hold out for pipe dreams. You gotta work with what you have, you know? Needless to say, there are of course quite a few things and situations and people and perspectives that could’ve been done differently or changed to make the year infinitely better than it was. But sometimes dwelling on the what if’s are the things that bring you down. So I just think it’s best not to think about those lest I get mired in the possibilities of a perfect life that will never exist.
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013? The same as it always is. Comfortable. Casual. Classic. I discovered the amazing comfort of Danskos earlier in the year and now that’s the only shoe I wear anywhere because they’re super comfortable and look good with anything.
32. What kept you sane? As always, my husband. My best friends. XBox. Call of Duty. Borderlands 2. Booze. Food.
33. Whom did you miss? I have never been lucky enough to have all the people I love or want or need around me at one time. My entire life consists of missing people, either their presence or their spirit. It’s just such a part of me now I don’t even think about it much anymore.
34. Who was the best new person you met? My new boss, who is awesome and makes my job immensely more satisfying.
35. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013: The biggest lesson I learned this year was to let it go. Stop thinking and talking about and fretting over the things that I have no power to change. Stop letting people live rent free in my mind. This has helped immensely with just getting through some situations that we haven’t been able to resolve and won’t have any resolutions in the near future. I just want to do better with this mantra in the next year.
36. Do you have any lost feelings of others? None that hadn’t already been lost before. Some people have disappointed because the expectations have slowly not matched up to what I thought but that’s life. Not everyone is going to act like a grown up or have their shit together.
37. Quote a song that sums up your year:

You keep your heart above your head and you eyes wide open
So this world can’t find a way to leave you cold
And know you’re not the only ship out on the ocean
Save your strength for things that you can change
Forgive the ones you can’t
You gotta let ’em go

[featured image source: here]