2007: Year In Review

It's that time again: time to look back on the year and think about what you've done, what you wished you'd done, and what you're glad you haven't done. And now, I humbly present to you: 2007: The Year That Sucked For The Most Part, But Had Some Good Moments In It!

01 What did you do in 2007 that you'd never done before? Taught first grade, chaperoned high schoolers in Europe, visited Budapest, moved to England for grad school… is that enough?

02 Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Looking back on last year’s ‘resolutions’, it appears I didn’t keep the ones I made. Or, at the very most, I sporadically kept them. I think I need to treat myself like a 6-year-old: set small goals that are easily measurable. As such, here are the tentative resolutions for 2008:
(a) Drink more water.
(b) Get some form of exercise at least 3 times a week. (Biking to class does not count.)
(c) Get out of the house more. (carried over from last year, but still needs to be done)

03 Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes, my younger cousin. This made me feel very old.

04 Did anyone close to you die? No.

05 What countries did you visit? Germany, Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic, the UK.

06 What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? An idea of what I want to do with my life. Yep, I’m 26 and still have no idea!

07 What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? September 27, when I moved to Cambridge. Also, that day in October when I found out my dad had broken his leg. Don’t know the exact date, but that was pretty awful.

08 What was your biggest achievement of the year? Getting into grad school at the University of Cambridge… one of my long-held ambitions!

09 What was your biggest failure? One really awful dinner party/night out in October… huge blow to my self-esteem. Let’s try to repress those memories, shall we?

10 Did you suffer illness or injury? Not serious ones.

11 What was the best thing you bought? Do student loans count? Not necessarily the best, at this moment in time, but paying for this Master’s will be a pretty good investment.

12 Whose behavior merited celebration? Müs graduated from college! Nice job, my friend.

13 Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? My parents win this one. Not telling me about my dad’s injury until 2 weeks after it had happened was really a low point.

14 Where did most of your money go? I know exactly where: student loans. Also, the pound --> dollar exchange rate. Also, plane tickets.

15 What did you get really, really, really excited about? Getting into Cambridge! Also, when I got back my first assignment for the course and found out that I wasn’t as stupid as I thought I was.

16 What song will always remind you of 2007? Any of the songs I taught the first-graders toward the end of the year: the ‘Guten Morgen’ song, ‘YMCA’ (it’s not what you think) and ‘Alle Kinder lernen lesen’.

17 Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? In terms of my current professional/educational status: happier. At least I’m doing what I want to be doing, even though I’m not earning any money. Not very happy about the state of my personal life, though.
b) thinner or fatter? I have definitely put on some pounds. Hence the resolution about getting more exercise.
c) richer or poorer? Definitely poorer. Though richer in knowledge. (commence groaning at cheesy pun)

18 What do you wish you'd done more of? Made more friends and gone out more. This answer from last year still stands; some things never change.

19 What do you wish you'd done less of? Self-doubt and feeling stupid.

20 How did you spend Christmas? With the fam in B-lo. Of course.

21 "There is no question 21" Uh, what? This still isn’t funny.

22 Did you fall in love in 2007? Nope. Surprise, surprise.

23 How many one-night stands? Ha! Bets now being taken on this question.

24 What was your favorite TV show? Still 'The Office'. And may I just say, thank goodness for the writers’ strike; do you have any idea how many episodes I’d be missing otherwise?

25 Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? No, it takes a lot to make me hate someone.

26 What was the best book you read? I just finished The Book Thief (Markus Zusak) and The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini), both of which were amazing.

27 What was your greatest musical discovery? I became a new listener of Death Cab for Cutie and Enter the Haggis this year. Also, I’m a big fan of the newest Wir sind Helden CD.

28 What did you want and get? To attend this master’s program.

29 What did you want and not get? Full (or any) funding for this master’s program.

30 What was your favourite film of this year? ‘Once’ is pretty much the only movie I can remember seeing in the cinema this year.

31 What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 26, and I went out to lunch with friends, went mini-golfing (or Putt Putting, whichever you prefer) at the Science Museum, and went out to dinner. It was like the perfect 8-year-old birthday.

32 What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? From last year, but still accurate: Being appreciated by colleagues and parents of students.

33 How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007? Working: Khakis and nice shirts that generally didn’t require ironing. Currently: Lots of jeans and fleece. Or jeans and sweaters.

34 What kept you sane? Phone calls to and from friends. Also, those times when I wasn’t working: some of the summer, certain weekends during term, certain weeks when term ended.

35 Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Heh, British phrasing. I continue to be a big fan of John Krasinski.

36 What political issue stirred you the most? Stupidity in general annoys the crap out of me. (Still true!)

37 Whom did you miss? Pretty much everyone, since I came to England by myself.

38 Who was the best new person you met? My classmates are pretty cool, for the most part.

39 Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007. People BS a lot, especially in academia. I am capable of more than I think I am… at least in a classroom setting.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year. ‘I feel like a quote out of context, withholding the rest, so I can be for you what you want to see.’ – Ben Folds, ‘Best Imitation of Myself’ I played a lot of roles this year, and still do… maybe this year, I’ll figure out which one of them is actually me.

Happy 2008! Let's all hope it's a step up from 2007, eh?