Things I Did This Year In Words and Pictures

I have tried to fill this survey in every year since about 2001 because I quite like it, even though some of the questions are stupid. I like going back over past years and seeing if my answers are the same now as they were then. Some of them aren't and some of them are EXACTLY the same, which is quite odd and also reassuring, as if reminding me that I am, in fact, the same person I have always been. 

​Here is 2015's offering. 

[1] What did you do in 2015 that you have never done before?

Became a Godmother!
Moved in with a boy who doesn't suck
Bought furniture
Lived in a hotel for 2 weeks (I didn't find Lenny Henry)
Went to Berlin. Ate a Currywurst.
Wore a yellow bridesmaids dress (I've worn a pink one and a white one but never a yellow one)
Organised THREE craft fairs! That's so many! Two is usually my limit. And will be my limit again in future years because three was confusing. 
Got a job where I get my own room. Like a doctor! Except incredibly not at all like a doctor in any other way. Oh, there's an examination table. But that's it. 
Worked on a fast response car, by my own self, and did not crash into a tree/kill anyone. It was stressful though. Also, the talking-to-yourself possibilities in a fast response car are quite high. 
Drove onto a ferry, and off again. That was exciting. I love ferries. 
Lived with above mentioned boy for longer than the last time I tried living with a boy. Hooray! We have not killed each other yet. 
Went to Iceland. Numpty-ed about trying to photograph the Northern Lights, and failing, because even with my considerable photographic skills (ha) I am still no good at photographing the sky at night. 

[2] Did you keep all of last years resolutions?


Having reviewed my New Year's Resolutions last night at dinner with Erica, during our AGM which happens every year between Christmas and New Year at a local Mexican Restaurant, I can tell you proudly that I DID keep all my resolutions, but this is only because I obeyed resolution number 5 and ordered something OTHER than the Mexican Paella this year. Otherwise it would only have been 4/5. Luckily I branched out and had a Buffalo Burger. It was dry. I should have listened to my gut instinct and broken the 5th resolution.


[3] Have you any resolutions for next year?


Yes I made 7. I am not going to write them here but I did write them down on our AGM sheet and Erica will keep it safe until this time next year, when we will review them and get upset because we did not keep them all. Oh though, one of them was that I am allowed to have the Paella again. 

In the interest of this being a travel blog I will keep it somewhat relevant and reveal that another of the 7 resolutions is to go to Seattle. I would like to do that a lot. Partly because Frasier is one of my all time favourite television shows, partly because of Grey's Anatomy and partly because I'm secretly hoping that friendly vampires are real. I don't drink coffee so it's not because of that. 

Oh and read more, write more, listen to more music. And go to more gigs. 



[4] What countries did you visit?

Oh good, another travel related question! This blog is not a complete waste of time after all. 

Iceland
France (a lot) 
Germany

 I find it upsetting that this is the entire list. Fail. When I win the Lottery, the list will be longer. 



[5] What would you like to have in 2016 that you didn't have in 2015?


-See above comment about the Lottery
-A car that isn't 17 years old and leaking, but then again, I genuinely don't know how I could bear to part with The Cockroach (1999 Nissan Micra, still good for an incredibly short road trip to Tesco and back)
-More travel
-The feeling that I am doing some good in the world, because I'm not sure I am at the moment really. 



[6] What date in 2015 will remain etched in your memory?


Erm. 3rd July, which was the day that Dan and I moved in together, although come to think of it, that date might be completely wrong. 


And the day of Jenson's Christening which I think was in March but terribly, I cannot remember what date it was. I hope I am a better Godmother than I am a keeper of important dates. 



[7] What was your biggest achievement of the year?


Oh yeah, that day way back in January, I think it was 10th January, when I had to do a fitness test as part of a job interview and one of the requirements was 10 press ups inside of 30 seconds, which was impossible because in all my practising I had only managed a press up and a half. Oh, and they had to be REAL press ups, none of this cross-legged, knees-on-the-floor nonsense. And we had to plank for a minute. It was really difficult and somehow I did it. When it came to the press ups, I did 10 in about 8 seconds which was ridiculous, and obviously an incredible feat of adrenaline because I couldn't move for about 4 days afterwards. And that night, Dan took me to a hotel that was a converted Oast House, and I was really excited because I love Oast Houses, but too exhausted to really express it in anything other than snoring. So this answers the 'what date is etched in your memory' question and also adds a bit to the 'what did you do in 2015 that you've never done before' question. Woo. 

Also, buying Bayeux Tapestry napkins as a souvenir at the Bayeux Tapestry was quite a big achievement. I love odd souvenirs. 


[8] What was your biggest failure?

I don't know what counts as a failure when you are 31. Am I a failure because I didn't get married, have children and buy a house yet? I don't feel like a failure for that. But I do wish I had done more extraordinary things. I don't know what counts as extraordinary. Actually, I think I've done okay. 


[9] Did you suffer any illness or injury?

I suffered Depression sometimes but I always have that. I had a record high number of stomach bugs which I think is probably to do with the fact that I live with someone who works in a primary school. Or because I am not afraid to eat shellfish in restaurants. 


IBS, which can go to hell by the way.


