2. Did you achieve your goals, and will you make more for this year?<\/b>
Goals for 2015:<\/b>
-hold a plank for four minutes
-keep my open browser tabs below 100 at all times
-organize the hutch in the kitchen
I achieved none of these things, but I survived the year, and I'm calling that good.
Goals for 2016:<\/b>
-write write write
-keep my open browser tabs below 100 at all times
-organize the hutch in the kitchen
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?<\/b>
Nope.
4. Did anyone close to you die?<\/b>
(Does a 15 year friendship count?) An elderly family friend passed away.
5. What places did you visit?<\/b>
Illinois (Chicago and Rockford), Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico. Those last few were part of a trip where I went to New Mexico for the wedding from hell. (My cousin married a heinous cunt. It was pretty special.) During that trip I visited the American Quarter Horse Museum.<\/a>
6. What would you like to have in 2016 that you lacked in 2015?<\/b>
Answer from last year: a cast iron frying pan.
I didn't get it.
For 2016 I would like more free time and more creative time than I had in 2015, which, honestly, shouldn't be hard to do. It's a low bar. *knocks on wood*
7. What date from 2015 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?<\/b>
February 13th--the vet visit of bad news. (here<\/a> and here<\/a> and here.<\/a>)
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?<\/b>
Making it through.
9. What was your biggest failure?<\/b>
Losing my patience with Logan when he misbehaved, because I was exhausted and stressed. He behaved terribly at times, and dangerously\u2014for himself and for me\u2014but he didn\u2019t understand what was happening. We were both frustrated and miserable, but unlike him I understood why it had to be that way.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?<\/b>
Unlike 2014, I have not been to the doctor once in 2015, except for routine preventative stuff. Logan, on the other hand, suffered a very bad injury and it turned everyone's lives upside down for ten months.
11. What was the best thing you bought?<\/b>
NHL Center Ice.
12. Who was awesome this year?<\/b>
Laura Stone, musesfool, chicklet_girl, dizzzylu, maichan, bleep, artemis2050...I bet I\u2019m forgetting a bunch of people.
13. Who wasn't awesome?<\/b>
Donald Trump. What's up with THAT guy? (Don't answer.)
14. Where did most of your money go?<\/b>
Vet bills, car repairs, and gas to get back and forth from the barn every day for months on end.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?<\/b>
Seeing the Stanley Cup! Seeing artemis2050 in Chicago!
16. What song will always remind you of 2015?<\/b>
\u201cAlready Gone\u201d by The Eagles
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:<\/b>
i. happier or sadder? happier
ii. thinner or fatter? fatter
iii. richer or poorer? poorer
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?<\/b>
Being happy.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?<\/b>
Crying.
20. How will you be spending New Year's Eve?<\/b>
Home alone, which is my tradition. (Start as you intend to go on, and all that.)
22. Did you fall in love in 2015?<\/b>
I fell back in love with hockey.
23. Did you try any foods you've never eaten before?<\/b>
Ethiopian food!<\/a> Cotton candy grapes!<\/a>
24. What was your favorite TV program?<\/b>
Fargo.
25. What made you laugh in 2015?<\/b>
RMNB<\/a>
26. What was the best book you read?<\/b>
I read one book this year, Bitter Springs<\/a>. And you should read it, too.
27. What was your greatest musical (re)discovery?<\/b>
Chris Stapleton.
28. What did you want and get?<\/b>
Logan\u2019s leg is finally healed. He\u2019s not back to work yet, is still rehabbing, but we were able to back off on some of the treatments and no longer have to be at the barn every day.
29. What did you want and not get?<\/b>
Support from people who mattered to me.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?<\/b>
Behind the Candelabra<\/i> (I think it\u2019s from last year, but I finally saw it this year.) Mad Max: Fury Road<\/i>
Magic Mike XXL<\/i>
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?<\/b>
I turned 44 and I went out to dinner with my family.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?<\/b>
Sudden influx of wealth.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2015?<\/b>
\"Affordable.\" (I really need to replace this question.)
