2004-09-12 - 10:42 p.m.
A Late Review
Well, now that it's almost two weeks late, I think I've finally gotten around to writing the "year in review" sort of entry I'd planned to coincide with my birthday.
I suppose that the review more-or-less breaks down into two broad categories: things that I've done/experienced/had happen, and things I've learned/come to understand. I've a nasty headache starting, but I'm also feeling slightly ambitious (and it's "only" just after 8pm as I sit down to actually compose this) so I might tackle both.
The things learned are often results of things experienced (which I suppose is a pretty obvious statement to make), but not all of them are, and in some cases the links seem pretty tenuous to me.
Oh, and in trying to compile all this stuff up? I'll likely forget something.
Things Done/Experienced/Happened:
I'll try to take this in something almost like order, but like I just said, I'm certain I'll forget something - or at least forget when something that occurs to me to mention actually happened.
I had another successful more-or-less last-minute costume for Halloween. Got lots of great comments on my lovely stab wound. And promptly lost my fake boxcutter at the Woodwards, which lead to an amusing story about it still being in their car later in the year - at FruCon - and S. freaking out over it. (Understandably. This is a particularly realistic looking boxcutter - which is in large part why the costume was so stunning. A decent mulage (sp?) job, and it braced in a concealed piece of foam, and I had quite the realistic looking stab wound. A little pallor and some thematic clothing completed my "bad night on the job" motif.)
I participated in NaNoWriMo - and failed to finish most miserably. (That was entirely my own fault, as I took it into my head to go a-visitin' that month.) The story - still under the working title of "East to Rome" is still alive and well, though. However, it's been backburnered in favor of my SciNoir project. (I will admit that it's as much because of my annoyance at my main male character insisting on changing his name again as it is because I've just got more momentum on the SciNoir story at the moment.)
As I mentioned, I went a-visiting. Headed out the East way and had (courtesy staying at Gella's) my first non-touristy visit to NYC (though not for a very long visit at all), then over to Rochester to visit Pauley for a few days. Twas a fun trip from start to end, and the only real downside is that now I sometimes pine for a Garbage Plate - NY is just too far a drive for dinner, no matter what the hour.
Hmm... Sometime before or after a-visiting was my HS best friend's wedding. (I think. This is one of the events worth counting up that still somehow escape firm memory.) Cait married Brad - which is somehow both amusing and cool, since most of us who knew them when they met weren't sure it would really last beyond a few months. However, they seemed spectacularly happy, and I continue to wish them all the best in the world. *g*
At Christmas time, I baked - and discovered that my flair for creating new cookie recipies is not limited to Pirates. I now have a second in my line-up, the Highwayman. It seems to have been decently recieved by everyone who's gotten to try the variety, so, uhm, yay me, I guess.
Also around Christmas time, it was confirmed - in a very sad way - that I would indeed be a foreman this summer at work. They'd been throwing around the idea for a while, but it became a definate (rather than an almost certain) when the foreman I worked under last summer - Bob - died unexpectedly. We still all miss him - it hasn't been the same working this year without him.
All around the wintertime, I was getting into online roleplaying in a Buffy LJ game. By the time I had to put myself on a hiatus for the summer, I had three active characters, all of whom were developing rather amusing personalities. My favorite was actually the last of the three to go "active" - Jake "Jack" Copeland, a werewolf/vampire hybrid who's set-to-develop storyline won't happen now, as since my "hiatus" the then-moderator who's character he was going to be interacting with the most is now gone from the game. This Buffy game (TBE) was also how I came into contact with Anne, who I'll discuss later on.
Over the last year, I ended up getting two new cars. In early March (I think it was) I hit a deer coming back from Columbus one weekend, and totaled Peshwa the Sunbird. Peshwa was replaced by Jake's Monte Carlo, which was quickly dubbed the RMS Dreadnaught Destroyer. The Dreadnaught and I didn't get along very well (it bit me the first day I had ownership), and it had a lot of problems. So after several months the search for a replacement started. I'm now in a black '95 GMC Sonoma named Flagg. I love my little truck. We do still own the Dreadnaught. I'm going to use it to teach myself a little more about cars, but it's primary purpose is as a spare/extra car. We seem to have a lot of car disasters, and it'll be nice to still have a car per person the next time those samesaid disasters strike, and bring us down an auto.
