Here are my highs and lows and changes of the past year:
*I got a service award for volunteering at a local hospital
*My cousin moved in with me and brought two cats along
*My older niece married
*My aunt died
*Got a new baby cousin in November
*My mom had a total knee replacement, recovered, and got to be in a reality show
*I visited Yosemite for the first time in my life
*My bipolar cousin went off the deep end (again) and wound up in jail (again)
Visited Vietnam and Cambodia this spring.
A friend and myself rode our bikes to the four corners of the US in April/May.
Spent a month in and around Yellowstone.
My mother is doing worse.
Two friends are dying of cancer, one probably won’t make Christmas.
Got back into backpacking this summer.
Ending the year with more money than we started with, always a plus.
Our health is pretty diddly-darn good, even considering our ages.
Our son seems happier than he has for a long time.
My favorite aunt died, unexpectedly, in her sleep.
I had open-heart surgery (aortic valve replacement, plus quadruple bypass).
I lost 25 lbs. after my surgery, then gained back 15.
My partner and I celebrated 25 years together.
I bought a new Mac Pro, with four 1-TB hard drives and 16M memory.
I did some really amazing art work this year, in a new medium . . . more than any previous year.
My chorus went to Denver in July.
I designed a new CD for my chorus. It’s very retro '50s.
I spent $3000 fixing my car, rather than buying a new one.
I’m gradually teaching one of my cats that it’s ok to have benign contact with the other cat, but no brutality.
No year is perfect. I was laid off in August, but - while I liked the people there, I wasn’t devastated - and it lead to the highlight: I got a job doing really fun development. The sort of stuff I really enjoy.
The bad:
Major knee surgery (rehab was worse than the surgery, physical therapists are experts at torture in the name of “care”);
In hospital for C.Diff infection after that;
Kidney stones (as a side order with the C.Diff);
2 surgeries for the kidney stones;
Partner screamed for divorce;
Many home appliances decided to break down simultaneously.
The good:
hmmm… I lived thru it?
These are all First World Problems I realize. Compared to hurricanes, wars, pestilence and economic collapse theyre all small potatoes. Im really lucky after all. Good thread!
My daughter turning from a baby to a walking, talking toddler
Meeting my boyf
Ectopic pregnancy/losing another baby (this is just getting careless now)
Falling out with a couple of local friends
Getting drunk and making an arse of myself
Good:
A new niece (my first niece) and a new nephew (my fourth)!
Found a new job and went back to work
Daughter made huge, noticeable progress at speech therapy
Son finally started walking
Father in law got a clean bill of health
Father in law got residency and is in the process of emigrating here.
It was not the worse year in the world. My job went surprisingly well this year. I bought the best car in the world. I went solo camping in NYC and discovered deep fried oreos. Everyone that I loved last year is still in my life this year.
There was a lot of self-discovery in 2012. I still don’t know how to make sense of it all, but I have finally come to a certain level of peace and resolution. Maybe the next year will bring acceptance.
Went to Cuba
Went to Rhodes
Went to Paris just to see Jack White
Toured Chile, Argentina and Brazil
Still in my wonderful job
Still happily in a relationship with my new internet date from last October
Singing in a concert with Ruthie Henshall and John Owen Jones
Fantastic trip to see Liverpool FC versus Heart of Midlothian FC with my nephew
Booking up to see Petra next year
Hearts beating Hibs 5-1 in the Scottish Cup Final
My best friend getting engaged and asking me to be bridesmaid
Seeing my Dad starting to seem old, and lose his faculties a wee bit
Losing my cousin Helen
Still thinking about my late, alcoholic husband every day
Highs:
Got my first job in 8 years.
My girlfriend moved in with me.
My first nephew was born.
Sister became pregnant with second nephew.
Made lots of new friends.
Lows:
Lost my job due to business going under.
Girlfriend’s mother died.
Sister lost her job and had to move in.
Highs:
Landed a lucrative programming contract
Successfully demonstrated my application for the company’s top brass
Last software book getting very positive reviews on Amazon
Everyone I wanted to get elected got elected, almost everyone I wanted to lose lost
Lows:
Got rear-ended driving home - my 2001 Honda Accord was totaled (I loved that car)
Novel and short stories rejected
Attempts at online dating failed
Got a tree dropped on my car. Which turned out to be a blessing in disguise, because the gecko gave us more money than we’d expected and the new car, while older, is definitely better than the one it replaced.
The bad and the good in my life this year are inseparable:
Low points: Being diagnosed with lung caner.
Being told that I was too weak for the surgery
Having my husband’s health decline
Learning that certain people in my family would steal me blind.
Not hearing from any of my grandchildren for two or three years now.
Living in a house that is a wreck.
High points: After five months, a surgery that removed all signs of cancer. No chemo or radiation
required
Finding out that I am not overwhelmed at the possibility of my own demise
Finding out how much my husband loves me
Finding out how much I love my husband.
My mum died in February, quickly and unexpectedly
My older daughter continued to be a wonder and a joy
My younger daughter stopped being a baby and started being a proper human being
My husband finally got the recognition he deserves at work
We made the first steps towards emigration, finally
I lost 15 pounds and 20 points off my blood pressure in 3 months
Went back to work after maternity and love it
Had a couple of fantastic holidays with my brother and his family
Made the difficult and awful decision not to take our cat with us when we emigrate
Picked up a faulty camping trailer which overturned whilst I drove it home, with both of my children in the car
Won the argument with trailer company over who was going to pay for repairs for said trailer
