2:43 p.m. - 2009-01-05
New Year survey 2008
sundrymourning New Year survey:
1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?
-- took a cruise
-- lived in San Francisco (briefly, but still)
-- ran a sub-20-minute 5k
-- ran a 10-mile race
-- wrote & gave a lecture to a classroom of students
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't really make resolutions, except in a general sense, to be a better person and to work harder. There is always room for improvement on both counts.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My brother's wife. Some friends.
4. Did anyone close you you die?
No.
5. What countries did you visit?
Some Caribbean islands.
6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Clarity. Direction. A sense of purpose. Money.
7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
September 9, wedding.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Probably getting a SECOND dissertation prospectus written and approved (despite having the first one already written and approved, a change of topic meant I had to write a second prospectus) and putting together a new and improved committee.
But I feel more satisfied & excited about running a sub-20-minute 5k and placing second overall (female) in the Second Empire Grand Prix race series.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not being as dedicated a scholar as I ought to have been.
Disappointing performance on a standardized test, despite hard work.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Only minor ones.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
ummm . . . some great music from iTunes? Nothing big comes to mind.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Steven's. (?)
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Probably my brother's.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Clothes.
15. What did you get really, really, excited about?
The beach trip in September.
16. What song will always remind you of 2008?
It's a tie between Sara Bareilles' "Love Song" and Miley Cyrus' "See You Again." The local radio station played these songs constantly, and I heard them over and over again as I worked on prospectus #2.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? probably happier
b) fatter or thinner? maybe thinner, but probably the same
c) richer or poorer? most definitely poorer
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Academic work.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Wasting time in general.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
With Steven, Daniel, and Audra (and a visit from one of their friends), eating dinner, relaxing, and taking a walk.
21. Did you fall in love in 2008.
No.
22. What was your favorite tv program?
I discovered "Boston Legal" & loved it, so I declare a tie between it and "Lost."
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate last year?
No.
24. What was the best book you read?
Not a great year for books, I have to admit, but it was probably A Case of Conscience by James Blish.
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
A new world of techno/trance music, thanks to iTunes. My favorites: Gabriel & Dresden and Armin van Buuren.
26. What did you want and get?
A PR in the 5k.
27. What did you want and not get?
A Garmin Forerunner 405. I still lust for it.
28. What was your favorite film of the year?
Best film, probably was Away From Her, but this was last year's movie. Of the new 2008 crop, probably Burn After Reading.
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 37. We went out to dinner at Vin.
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
A better sense of direction & more confidence in/peace of mind about what the future holds, which I imagine would have translated into more diligent work habits. Having more money.
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
My "fashion concept" is more or less limited to sale items at J. Crew and Banana Republic.
32. What kept you sane?
Running.
33. Which celebrity issue stirred you the most?
Can't think of a single one who stirred me at all.
34. What political issue stirred you the most?
Growth of the nanny state in the form of limiting personal freedoms (banning trans fats);
refusing to permit personal freedoms (gay marriage). Also, animal rights issues (proposition 2 and Michael Vick).
35. Who did you miss?
friends
36. Who was the best new person you met?
Laura
37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
Maybe that hard work does NOT always pay off. Sometimes it does, but not all the time. So the lesson is . . . ? That you never know if hard work will or will not pay off until after you do it? And that without hard work, you will be less likely to achieve the success you want, so just work hard, period? That you should worry less about the outcome than about doing your best and fulfilling your "duty" (however defined)? And that there is an intrinsic value to working hard, even if it fails to produce the desired result? (I like to keep Krishna's advice to Arjuna in mind, but it's not always easy). Sigh. If it sounds like I am trying to convince myself, I am. It's always frustrating and discouraging not to enjoy the fruits you feel like your labors should have produced.
38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
It's not so much that this sums up my year, but I did listen to this Gabriel and Dresden song many, many, many times over in 2008, so it seems relevant:
I know this will be something I remember in my head
something I remember
Sharp words push me back, hanging on to anything I can
anything I can
Why do you tell me only things I want to hear
Why don't you tell me this could just disappear
But at the same time you keep tracking treasure down
At the same time you keep tracking treasure down.
Then again, there is my current Most Favorite Song (Kevin Rudolf and Lil' Wayne) with inspiring lyrics -- seem like a good rallying cry for 2009:
"Because when I arrive, I bring the fire. Make you come alive, I can take you higher. What is this, forgot? I must now remind you. Let it rock, let it rock, let it rock".
Here's to a 2009 that rocks.
