The end of the year is approaching – only 10 days till Christmas (can I get a ‘oh shit’?) and then it’s just a downhill slide that bottoms out into 2011. It seems that without trying we’ve once again reached a fresh start.
And of course, being me, all I can think about is where I am in relationship to where I’ve been. And, being me, all I see is how I’ve come up short. But yesterday I decided that maybe I’ve been thinking about this whole thing all wrong.
Last year around this time you could find me really only one place, in my bed typing furiously away. I told myself that I was going to finish my NaNoWriMo fantasy novel from the year before (“Let’s Get Intuit”) before the year was over. I fudged along the way – chapters that were literally only paragraphs long, gaps that I cheated to fill because the good idea was not forthcoming. All of these things I knew but I hadn’t written anything in what seemed like forever and I was going to finish this book come hell or high water.
And then in January I sent the story out for people to read and comment on and decided that I would distract myself with another idea before the daunting prospect of editing came along. And that’s when I happened upon RomCon, my fully formed, ridiculously fun, almost no editing required novel. It took me six months to write – and not that I wrote every day, long periods of block and bargaining took place – but it’s done. And, if I do say so myself, it’s kind of awesome.
So, instead of looking back and seeing where I’m not, let’s see where I’ve actually been with
Val’s List Of 2010 Moments Of Awesomeness
- I finished my novel RomCon and everyone who’s read it has liked it so far – even with all of the Chuck Norris jokes, comic book craziness, and scandalous tabloids.
- I pulled off a major work coup – I got us up and running on a software system in 5 weeks (which included training, demanding all the other departments help us, and being optimistic to the extreme) by being so persistent that they had to listen to me. In the process I found my Work Voice – now when I talk I can generally get people to listen.
- I diagnosed myself with an annoying disease and finally figured out why I haven’t been feeling well – and have generally dealt with it without crying, complaining, or even cookies (though the pizza and pancake withdrawals still make me a little sad, it’s true).
- I bonded with my nephew – the cutest little boy in all the world, it’s true – and taught him to say my name. Yes, he might say it with a stutter but he knows who Auntie Va-Va-Va-Val is, you better believe it.
- I managed to *almost* keep my New Year’s resolution from last year with regards to making more time to hang out with friends who live in different cities. Which means I’ve spent much more time engaging with people I love but tend to pass like cat burglars in the night. I am no longer just a straight line.
- Little by little I’m allowing myself to try new things. I’ve been to a hockey game and a baseball game so far this year. Before it’s over I’ll be going to a basketball game and forced to sing karaoke. It may seem like small steps but hey, they’re steps.
So no, 2011 will not find me suddenly svelte and no longer single – but that’s okay. Because as far as years go, this last one could have been worse. Hopefully the same thing will be said for 2011, 370 days from now when I sit thinking about it (oh god, do you know how close I’ll be to 30 then?!). Here’s looking at you year!