I have noticed more back pain than 5 years ago, please tell me it is NOT all downhill from here?


[10] What was the best thing you bought?


I know I'm supposed to say something really big and important but actually, I bought this purple dress in a charity shop and it's really good. I would wear it every day if I could. And my new slipper boots, which are purple tartan and remind me of 1995. 

And my PS4. And everything I bought at every SE20 Craft Fair this year!


[11] Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?


David Cameron's.
And everyone in his government who made a decision or you know, exists. 


[12] Where did most of your money go?


Supermarket crap! I firmly believe that supermarket crap is responsible for most of the world's....well, not debt, but definitely not having any money. Think about it. How many times a week do you wander into a supermarket looking for cotton buds and you accidentally spend £26 on a bunch of stuff you found on sale in the homewares section, like jars? It gets worse when seasonal stock comes in. Yes, I did need 14 Trick or Treat buckets with pumpkin faces on. 


[13] What did you get really really really excited about?

I don't know if excitement is the same as when you're a kid. I certainly don't get really glee-like about Christmas anymore, or feel the way I used to when it's time for Neighbours. But when we went to Iceland I got really excited at the start of every day about the things we were going to see. And we did see a lot of cool stuff to be fair. Exploding Geysers and black sand beaches and an ocean that tries to drown you when you aren't looking....


[14] What songs will always remind you of 2015?


The thing with songs is, you never know that it reminds you of a specific time until it's several years later and you hear it and you think 'wow, that really reminds me of that time.....'




[15] Compared to this time last year are you :


[A] Happier or
sadder?
Happier in some ways, sadder in others. It evens out, anyway. 


[B] Richer or poorer? Richer because this time last year I had no job. 


[16] What do you wish you'd done less of?


Thinking 'oh great, I've got a free hour, think of all the things I can get done!' and then spending the whole time on Instagram, looking at photos of other people's lives and getting upset because it looks cooler than mine. 


[17] How will you be spending Christmas?


I spent it in about 6 different places and then I fell asleep about 8pm in front of the television because I was exhausted. I'm really fun. 


[18] Who was the best new person you met in 2015?


My friends Jacqui and Patrick at work, who I did my training course with. 
There's probably other people too but I can't remember who I met when. 
I met Dan's University friends in January which would have been cool except that I made a twat out of myself by walking into a door in front of a whole house party full of people, then stole someone's taxi and also their drugs. But I gave them away because I may be a thief but I'm a charitable thief (who doesn't do drugs). 


[20] How many one night stands?
I've never been sure why this question is in this questionnaire. 
Anyway, zero. 



[22] Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last
year?
Again, a really stupid question. 


[23] What was/were the best books you read?


Panther by David Owen! You should read it! It's really good! It's dedicated to me! Oh yeah, I had a book dedicated to me in 2015, so that's another thing I did that I've never done before. Although I didn't really have to do anything to get that to happen, except make a bit of a fuss. 


[24] What was your greatest musical discovery?


I have not made any, which is sad, and I am going to make more time for music in 2016. Actually, that is going to be an extra resolution: make more time for music. And read more books. And write more. 


[25] What did you want and get?
I really wanted to get the jobs I went for, and I did, so that was good. I also wanted secretly for ages and ages to live in my friend Katie's house because it's little but very cool. And now I do! Hooray! Don't worry, I didn't have to kill her, she moved out and rented it to me totally of her own accord. 


[26] What did you want and not get?
To win the Lottery but I think I write this every year. 


[27] What was your favourite film this year?
I didn't see that many films this year. I should add that to my resolution list too. Although I did try and watch every Oscar nominated film ahead of the Oscars. I ran out of time though. I liked Boyhood a lot, and Selma. Jurassic World was pretty good and Pitch Perfect 2 was rather amazing. I think the latter was probably the cinematic highlight of the year. Not Star Wars as everyone would have you believe. I am yet to see the Peanuts Movie. I saw the original Pitch Perfect for the first time in January and couldn't believe I had not discovered it before, so maybe that actually. And Frozen, which will probably be my favourite film every year from now on. 


[28] What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?


I was 31 and I was in Iceland, which was cool as I've never been in another country on my birthday before, except for Wales, which is a principality not a country (trivia). So I drove round Iceland in a bus and we ate bread that had been made in the ground using geothermal heat. And there was a lot of snow, and I stood in a divide between two continents. It was a good day. 


[29] What one thing would have made your year more satisfying?


Oh come on, how can you ever know??


[30] How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2015?


'I really want to put on a vintage dress but instead I am going to wear tracksuit bottoms' or 'all my clothes are too small for me because I have got suddenly fat' or a combination of the two. They both resulted in wearing a lot of tracksuit bottoms anyway. 





[31] What kept you sane?
Dan, but whether I kept him sane or not is another matter. 


[32] Which celebrity did you fancy the most?
The guy who plays that Darth whatever guy in the new Star Wars film is kinda hot. 


[33] Which political issue stirred you the most?

Every issue where public services got closed or cut and then same services got fined for not performing as well as they should be doing. Like chopping off someone's leg and then saying 'how dare you not be able to walk? Here, let me chop a bit more off!'


[35] Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned this year?


Sometimes it is okay to put clothes on without ironing them.