Friday, January 1, 2010

year end meme!

i stole this from Leah at A Girl and A Boy:

1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
In chronological order, I finished a complete year of law school, I attended a funeral for one of my parents' siblings and I got married. Inter alia, of course.

2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?


I'm pretty sure I didn't have any new year's resolutions for 2009, except maybe to (convince T to) set a date to get married and actually do the whole wedding thing.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Hmm... Not anyone super-close. But one of T's friends and business partner had a baby girl in the spring. And my best friend got pregnant and then lost the baby and now is pregnant again, which is pretty damn exciting/scary.

4. Did anyone close to you die?


Yes. My tio -- my dad's brother that I grew up knowing, who repatriated to Colombia and is the reason that I have ever even been back there in the first place. I miss him still. Also, T's grandmother, who was like a grandmother to me after my own Southern belle of a grandma passed away. I miss her too. It was hard to have them both absent from the wedding.

5. What countries did you visit?


I went to Colombia to say goodbye to my uncle, and I went to Spain with T for our honeymoon (with flight stop-overs in Germany and Canada).

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
More appreciation for the things I have, a paying job and a plan for our family's future.

7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
August 8, 2009. Our wedding date :)



8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?


Easy. Getting through the first year of law school. That was a DAMN big achievement. Not because law school is the hardest thing in the world, mind you (though it is a challenge) but because I actually got myself (back) into school completely of my own volition and completed an entire school year. I mean, come on! I thought those days were over! I'm proud of myself for that :) A close second would be getting through the first dance with T in front of all our friends and family while the speakers were so badly connected that nobody but nobody could actually hear the music so it looked like we were just dancing a jig while really drunk.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Taking my family for granted.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I fell down the stairs on my first day of summer vacation after finals. That wasn't so bad, but it makes a good story. Worse was that I got super SUPER ill with some kind of a flu on the train ride to Georgia to see my niece graduate, which caused me to not only miss the graduation but also lose my shot at Journal. Still haven't decided if that was a good or a bad thing, though, if I'm being completely honest!

11. What was the best thing you bought?
My wedding band! Technically, I guess T bought it for me. Or it came from wedding money or something. But seriously. It's awesome.



12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Obviously, T's. He was a wonderful fiance all through the first eight months, and supported me through two horrible bouts of finals. He helped me when I was devastated by the loss of my uncle even as he was going through his own devastating loss. He made me laugh when I needed it, and gave me space when I needed it. He made me feel lucky every day of this past year.
The less obvious answer is my aunt S. She baked 16 wedding cakes for our reception -- one for each table -- even when she got terribly sick the night before the wedding. Then she attended with a smile on her face! And to top it all off, she made us a cross-stiched heirloom wall hanging as a wedding gift.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?


Hmm. I honestly can't think of anyone. Unless you count the people who make crush videos. I learned about those in Political and Civil Rights. That made me appalled at the capability of human beings.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Good question! Um... food? Beer? Rent? Oh, duh. I didn't even see most of it. It went to my stupid school tuition. And books, of course.



15. What did you get really excited about?
The wedding and, specifically, having all of our friends and family in one place at the exact same time, and even more specifically, dancing with them all at the reception!



16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
I'm embarrassed to say it's probably going to be "I gotta feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas. But there are a lot. Other top contenders include: "Bedrock", "Empire State of Mind", "I Invented Sex" and "Whatever It Is".



17. Compared to this time last year, are you:

- happier or sadder? Hmm... Happier, I think. More contended anyway. I actually think I was pretty happy this time last year, but I also had an enormous wedding to plan and my first year of law school to get through, so I must have been way more stressed than I was now. At least, I had more stress to look forward to. And there was a lot of heartbreak to come. This year, I am grateful that I don't have a big event to plan, and I know to cherish and appreciate a lot more than I did last year.
- thinner or fatter? Sadly, I am probably fatter. My weight hasn't really gone up, but I pretty much constantly feel fatter every day.
- richer or poorer? Poorer. I'm not making any money. I'd like to remedy that in 2010.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?


I almost wrote studying but that's a load of crap. I wish I'd had more sex!

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?


Studying and stressing about stupid things.

20. How did you spend Christmas?


With my family, doing the 2nd generation Latino half-assed Christmas eve thing and then drinking and playing board games all day on Christmas.

21. Did you fall in love in 2009?
I ended 2009 more in love than I began it!

22. What was your favorite TV program?


Honestly? The Office. I just discovered that I actually like the US version on the plane ride back after our honeymoon. But I also love Supernanny, 30 Rock, Modern Family and Deadwood. Duh, and Lost.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?


As much as I hated Constitutional Law and the hide-the-ball crap that my prof pulled on us each and every day, I do not hate my professor.

24. What was the best book you read?
How bad would it be if I put Dukeminier's Wills Trusts and Estates casebook? Cause that was damn juicy! I also really enjoyed The Brief and Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Nicki Minaj

26. What did you want and get?
T as my husband. Exercise clothes, a suit and Settler's of Catan. A job.

27. What did you want and not get?
A Wii Fit. Paid.

27a. What did you not want and not get?
Swine flu.

28. What was your favorite film of this year?
I hate this question. We watch way too many tapes at our house. I really liked Sin Nombre, which we watched recently.



29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 28, and went to my grandmother-in-law's funeral. In the days prior, however, we did have a barbeque cookout in an alley.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
If the speakers worked from the get-go at our wedding reception.



31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
Two pairs of jeans I bought from a cheap urban clothing store, a couple nice tops from H&M and a closetful of frump.

32. What kept you sane?


My dog. The 24-hour cookie truck (at finals week). T. Baths.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Harlow Winter Kate Madden, obviously.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?


Immigration reform and the horrific joke of a criminal trial in Shenandoah, PA, where the guys who killed Luis Eduardo Ramirez got off on a simple assault charge.

35. Who did you miss?


My uncle. Even though he was a continent away, I immediately felt his absence. I missed my brother, what with him being near the other side of the country. And T's parents, who are hard to visit from where we live.

36. Who was the best new person you met?


I think that honor has to go to my classmate and study buddy A, who is friggin awesome. We studied together in the spring, and I realized that she is one of those people that I just hit it off with without worrying the way I frequently do about whether or not I am too this or that. I can just be myself and be straight with her and she tells me when I'm acting weird and asks me if she worries she's acting weird. We're both a lot alike, and I like hanging out with her. It's nice to make friends.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.


Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was a perfect marriage.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.


"God is good / Beer is great / And people are crazy"

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