34. What kept you sane?<\/b>
My friends who were so understanding and supportive and helpful.
35. Which celebrity\/public figure\/fictional character did you fancy the most?<\/b>
Eddie Lack, Tom Wilson.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?<\/b>
Same crap as always. Can we keep the religious extremists out of our government already?!?!
37. Who did you miss?<\/b>
My grandpa. (Still, two years later.)
38. Who was the best new person you met?<\/b>
My new barn BFF, Terri.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2015<\/b>
Finding out who is still interested in being your friend when you are fucking miserable is invaluable. Don't be afraid to act on this knowledge.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.<\/b>
We are never ever getting back together.<\/i><\/a><\/a>
Count von Count would like you to know that over at Dreamwidth<\/a> this post has
And it's that time of year again.
1. What did you do in this year that you'd never done before?<\/b>
I went to Italy!<\/a> For free! The aunt who pays for me to travel with her chose that for our trip this year. It was so beautiful!
2. Did you achieve your goals, and will you make more for this year?<\/b>
Goals for 2014 were:<\/b>
-hold a plank for four minutes
-update LJ\/DW once a month
-work on that writing thing I've been avoiding for a year
I was on schedule to make the four minute plank by the end of this year (I was at two minutes in June) but then I had surgery on my hip and was unable to do any planks at all for for several months, so I lost a lot of ground.
I completely failed on the LJ\/DW updates, partly because LJ made some kind of code change that made it almost unusable for me for about six months there. And then when it finally was working again I really didn't have much to say. At this point I've accepted that this is the place where I post my end of year survey and that's pretty much it.
I did not work on the writing thing. :(
Goals for 2015:<\/b>
-hold a plank for four minutes
-keep my open browser tabs below 100 at all times
-organize the hutch in the kitchen
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?<\/b>
My friend Price and his girlfriend had a super adorable baby.<\/a>
4. Did anyone close to you die?<\/b>
My great-uncle Roman. He was very old and it was expected, but it was still very hard on the family, because he was everyone's cheerleader.
5. What countries did you visit?<\/b>
Italy!
6. What would you like to have in 2015 that you lacked in 2014?<\/b>
Answers from last year: financial stability, snowshoes.
The finances have been better. Still no snowshoes. I'm gonna give up on those.
For 2015 I want a cast iron frying pan.
7. What date from 2014 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?<\/b>
The day I saw the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It was fucking awesome.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?<\/b>
The long, painful rehab process following my hip surgery.
9. What was your biggest failure?<\/b>
I didn't start working on Christmas stuff nice and early like I normally do, and then was rushed and exhausted.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?<\/b>
I had not one but two surgeries in 2014, and I'm glad I opted for both and they improved my quality of life by a lot. In February I had an endometrial ablation, to get rid of my horrible heavy periods, and it worked like a charm, and I had a super easy recovery (I went hiking the next day!). In June I had surgery to repair damage to my hip from an old horseback riding injury, and my recovery from that took a lot longer, but was also very easy and fast, according to the physical therapists and doctors.
11. What was the best thing you bought?<\/b>
I'm drawing a total blank.
12. Who was awesome this year?<\/b>
Artemis2050!<\/a>
13. Who wasn't awesome?<\/b>
I guess this year I'll say the police. Cripes.
14. Where did most of your money go?<\/b>
Medical bills (mine and Logan's).
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?<\/b>
Walking on my own two feet again, after being on crutches for a month following my surgery. It was pretty sweet.
16. What song will always remind you of 2014?<\/b>
All About That Bass<\/a> by Meghan Trainor.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:<\/b>
i. happier or sadder? happier
ii. thinner or fatter? same I think
iii. richer or poorer? richer
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?<\/b>
Writing.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?<\/b>
Wasting time online.
20. How will you be spending New Year's Eve?<\/b>
Home alone, which is my tradition. (Start as you intend to go on, and all that.) This year I'll be eating escargot.
22. Did you fall in love in 2014?<\/b>
I sure did. With Tyler Hoechlin's glorious mustache.<\/a>
23. Did you try any foods you've never eaten before?<\/b>
Tripe! (NOT A FAN.)
