Reflections on 2009

Note: I wrote this during the last week of 2009 while I was with my family at a house up in Deep Creek Lake.  I thought it made sense to post it now, along with the newly created video "2009 in review" at the bottom.

This week has been an amazing vacation.  Not in the traditional sense of “amazing vacations”, which for me generally involves attending weddings in Sweden, backpacking around Turkey, or cruising down the Nile.  Instead, this last week has been chock full of...nothing.  No grand adventures, no international travel incidents, not even any amusing encounters with foreigners.  And it's been wonderful.  I should always spend the last week of the year with my family in a rented house by the lake, with babies and dogs (who love to lick the baby), and afternoon naps and jacuzzi and sauna and sledding and fresh snow every day and lots and lots of holiday cookies.  I'll even take the cold and ear infection, if that's what it takes to get away from work and responsibility for a week. 

It's also the time of year when I look back at the past year and decide what was good, what was bad, and what it all means for 2010.  Here are some of the highlights: 

Home and Family

I probably should have “getting married” as a high point of 2009, but honestly, the whole wedding thing was a hassle I didn't need.  I felt ugly, I thought it was a waste of money, and it was a lot of stress in an already stressful year.  Instead, I think that the more general “getting to live with Bill in our new house” was probably the best part of the year.   

Fixing up all the different rooms, making a weekly (sometimes daily trip to Home Depot), watching the garden produce handfuls of hot peppers in the backyard, and watching the puppies frolic in the spring flowers, then the summer swimming pool, then the autumn leaves, and then the winter snow – these are all memories I will cherish.  Gaining 30 pounds, being diagnosed with PCOS, finding it impossible to get pregnant, and realizing I need to wax my upper lip with some regularity fall more into the “recurring nightmare” category of memories. 

Maya and Gracie were definitely a highlight of the year – in both the positive and the “kill me now” sense.  From those first weeks with Gracie as a teensy puppy to their terrible destructive habits (so many, many expensive things destroyed) to the pride of dog ownership the first time Gracie actually responded to DROP IT by dropping my shoe and backing away.  Snuggling with them on the couch (and in bed each night) makes me a happy girl.  Even now as I type, I can look down and see them sleeping on the floor, cuddled up in such a way that they can share a throw pillow that meandered off the couch. 

Adventure and Misadventure 

I got to travel to some amazing places in 2009, including Turkey (in March), Sweden (in August), and Hawaii (in September).  I went scuba diving in the hotel pool (and hated every minute of it), got into a heated price war with a Turkish carpet seller, negotiated the Stockholm subway, and used a not insignificant number of frequent flier miles.  Strangely enough, none of this travel was related to work—something markedly different than previous years.  Looking to 2010, I don't foresee a lot of work-related travel, but should have several opportunities to travel with Bill—including to Hawaii (again), Bangkok, Yemen, and Zambia.  I could get used to tagging along. 

Work and Personal Development 

This year was a major milestone for my business.  I had my best year ever until July when everything dried up—coincidentally at the same time that I hired my first full time employee.  Oh vey.  Lots of struggle and frustrations and anxiety.  I hope that things stabilize in 2010.  I don't need growth, just the ability to sleep through the night without waking up in a panic over payroll. 

It's been a huge year of changes and it shouldn't be surprising that with all that change came a lot of stress.  But looking back on this montage of 2009, I have to admit that overall I have some really great memories.