Alright, I'm up through gaming and the death of Peshwa. Arguably up to the "biggest" point of the past year. I fell in love. Fast, hard, deep. That kind of complete, almost drug-like emotion. And for a while, it was the greatest thing. Then I got broken up with. After spending money I later came to realize I essentially didn't have to travel like 600 miles. So, yeah, I got a story to tell out of it. Actually, I got a lot out of it, but that as a majority is best covered in the "things learned/discovered/etc" section of this rambling monologue.
At work, I adjusted to being a Foreman, and I gather I must've done so fairly well - BruceBoss seems to have nothing but good words for me and my crew. (Which is a relief in a season where - with the exception of Andy and I - everyone and everything seems to have fallen perpetually behind, and now that we're nearing the end of the year it's becoming quite a strain.)
A little out of sequence: Amici started holding a monthly Poet's Open Mic (although it's really more a Writer's Open Mic as well at this point). And I've been going. And reading. And having a much more agreeable experience with it than I might have suspected I would.
Oh, *smacks forehead* Speaking of Amici and OMNs - I was talked into singing an OMN set with Josh. It too went better than I might've expected, and I'm dangerously close to being talked into a repeat of the experience.
The process of being Foreman has led to some unexpected situations - like the car completely breaking down on us fairly early into our work in Holmes County. Of course, as much as that could've sucked, it turned out fairly pleasant - we had to wait for Nate to come down with the Car Hauler to pick us up, and we walked ourselves to the closest local bar (we were staying in Dover because hotel rooms are both pricey and hard to come by in Holmes County during tourist season). And so I ended up meeting Bartender Amanda (Still tagged with "bartender" so as to avoid anyone becoming confused and thinking I mean Amanda Flowers.) I suppose an easy sum-up of that was that Andy is either perceptive or just amusingly apropriate at times, and I'm not quite as bad with new people as I thought I was.
What else. Back in February there was FruCon (which was, of course, amazing and needed and fun, and I know I rambled plenty about it when it happened so I'll spare you a repeat). I did not get to FRFF this summer. Major bummer there.
Mom landed in the hospital after having a tooth pulled. The situation led to our realizing that the dentist we'd been going to my whole life... well, sucks. We've since moved to a different dentist. (A nice lady just out of school.) I'm in the middle of what I estimate will be 1400 dollars worth of Dental work by the time it's finished. It really really sucks. Some of these spots that she's fixing have literally been bothering me for years, visible, and I'd mentioned them to our old Dentist before. *growls* Hence my now frequent LJ comments about my mouth hurting - getting fillings sucks. I'm gonna be a fuckin' pro at it soon, though.
The only other experience I can think of (again I'm going out of sequence here) at the moment is that Talcott moved off to Maine to be with his Zilly. *sigh* I really miss my best friend. We talk on the phone pretty regularly, but it's not the same as knowing I'll see him every month or so. I've got essentially no one to see movies with now. And it's whiny and selfish of me to complain about it - after all, he's with the girl he loves and all. But, y'know, I sometimes have a bit of a time with change. And anyway, he's my best friend. Here's hoping they both end up here in the buckeye state in the not-too-distant future. 'Cause then I'd have the bonus of Zill to hang out with too. *nods*
Things I've learned/come to understand:(and some of these with explainations)
Well, starting with what might seem the most major... I am capable of feeling the kind of love that I thought was only mythical in "rational" adult individuals. I am also capable of surviving the demise of the relationships within I am capable of that feeling.
I've come to a deeper understanding of the issues I have with my father. I can't really elaborate on that here - for a variety of reasons - but I think it probably helps just that I understand better what my own problem is.
I'm doing a better job of being easy-going. I still have a need to over-examine everything to death, and a need to ruthlessly understand things, but it's less pressing, more under control.
I'm coming to accept that people really do like/appreciate my creative efforts - I'm ever-so-slightly less surprised at the reactions my poetry (and now prose) seem to get sometimes at Poets' night at Amici.
And... my head is getting worse, the hour is getting later, I'm afraid I'm going to have to return to this topic at some point in the future.
I've still got an e-mail to write before I go to bed - one I meant to write last weekend, but didn't ultimately have time for.
TTFN, I suppose.
previous howl
next howl
Murrrrrrffff? - 2005-01-04
A Late Review - 2004-09-12
Weekend Update - 2004-08-08
Intermission - 2004-08-07
Rambling or something. - 2004-07-31
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