Year in Review

After a long hiatus from my livejournal, I wanted to post this "year in review." Perhaps I'll write more about life in Texas soon...or how I am or how my Christmas was. But for now:

1. What did you do in 2005 that you'd never done before? Rode the Trans-Siberian Railroad and lived in a monestary

2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Oh geeze, I don't remember. Probably not. But, yes, there will be more resolutions. Although I haven't decided just what they'll be yet.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Sort of. One of my brother's high school friends had a baby, as did one of my friends in Russia.

4. Did anyone close to you die? My mother, most notably, in February. A few family friends, too.

5. What countries did you visit? Russia, I changed planes in Germany and Mexico.

6. What would you like to have in 2006 that you lacked in 2005? A little more gratitude. I should be more grateful for all the things that I have. Even though I haven't made much money in 2005, I'm still doing better than about 80% of the world.

7. What date from 2005 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? July 26th, 2005. The day that would have been my mother's birthday, but also the day that I came home from Russia.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Going back to Russia despite losing Mom. Finishing out my grant-yeat with a bang.

9. What was your biggest failure? I didn't grow spiritually as much as I would have liked, especially in Russia. I found that I did a lot more relying on my own skills and talents rather than relying on God...and I failed to give proper credit for a lot of the good I recieved.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Not really.

11. What was the best thing you bought? My kitten (who is watching me type). Gracie is, by far, the highlight of my purchaces this year. I also fancy my new sleeping bag, but it's not nearly as cute as Grace.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Emma has been really fantastic. I moved down to Texas and she's been so patient with me. Not having a job for awhile was frustrating, but Emma was the one who cheered me on, kept me fed, and helped me find work.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? The way some of the Russian Orthodox nuns treated me totally alarmed me.

14. Where did most of your money go? Rent and bills, but most of the money I spent until July wasn't mine.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Coming home. As July got closer and closer, I got more and more enthusiastic about being back in the US.

16. What song(s) will always remind you of 2005? "Two Dollar Shoes" by Rosie Thomas

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

i. happier or sadder? Happier

ii. thinner or fatter? Thinner (hurray!)

iii. richer or poorer? About the same, actually.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of? Keeping in touch with people I met in Russia.

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

20. How will you be spending Christmas? Christmas was with my brother and dad. On Christmas Eve we went out for a fantastic fancy dinner at a sort-of-nearby inn.

22. Did you fall in love in 2005? It was more of a continuation.

23. How many one-night stands? No, thanks.

24. What was your favorite TV program? Schto, Gdze, Kogda, a Russian gameshow. Then, probably Law and Order and the NFL.

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

26. What was the best book you read? The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell (Thanks, Sarah K.)

27. What were your greatest musical discoveries? I love old Soviet war tunes. They're all about Stalin and the Motherland. With orchestras.

28. What did you want and get? Gracie!!

29. What did you want and not get? Um. A full time job.

30. What was your favorite film of this year? Probably Million Dollar Baby to see once, and Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe to see many times.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 23. I was in a small town in Siberia, and then we went hiking up to an abandoned mine town where they used to mine asbestos. At night, my friends cooked me dinner and we had a party. At the end of the evening, they pulled on my ears.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Being more grateful.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2005? Lots of long underwear until April. Then, anything that helped me fit in. Once I got back to the US: flip-flops.

34. What kept you sane? Keeping my relationship as a priority over my Watson. Remembering that being in Russia was not going to last forever and that I should enjoy it.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Um. Geeze. Maybe Ellen Degeneres? I think her talk show is an awesome celebration of how to have fun.

36. What political issue stirred you the most? The question of valid elections in the Ukraine and Russia. It was alarming to talk to people who didn't think it was worth voting. And then I realized how much of that same apathy extends to the United States.

37. Who did you miss? Emma.

38. Who was the best new person you met? Too many. Way, way too many.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2005: If things aren't going right and you panic and then fix it, it takes longer than just patiently trying to work things out.