24. What was your favorite TV program?<\/b>
The Roosevelts.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?<\/b>
I do but for the sake of avoiding wank I'm not going to name them. :)
26. What was the best book you read?<\/b>
I read so few books now. It's all just fan fiction. I did read a book or two. Probably something by John Sandford.
27. What was your greatest musical (re)discovery?<\/b>
Pink Martini
28. What did you want and get?<\/b>
An iPad!
29. What did you want and not get?<\/b>
A Tinsel Pig.<\/a>
30. What was your favorite film of this year?<\/b>
Big Hero 6, Guardians of the Galaxy, The Maze Runner.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?<\/b>
I turned 43 and I went out to dinner with my family.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?<\/b>
Sudden influx of wealth.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2014?<\/b>
\"Affordable.\" (I really need to replace this question, too.)
34. What kept you sane?<\/b>
My friends were an invaluable support after my surgery--lots of care packages and visits, and gifts of DVDs etc to help fill the time while I was bedridden. They were awesome.
35. Which celebrity\/public figure\/fictional character did you fancy the most?<\/b>
I'm still creepily enamored with Tyler Hoechlin.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?<\/b>
We finally got marriage equality here in Wisconsin, and my sister got married! \\o\/
37. Who did you miss?<\/b>
My grandpa. :(
38. Who was the best new person you met?<\/b>
Huh. I can't single one out.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2014<\/b>
Don't go to Europe with only a Kindle Fire for reading material. (It wouldn't charge through the converter.)
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.<\/b>
Hey, mambo! Mambo italiano!<\/i><\/a>
Count von Count would like you to know that over at Dreamwidth<\/a> this post has
But tradition and posterity blah blah blah.
1. What did you do in this year that you'd never done before?<\/b>
I went kayaking! It was awesome and I want to do it again.
2. Did you achieve your goals, and will you make more for this year?<\/b>
Goals for 2013<\/b>
-write five stories
-hold the crow yoga pose for more than two seconds
-winter moonlight hiking
-200 Sit-Ups (for real this time)
-happiness jar!<\/a>
I wrote five stories.<\/a> I am now able to hold crow for\u2026ten seconds, probably. I went winter moonlight hiking (more than once!). I also had a goal, which I forgot to put down here, of hiking 200 miles in 2013, which I accomplished despite a nagging hip injury, so yay me!
I completely failed at 200 Sit-Ups AGAIN, but I've come to realize that at this point I'm just not all that interested in it, so I'm giving up on it.
I did do a happiness jar, which was actually a Hello Kitty box, and I was pretty good about it for a while, and then things got kind of busy and sucky, and I forgot about it for a while. At the end of the year I got back to it. I spent some time reading the notes in it today, and it was fun. There were definitely things I'd forgotten about, and it was nice to remember.
Goals for 2014<\/b>
-hold a plank for four minutes
-update LJ\/DW once a month
-work on that writing thing I've been avoiding for a year
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?<\/b>
I don't think so. I\u2019m pretty uninterested in humans reproducing so if anyone did I probably forgot.
4. Did anyone close to you die?<\/b>
My grandpa died in September.
5. What countries did you visit?<\/b>
Just the one I live in.
6. What would you like to have in 2014 that you lacked in 2013?<\/b>
Answers from last year: financial stability, snowshoes.
I got neither, so I'll stick with those again this year.
7. What date from 2013 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?<\/b>
The morning I got word that my grandpa had finally died.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?<\/b>
Writing Stand Fast In Your Enchantments.<\/a> Not only was it long and plotty, but I wrote it over what was a really difficult six months, and since it was for Otter, who is my Teen Wolf beta reader and sounding board, I couldn't bounce stuff off her, which made it even more difficult. I am so damn glad I finished it.
9. What was your biggest failure?<\/b>
I'm not really sure and I don't feel like contemplating it.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?<\/b>
I've had an ongoing problem with my hip, starting in April and getting progressively worse since. I will hopefully have an answer about the exact nature of the problem soon.
