2009 was a blur for me, mostly because I wasn’t blogging. Without the blog to tell me what I was doing when, I’m clueless as to how a whole year managed to slip by me. I mean, I must’ve done some stuff, right? Let’s see if I can remember any of it. Putting it behind a break because there are pictures.

- Watched Mr. Obama get sworn in from a South African bar in Ft. Greene. I was in the bar, Mr. Obama wasn’t. But you probably got that. The joy in the room was palpable, though:

Obama at Madiba's

- Watched my Steelers win another Super Bowl (this moment was obviously tense):

Super Bowl XLIII

- Bought a Kindle, because I like to read, and I like the tech. Love this thing like burning.

- Met Franklin Habit at his reading at Knitty City, and just this minute realized how yellow my teeth are:

Franklin!

- Went to Washington, D.C. and Charlottesville, VA with Uncle Norm and took this picture, which is my “Calgon, take me away!” desktop picture at work:

- Went to Stitches South with Regan and Grace:

- Lost my best buddy, Joe, too soon even though he was 18.

- That same week, Jordana and I wrote a grant proposal that brought in $27,000 later that summer. Not bad in this economy, and especially not bad for a week when I was watching Joe die and mourning him and J was jet-lagged from a trip to South Africa.

- Went to Sagamore Hill with my mom for Father’s Day, bringing my total of presidential home visits to three (well, four, I was outside the White House during the D.C. visit, but three dead presidents. Okay, well, four dead presidents because we saw Monroe’s house but it was too late in the day to take a tour. Whatever.):

- Took a flying trip to Philadelphia with J, Thabs, and Samang so that I could see this man and get his blessing on an endeavor that was still in the works. Also, to eat cheesesteaks.

- Rescued this little guy, who brought a little of the light Joe took with him when he died back into my life:

- Moved into a new office.

- Took a trip to Pittsburgh so I could see my family and my friend Kim. And an elephant:

- Went to Ellis Island for my 32nd birthday and then back again a week later when I got into a tour of the South Side of the island, which I will never forget as long as I live:

And then I apparently stopped taking pictures because school got in the way. Oh, yeah, the thing Ben gave me his blessing for was my second Master’s degree, which I started this fall and which turned out to be the biggest time suck in the world. But hey, I got A’s in both courses I took, so it must have been time well spent. Kept me off the streets at least. After I stopped taking pictures, I also went to Asheville with Grace and Regan for SAFF. 17 knitters in a cabin for a weekend with a constant influx of new yarn and fiber. Heaven.

Let’s see, what else happened that I didn’t take pictures of? (stupid Flickr, letting me down) I took a tour of an abandoned subway tunnel under Atlantic Avenue, which was awesome. I went to Pittsburgh the day after Christmas to surprise my high school BFF, Colleen, at the reception her mom threw for her because she got married on a lovely island this summer and most of us couldn’t go. I watched Sage graduate from 8th grade and start high school, and I watched Amelia start her senior year of high school and apply to many colleges. I got a mostly permanent roommate (their father) only seven years into our relationship (I don’t call him Ant Speed–lovingly, of course–for nothing). I got my first smart phone. I paid off one credit card and am $450 from getting out of credit card debt entirely. All in all with a few major exceptions, it’s been a pretty damned good year, which I desperately needed. Actually, I could use many more so here’s hoping 2010 is another one for all of us.

Happy New Year!

« »