One year later

I did this set of questions that I found on somebody's blog last January (see post here if you are interested!). Thought it would be interesting to do it again. Off the top of my head, 2008 was a pretty unspectacular year - many people tell me it was downright bad. I have higher expectations for 2009. (*edited to add: I have been adding to this entry for a few days now - more than a week - and events have overtaken me. Libby's small, local community experienced a terrible tragedy last Friday that has left us all feeling sad and disillusioned. I still have hopes for a better 2009 but the awful events of last week are a terrible start to the year. My thoughts are with the village residents at this time.)

1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?
Visited Dubai

Had a scrapbooking layout published in a UK magazine

Attended a crop

Learned to play golf

2. What are your New Years Resolutions?
Mostly the usual: Organise, save, lose weight, make more time for the things I love, keep in touch better with friends, to get to grips with my camera and photo editing

One additional one is connected with "One Little Word" from Ali Edwards - to be *calm* 

3. Did anyone close to you give birth in 2008?

A quiet birth year! No one new in the family

4. Did anyone close to you die.
Thank goodness no, again.

5. What countries did you visit?
The UK

France

Austria

The Netherlands

United Arab Emirates

(not bad for a year that was supposed to have no holidays!)

6 What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Peace of mind, more time, a clearer mind or failing that, a lottery win would also go down nicely! 

7. What date(s) in 2008 will remain etched in your memory and why?

November 4th - US presidential election


8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Passing my golf test in August (all very German!)

My scrapbooking output - too many to count

Getting published in a magazine - cool!


9. What was your biggest failure?
Hard word - lack of weight loss, losing the dream flat we wanted to buy

10. Did you suffer any illness or injury?
No, another healthy year for me

11. What was the best thing someone bought you?
Huge quantities of Cadbury's chocolate

An iMac

USB connected record player - so cool!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Ralph - as ever for putting up with me

Maddie - turning into a super little girl!

13. Whose behavior appalled and depressed you?
Less said the better - they know who they are

14. Where did most of your money go?
Just living (a full life!)

15. What did you get really, really excited about?
Our trip to Austria

Getting my handicap for golf

It was a quiet year!

16. What song(s) reminds you of 2008?
Wham Rap - we bought a whole load of 80's CDs for our long drive to Austria and listened and sang along to them the whole week. Ralph was very impressed at my lyric recollection! I could even remember the moves to this one (yes, SO sad!)

17. Compared to last year are you...
a.) Happier or Sadder? happier
b.) Thinner or Fatter? fatter
c.) Richer or Poorer? the usual

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Relax

Scrapped

Kept in touch with people

Ironing (the pile just grows!)

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Moaning. Struggling with hormone roller coasters. Eating (although I enjoyed it at the time!)

20. How did you spend Christmas?
Early with English family at ours - could become a tradition

At Christmas with German family - traditional

New Year in Dubai - totally nontraditional

21. Did you fall in love in 2008.
Again: every day

22. What was your favorite TV program?
The West Wing (discovered it again on FoxTV which is English language satellite channel)

Moonlight - like a bit of vampire love!

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't this time last year?
I have strong feelings about many people but I am not sure I hate anyone. 

24. What was the best book you read?
Don't think I read all that much. Did I actually pick up a book? I will go and have a look at my bookshelf but I think not - *hangs head in shame*.

25. What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
Family brunch. Dinner at a local Greek restaurant. nice and quiet.

26. What was your best musical discovery?
Discovered Adrienne Pierce who has a very distinctive voice which appeals greatly and Sarah McLachlan too.

Rediscovered Reef (reminds me of 1997)

27. What did you want and get?
A record player

LOADS of stash

An iMac

28. What was your favorite film of the year?
SATC - what else?

29. What did you want and not get?
More than 24 hours in the day

To be lighter

To be younger


30. What one thing would've made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
You mean apart from the three things listed above?

More quality time with R


31. How would you describe your fashion concept for 2008?
Like I said last year, I think anyone who knows me would agree that I have no fashion concept. I would probably say - cheap. I made a decision to buy nothing new all year - apart from a couple of t-shirts and a pair of boots in the sale in the spring, and a couple of cheap items just before Christmas, I kept to this.

32. What kept you sane?
Ralph

Scrapbooking

Reading other people's blogs

Chocolate and champagne

33. Which celebrity or public figure did you admire most?

Obama

34. What political issue stirred you most?
Same as last year plus the US election and the crisis in the middle east.

35. Who do you miss?
Still Grandad

Jacqui

36. Who was the best new person you met? 
Libby's crop friends - great people - can't wait to get the chance to meet up again

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned.
That you make time for the things you want the most, most of the time

Willpower takes more energy than I have right now

38. Quote a song line that defines your year.
"Wham bam, I am a man, job or no job you can't tell me that I'm not

Do, you, enjoy what you do? If not, just stop, don't stay there and rot."

From Wham Rap - see song entry above!!!! (very much tongue in cheek! I am after all a girl of the 80s)

Once again, I find myself to be Billy-No-Mates - so I tag Libby and Amber.