11. What was the best thing you bought?<\/b>
A rosin bag for yoga class. I had the worst problem with sliding around on my mat all the time, because--and I know this sounds weird--my hands are really smooth. (When I went to get fingerprinted for work reasons the cop who did it grumbled and had to re-do the whole card because I barely even have any fingerprints. Maybe I'm an android, I don't know.)
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?<\/b>
I've had some really wonderful times in Teen Wolf fandom this year, and people have been so generous and creative and amazing. Those were some bright spots in what was a pretty difficult year.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?<\/b>
Republicans, as usual, but let's mix it up this year and say Jeff Davis, head dipshit over at Teen Wolf.
14. Where did most of your money go?<\/b>
Car payments, horse expenses, paying off my MacBook.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?<\/b>
My friend Price came to town to see Thor 2 with me and we had a fantastic time. I wish he could move back here so I could see him more often.
16. What song will always remind you of 2013<\/b>
Royals by Lorde<\/a>
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:<\/b>
i. happier or sadder? sadder
ii. thinner or fatter? same
iii. richer or poorer? same
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?<\/b>
Writing.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?<\/b>
Being angry about things I can't control.
20. How will you be spending New Year's Eve?<\/b>
Home alone, which is my tradition. (Start as you intend to go on, and all that.)
22. Did you fall in love in 2013?<\/b>
No, thank God. That's the last fucking thing I need.
23. Did you try any foods you've never eaten before?<\/b>
Chia seed pudding!<\/a> Which I LOVED and I make all the time now. SO DELICIOUS.
24. What was your favorite TV program?<\/b>
Well, it should have been Teen Wolf but season 3A was so bad that this year my favorite TV show isn't the one for the fandom I am actively writing in\u2014that goes to Almost Human.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?<\/b>
I think I might replace this one, too. It's such a bummer.
26. What was the best book you read?<\/b>
I read so few books now. It's all just fan fiction. I did a book or two. Probably something by John Sandford.
27. What was your greatest musical (re)discovery?<\/b>
The Black Keys
28. What did you want and get?<\/b>
This foam roller.<\/a>
I have a smooth one that I've used for years, but the Pilates studio had one of these, and I loved it so much and used it every time I was there. Then the studio closed that location and moved into a local fitness club, and that roller didn't make the move (I think it belonged to the personal trainer who worked out of the old location--he went somewhere else). Anyway, I went back to using my own roller all the time and found it wasn't as effective. So I asked for one for Christmas and my mom delivered! <3
29. What did you want and not get?<\/b>
This cinematic masterpiece.<\/a>
30. What was your favorite film of this year?<\/b>
Huh. That's actually a tough one. 2012 was just so fucking amazing and then 2013 was\u2026not. There were a lot of movies I was really looking forward to that were disappointing (Iron Man 3, Man of Steel, Monsters University, the list goes on) so I guess\u2026Pacific Rim or Thor 2.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?<\/b>
I turned 42 (the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything!), and I went up north to spend it with my dad and grandparents. It was the last birthday I'll ever celebrate with my grandpa, and I knew it at the time, so it was pretty bittersweet.
I didn't actually celebrate with my family down here until July. We went out to dinner and had cake at home. It was nice and low-key and fun.
And Ileliberte drew me a fantastic Catwoman piece!<\/a> Eartha Kitt version, too!
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?<\/b>
Less cancer. WAY LESS CANCER.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?<\/b>
\"Affordable.\" (I really need to replace this question, too.)
34. What kept you sane?<\/b>
Texting with my friends, spending time at the barn with Logan. Teen Wolf fanworks.
35. Which celebrity\/public figure\/fictional character did you fancy the most?<\/b>
My love for Tyler Hoechlin is through the stratosphere at this point.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?<\/b>
Ugh. I hate politics so much, mainly due to the existence of Republicans, so maybe this question needs to be replaced, as well.
