I figure the last day of the year is always a good day to really look back on it all, be amazed, confused, freaked out, nostalgic, and all that other stuff.
2010 was a year that was seriously crazy in my life and so many things happened that I honestly have trouble realizing that it only occured in one 364 day period.
So... without further ramblings (only to give way to it's own rambling): How I Spent My 2010
I was unemployed, employed sorta, and then unemployed and employed again
This was probably the most trying this about this year. It made for a lot of uncertainty while everything else was moving around me. It's tough not knowing exactly what will be happening thanks to your financial situation and at times it was downright stressful.
As of October I finally have a full time job again and so far I'm settling in nicely. I never expected to be doing the kind of work that I am, nor did I expect that having a friend of mine as a boss would work out. But I'm finding that it's a pretty friendly and casual atmosphere in my department... okay maybe not "I've puked in your bathroom" kind of friendly, but friendly enough so that I don't feel weird having someone I've known for the last 8ish years suddenly become my boss for 8 hours of the day.
It's not all doom and gloom either... I've already started doing some design work for the company. Helping to re do their web site is a huge thing and I'm honored to be allowed to do it... especially considering I haven't even passed my 90-day probationary period. It speaks really well for the company as a whole, I think. I was told that if you aren't "happy" in the department you get hired in that you can shuffle around a bit (within reason) until you find somewhere that suites you and I think I've pretty much hit the nail on the head. (Even if the IT department is trying to steal me away.)
I feel comfortable and for me... that's huge. I like repetition, but I also like being able to break out of that repetition when I want to and so far I'm being allowed to do just that. It's pretty awesome.
I moved
Yep. Huge. I've lived in the same house for all my life and moving in with my boyfriend and our two roommates has been perhaps the most trying thing. I still have days where I feel honestly out of place, like I'm just living in my roommates' house, like all I want to do is go home. But then there's days like... well... today. Where I manage to get the whole place to myself and actually have some alone time and I feel fine. I think that's perhaps the single most thing I honestly miss about living with my parents, the fact that frequently I could be the only person in the entire house. I like my moments of solitude and around here they are few and far between. But... they exist. Enough so that I haven't gone on a rampage and attempted to murder everyone.
I was terrified, nervous, and forced to be patient
I don't think I'll ever forget the last day of February of 2010. My father's accident where he dislocated his shoulder while my mother was out-of-state was perhaps one of those moments I will never truly forget. I cannot begin to be grateful for the fact that my boyfriend was there to basically hold me together through the calling of 911 to going to the ER to bringing my father back home. It was trying and honestly scary and probably one of the darkest and strangest times in my life. The fact it happened just before I was scheduled to move made it all the more difficult.
My dad still hasn't returned to work (I think he's scheduled to in January). But he is doing MUCH better... back to his old self. I'm thankful for that. Hell... he was pretty much his normal self (with a sling) about a week after it happened. He even managed to come over and help me paint the new bed room in the house I moved to. My dad: made of pure awesome.
I learned new crafts
Yay for knitting for it keeps me occupied and feeling like I'm accomplishing something. It's a wonderfully simple thing that results in wonderfully extraordinary things. I think the blanket I made my mother for Christmas is really a great example of that. It also showed me that I'm willing to stick to one rather large project for quite some time. Goal for 2011: Sweaters. Maybe just two. Hopefully more.
I stopped stressing about friends
I'll be perfectly honest... I've stressed over the fact that I don't seem to have a lot of friends that I go and hang out with. Sure there's my boyfriend's sister and her boyfriend... who are fun as hell to hang out with... but honestly that's about it. I think moving in with my boyfriend's best friend and having the boy be away on weekends spending time with his gun buddies has only emphasized this little void to me. I don't think the strange feeling of isolation in my house really helped much either (yeah we live with the aforementioned friend of boyfriend and his fiance... but her and I aren't really the types to go and hang out together.)
Well... that feeling pretty much got kicked in the ass this Halloween and the days that followed that I spent in Nevada. I realized that I have some honest awesome friends... they just don't live near me. And while that kinda is odd in some ways... like I said, it hit me like a brick and I basically felt foolish for ever feeling all bummed out here at home. Lamesauce of me, but we're good now.
I became okay with calling myself a "writer"
I think the fact that I once again participated in NaNoWriMo and officially have another novel under my belt has solidified a fact I've pretty much known for a while now... I like to write. I write quite a lot. I am a writer. I don't have the courage to attempt to get anything published... it sounds like pure madness to me. I think I'm much too sensitive and protective of my writing to let others have at it like that... which is weird considering I went through several years of having my artwork torn apart in college. But I think this stuff is more personal. They're stories... but they're my stories, sprung from my mind. Maybe I can at least get up the courage to let the boyfriend read them one day.
And that's it! Or at least... the major bits. There were other trials and good times and such throughout the year... but there always are. So good bye 2010, it's been real. And hello 2011... let's see what you have in store for me
