i’m a little late

Happy 2009, ya’ll :) As promised, I stole this from Maxie because this is easier than coming up with my own “Best of 2008″ list:

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?

Attend an academic summer seminar completely separate from school. Yes, I know. I am a nerd.

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

I don’t do new year’s resolutions – I just randomly make goals for myself. I’m sure I’ll have some this year, but they won’t purposely coincide with the new year.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

Nope.

4. Did anyone close to you die?

Nope. Thank God.

5. What countries did you visit?

None. I’m poor.

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?

A macbook. An ipod touch. A vacation. Maybe a boyfriend.

7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory and why?

May 21, 2008: The day I graduated from that hell-hole of a university.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Graduating. That was a HUGE deal because I hated almost every second I spent in that school.

9. What was your biggest failure?

Taking FOREVER to find a job. I was bummed for at least 6 months because I couldn’t find a job.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?In January, I had a series of cysts on my left wrist. It looked pretty nasty and it took two doctor’s visits before they stopped coming back. Yuck.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

My TV? Maybe.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Both of my parents – for a couple of reasons. They’ve dealt with a lot in 2008 (and continuing into 2009) and the way they handle situations is so admirable.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

My almost ex-roommate. There are a few others I could add to that list, but I won’t.

14. Where did most of your money go?

Student loans. And Metro-North passes. Lame.

15. What did you really, really, really get excited about?

Getting a job. Graduating from grad school. My friends getting jobs after graduating. My dad coming home from Iraq.

16. What song will always remind you of 2008?

Gosh – I don’t know… Several songs will remind me of 2008. Anything from Feed the Animals (Girl Talk) will remind me of the summer of 2008.

17. Compared to this time last year are you:

smarter? Yes.

bitchier? Probably.

taller? No.

financially stable? Yes. No more Murky; I have a full-time gig now.

happier? Probably. I don’t live in College Park anymore.

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

Singing. Sleeping. Hanging with friends.

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

Freaking out. Writing memos/papers for school.

20. How did you spend Christmas?

In Roanoke with my 2nd family. It was fantastic.

21. How will you be spending new years?

My friend Peter and I stood in Times Square from 3pm until the ball dropped. It was cold beyond comprehension. Peter ate 4 power bars (I had 2). There was absolutely no drinking. We sang a lot and saw the Jonas Brothers.

22. Did you fall in love in 2008?

Nope. I didn’t have the time.

23. How many one-night stands?

None. Again – no time. And that’s just not my style.

24. What was your favorite TV program?

Of all time? Arrested Development. In the whole world? Top Gear.

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

Probably. I’m such a hater.

26. What was the best book you read?

Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys was a fun read. The first 300 pages of Guns, Germs and Steel was very informative (and interesting). Chuck Klosterman IV was super funny.

27. What was your biggest musical discovery?

Hands down: Girl Talk’s Feed the Animals. I am in love with that album.

28. What did you want and you got?

An effing diploma from that stupid school. A place to live in NYC (even if I ended up hating it). A job. A cool new TV.

29. What did you want and not get?

A macbook. An ipod touch. A new cell phone. A date with Michael Buble or John Krasinski.

30. What was your favorite film of this year?

Milk probably.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old did you turn?

I went to class. It was lame. I turned 24. That’s also kinda lame.

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

Maybe a boyfriend. NOT having to pay back my student loans. Spending my summer in Spain. Finding an apartment in NYC in an area I liked.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?

The same as always. Nothing has really changed. I’m still trying to stand out from the crowd with bright colors.

34. What kept you sane?

A few of my friends. My ipod.

35. Which celebrity did you fancy the most?

Zachary Levi, maybe.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?

Barack being elected the next President. Wow.

37. Who did you miss?

My dad. Then he came home.

38. Who was the best new person you met?

Not sure. I’ve met a lot of new people.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008:

Freaking/stressing out gets you nowhere.

40. Quote or Song Lyric that sums up your year:

“… Avoid insanity, manage to conquer every obstacle, make impossible possible, even when winning’s illogical losing’s still far from optional…” – T.I. from No Matter What (who knew rappers could be so insightful?)

time for a meme

I’m totally not good at these (sorry, Melly) but I’ll throw in my 2 cents of information :)

Directions/Rules:

1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
6. Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

Alright. Now that I’ve taken care of #1 and #2, let’s get to the fun stuff:

• I love clementines. I’m eating 2 right now. While I lived in Spain, I ate about 5 of these every day. My madre would pack at least 3 clementines (alongside my ham and cheese bocadillo) in my lunch bag. They’re so freaking good and much easier to peel than oranges.
• I don’t like fake plants. Buying a fake plant is kinda like lying to yourself. I’ll never buy a fake plant, nor will I ever lie to myself.
• I enjoyed math growing up. A lot. I was also pretty damn good at it. I would probably still enjoy math if my job required it, but it doesn’t. So I don’t worry about it.
• I download almost all of my music from Amazon.com. Itunes is sorta the devil when it comes to music downloading. Sure, it may take a few days for some songs/albums to end up on Amazon MP3, but it’s totally worth the wait. Also, Amazon has a TON of free music and awesome sales. Itunes just doesn’t compare. Sorry, Steve Jobs.
• I love playing ping pong. I have no idea why.
• I’m a little overly competitive. I think it’s a result of spending 4 years at UVA – although, I’m pretty sure I’ve been competitive for most of my life. Fortunately, I’m good at supressing my competitive side when I’m around non-competitive people who would probably take offense to my insanity. During either my 3rd or 4th year at UVA, a game of Catch Phrase with my roommates nearly turned into a friendship ender because of everyone’s competitive nature. It’s craziness.

Since I’m breaking rules 4 and 5, I guess I’ll just end the post here. I need to find out where Melly has moved her blog so I can complete #1 and #6.

it’s my turn

Since Libby has generously tagged me in her meme thingy, now it’s my turn to be super cool :)

I guess I should kinda follow directions…

Rules:
1. Link to the person that tagged you
2. Post the rules on your blog
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
6. Let your tagger know when your entry is UP.

Hmm… Six non-important things about myself? That could be difficult, especially with my me, in list form page, but I might be able to come up with something.

1. I have an irrational fear of earthquakes. I call it irrational because I became afraid of them before I was ever in one. During undergrad, the state of Virginia was hit with 2 earthquakes (seriously) and I was 100% freaked out. Until then, I thought I could avoid them (by not traveling anywhere near the West Coast) – but now I realize there’s no escape. Crap.

2. I love sharpies. Yeah – the permanent markers. I don’t have every color, but I very badly want every color in every style. It’s a slightly weird obsession.

3. When I was 15 or so, I was cleaning my parents’ George Foreman Grill after dinner, and the top of it fell on my wrist and totally burned the hell out of me. I still have the scar – almost 10 years later. I don’t think it’s ever going away :(

4. I’m absolutely terrible at flirting. Yeah, I fail.

5. When listening to my ipod while walking (which is nearly always) I like to walk in step to my music. I blame my years of marching band. Sadly, if the song is too fast, too slow, or in a weird time signature, that doesn’t happen.

6. I cry at everything. Sappy movies, cute puppies, airports (watching people greet family and friends), saying goodbye to friends… all of it makes me, at least, a little teary eyed. And sometimes my eyes just water for no reason. I have constantly wet eyes.

Okay, I think I’ll be a rebel and not send this out to exactly six people (how about one special blogger who likes surveys and memes?). I hope this meme isn’t attached to one of those chain letters that promises sudden death if I don’t follow the rules exactly. Yikes.

Have fun, toshspice :)