37. Who did you miss?<\/b>
My grandpa. :(
38. Who was the best new person you met?<\/b>
I found an amazing new yoga instructor who has really changed the way I practice, and made me a stronger, better student.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013<\/b>
Take your iPhone out of your pocket before you go in the port-a-potty.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.<\/b>
I'm trying, but I'm graceless
Don't have the sunny side to face this
I am invisible and weightless
You can't imagine how I hate this<\/i>
Graceless \u2013 The National
<\/a><\/a>
Count von Count would like you to know that over at Dreamwidth<\/a> this post has
He was 93 years old and had been ill for a while, but that only makes it slightly less difficult. It's still a loss for all of us, a gaping hole in our family. An empty chair at the table, a pair of shoes by the door that will never be worn again, a pick-up truck sitting under the oak tree that we can't bear to think of selling.
He was a logger, like my great-grandpa, like my great-great-grandpa, like my dad. He logged with horses well into the 1980s, long after everyone else had switched to machines, because he enjoyed working with them and didn't want to give it up. His logging horses were the first I ever rode, and he always used to say I got my love of horses from him. I probably did.
He loved being outside, even when he wasn't working. He hunted, and fished, and went for long walks. My first hikes were with him, traipsing through the woods on our family's land. There were no trails, no signs, no GPS watches--just a walking stick and a couple peanut butter sandwiches in our pockets. I walked a lot of miles looking at his boot heels, stopping to pick flowers, catch a toad, ask him what kind of bird was making that noise.
Like me, he loved to read, and learn things. He never used a computer, but he knew you could find just about anything on the Internet, and every week when I called he'd have something for me to look up. Who made the first potato chip? How long does a grasshopper live? I spent a lot of Sunday nights reading Wikipedia pages into the phone.
He was funny, and kind, and incredibly honest. If you've read my stories, you've met him, in a way. There's a little of him in Ernst from Junk Cheap<\/a>--Ernst's outrage over opposition to marriage equality came straight from my grandpa, who insisted \"it's no one's goddamn business who someone else wants to marry.\" There's more than a little of him in Steve Rogers, both the Semaphore<\/a> version and the Rule Number Nine<\/a> version. I borrowed quite a few things from my grandpa, habits and personality traits, his dislike of the casual use of the f-bomb, his old antique radio that didn't work anymore. It came in handy when I was writing Captain America, knowing a guy who was born in 1920 and fought in World War II and hated bullies.
He always flew an American flag out by the road, even when he disagreed strenuously with the direction the country is going in, and it's at half-staff now, for him. The funeral was standing room only, and afterwards there was a luncheon in the small town he grew up in, bowls and pans and Nesco cookers lined up on the counter in the town hall, full of food cooked and served at no charge by the women of the town. My second grade teacher was there, cousins of cousins were there, sons and daughters and grandchildren of deceased friends were there. My parents have been divorced for thirty years but she was there, and some of her siblings came, and some of her friends. A man who worked for him for years broke down and cried outside the funeral home. There was an honor guard, and each of the grandkids received a spent shell from the volley.
My grandmother gave my brother my grandfather's watch. My cousin Kyle got a coin he carried all through the war. I got his pocketknife. When I was a little girl we would sit on the tailgate of his pickup truck and share an apple, and he would cut it into slices with his knife, and let me fold the blade back in when we were done.
About ten years ago there was a Christmas where money was tight for my grandparents but not for me, and before I left their house on Christmas day I rolled up a twenty dollar bill and stuck it through a wreath-shaped ornament on the tree, for them to find when they took it down. When I saw them a few weeks later, my grandma asked if I had left it there and I said yes. She said, \"Grandpa said right away it was you.\" I laughed and said, \"How did you know?\" and my Grandpa said, \"Because you have a good heart.\"
I got that from him, too.
Age nine. Look at that face!
When I visited in July he had just been moved to a nursing home, and I spent the day there with him and my grandma, looking at pictures. This is my grandparents sixty-five years ago, and just two months ago.
<\/center><\/a>
Count von Count would like you to know that over at Dreamwidth<\/a> this post has
![](\"https:\/\/l-stat.livejournal.net\/img\/userinfo_v8.png?v=17080&v=915\")
<\/a>amezri<\/b><\/a>