Chapter 5.6: The Year of Old Spice Guy

Yet again, we find ourselves at the end of the year, looking back on what has happened within it. This is the year that gave us the infamous Old Spice Guy, the opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Google Pacman Day, and Darren Criss on Glee. But we also had the earthquake in Haiti, the Chilean miner rescue, the BP oil spill, and the whole debacle with Jonathon Frazen. 2010 has been a year of highs, lows, and change.

For me, 2010 is probably a year where I've had the most personal growth. I had my first boyfriend since I was 14. I went on a once in a lifetime trip to London (where I met people I will absolutely never forget). I went to my first pub and my first club. I started my first blog and fell in love with it so I started this one. And I began making videos about books.

I had both one of the easiest quarters of my college career and one of the most challenging. I began my final year of school. Which means at some point soon, I'm going to have to figure out what the heck I'm doing with my life. Aside from writing because that's not actually something I chose. It chose me, and luckily I love all the crazies in my head.

The end of another year always seems to be a time of reflection. A time to ask "What have I done that mattered this year (which can be a personal accomplishment or one that made an impact on others)? What do I want to do within the next year?"

One of the things I am most proud of this year, is the fact that I was able to complete NaNoWriMo in the middle of one of my most hectic quarters and complete all my projects on time and still pull out good grades for the quarter. That took a lot of hard work, but it was worth it.

This year I learned that I can do choreography, even if it doesn't come easily to me. But if I concentrate and practice hard, I can make it look like I know what I'm doing. And I don't trip over my feet. Much.

I also learned a very important lesson. Even if you know who you are and are comfortable in that image, you can grow in your self image. Especially if you're trying to grow from the idea of yourself that you've held since early high school. I realized that I can be nerdy and pretty/girly and my world won't implode. And this is a lesson that I'm going to keep in mind moving forward. Because it's an important one.

As for what I want to do in 2011? My plans are vague. I know that I will graduate in the spring and for the first time in sixteen years, I will be out of school. I will have to figure out what to do with my life. Which means I either need to get serious about writing (as in, write or revise every single day) or give up. And I don't see myself giving up.

So here are my resolutions for the new year. And I'm posting them here so I have more accountability. Because when you tell people, you feel more compelled to complete it.

1. Graduate at least cum laude (with honors) from Western Washington University

2. Write/revise creative work for at least an half hour every day (even if it's just a writing exercise to get the juices flowing).

3. Learn to cook so that I can eat something other than sandwiches and toast.

So what are you proud of this last year? And what do you hope to do in the next?