Merry Christmas

I want to wish everyone a happy and healthy Christmas. I also wanted to get this survey posted, since I had time to take it during a slow work day today. I've taken it every year the last several years and it's always interesting to look back and see what changes from year to year.


1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before? I remained completely, although not entirely by choice, celibate.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year? No, I still need to get back into shape.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? My family welcomed twin boys, Bryce and Bryant to my cousin Jennifer and her husband Dewey and they were followed in June by birth of my cousin Stephanie's little girl Ava.
4. Did anyone close to you die? Nobody that I had a personal(as in met them in person) relationship with, but there were a lot of untimely and tragic deaths this year from stars like Paul Newman, Heath Ledger, Sydney Pollack and Mitch Mitchell to a local restrauntuer Denny Young, who I didn't know well but have friends and family who close to him and know what a great and unique guy he was.
5. What countries did you visit? I did not leave the good ole US of A this year.
6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008? I would like to have my living arrangement change again soon and hopefully be able to afford a new car early in the year as well.
7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Easy, November 4th 2008. Yes We Did!
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Surviving.
9. What was your biggest failure? I spent a lot of the year writing to not have finished anything worthwhile.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Oh yeah, two kidney stone attacks this year along with that pesky neuromuscular disorder that comes out of nowhere ever so often.
11. What was the best thing you bought? A new leather jacket, which I got for an absolute steal. And I don't feel bad for buying a nice new leather jacket, even if it cost next to nothing, because I donated 6 coats/jackets of mine to a charity clothing drive. It's a fair trade-off, everything I donated was in great condition. I even convinced my mom to finally donate some of my brother's coats this year. No use in them collecting dust when they could be helping keep someone warm this winter.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? President Elect Barack Obama. Class act all the way.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Mostly my own.
14. Where did most of your money go? Gas and other ancillary things involving my vehicle maintenance and itunes of course (I might need rehab to get off it)
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Texas Longhorns Football season
16. What song will always remind you of 2008? "Paper Planes" by M.I.A.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:i. happier or sadder? sadderii. thinner or fatter? Fatter but I'm working on itiii. richer or poorer? Poorer, like most everyone else
18. What do you wish you'd done more of? work-out, get out, travel, sleep, dance
19. What do you wish you'd done less of? Self-loath, worry about work20. How will you be spending Christmas? Home with my parents and some family friends.
22. Did you fall in love in 2008? Not even close.
23. How many one-night stands? Zero24. What was your favorite TV program? Lost, Mad Men, House, The Daily Show
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? No26. What was the best book you read? 2666 by Roberto Bolano (an epic and disturbing but fascinating read)
27. What was your greatest musical discovery? Vampire Weekend, MGMT and Bon Iver
28. What did you want and get?
30. What was your favorite film of this year? The Dark Knight, but there's a lot I haven't seen that looks really great. Rachel Getting Married, Man on Wire, In Bruges and Slumdog Millionaire are also really great.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 26 and I had play rehearsal which I had the embarrassment of having to try on a pair of 36 waist costume pants that were too small! Now I'm not really a 36 waist, it must have just been the design of these very old pair of pants but still that was pretty depressing.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Being onstage performing more or finishing one of my writing projects and not have it come out as crap.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008? Probably looking ridiculous by wearing shirts that were tight for me, due to the ever expanding belly region.
34. What kept you sane? medication
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Anne Hathaway is de lovely.
36. What political issue stirred you the most? The Wars in Iraq and Afghanastan
37. Who did you miss? My little brother Travis, go ahead and etch this answer down for this question from now until the end of time
38. Who was the best new person you met? Even though I met him last year, I got to know my friend Melissa's soon to be husband Blake better this year.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008: Hard work and persistence are not always rewards in themselves, sometimes you want and deserve more, and that usually only occurs when you don't get it.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
"Just us kids in the parking lot/Out here givin' it all we got/We don't want to get old and die/There ain't anything we won't try" - from "Just Us Kids" by James McMurtry