2015 In Review

It was a busy end to the year, so I haven't had the chance to do this yet. I like filling out this little questionnaire at the end of every year. So here's 2015 in review!


1. What did you do in 2015 that you'd never done before?
I got a Master's degree!

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Kind of. I have started taking better overall care of myself, which is pretty much my same resolution for this year.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?


Not that I'm aware of!

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Well I found out long after the fact that one of my great-aunts passed away. Really though it's more a relative who has changed so much in a negative way that the person I knew them as is dead. It's very difficult.

5. What countries did you visit?
I stayed in the US this year. I didn't have the time or the money to go out of the country!

6. What would you like to have in 2016 that you lacked in 2015?
More money? I'm at this point where I'm done with school and I have a job, but I need to move this year and pay off my debts as soon as I can. So to be honest, more cash would help the most.

7. What dates from 2015 will remain etched upon your memory?
I successfully defended my thesis on April 16th. It was a Tuesday. That's the big one!

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
It really was that Master's degree. I wasn't sure I would or could be successful in graduate school, but I did it! I think my next biggest success was getting a job three weeks after graduation.

9. What was your biggest failure?
I did really poorly at losing weight. But by the end of the year I had realized why, so something good came out of that failure.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Thankfully, I didn't have any significant illnesses this year. Some minor things like migraines and gastroenteritis, but nothing serious.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
Nothing really stands out this year. I've bought some fun things but nothing gigantic and super special this year.
 
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?     
My brother was incredibly generous to me this Christmas and it was amazing.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
I'm pretty sure I answer the US Congress for this question every year. I'll add Donald Trump too, although his existence is mostly appalling. On a more personal level, one of my relatives, whom I was previously very close to, has acted in a way that can only be described as appalling and depressing.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Good old Hunziker Property Management for the rent. And now I pay more for gas since I commute.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Going home for Christmas. I hadn't seen most of my family for a year, and I'd worked really hard and had no vacation time prior to that. 

16. What song will always remind you of 2015?
Maybe Fight Song by Rachel Platten.

17. Compared to this time last year, you are:
Happier or sadder: Happier for sure.
Thinner or fatter: A teeny tiny bit thinner, but we're talking like four pounds.
Richer or poorer: Poorer. Way poorer. Being an adult is expensive.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Pushing myself to see friends. I'm not a total hermit but I am very introverted, so sometimes it's difficult for me to get myself out there.

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Binge eating. But surprise, I have an eating disorder so yeah.

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
I went home for Christmas and spent it with my family. I wouldn't have it any other way. 

21. What was your favorite month of 2015?
May, because I was done with my degree and passed, and all the paperwork was done and in, and no one could take that away from me.

22. Did you fall in love in 2015?
No. Unless you count with Hannibal.

23. How many one-night stands?
None. Don't do those. 

24. What was your favorite TV program?
Hannibal. Although the first half of the third season was kind of crap. It's the only show I actually bothered to watch on telly though. Usually I just watch random weird shit on Netflix or Youtube.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
I don't hate anybody, but I do have a new aggravating coworker. I'm pretty sure that's par for the course with being employed though.

26. What was the best book you read?
I really enjoyed reading Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, and Red Dragon.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Spotify has Bing Crosby on it!

28. What did you want and get?
A couple plants, some games, and my fricking student loan paid off for me!

29. What did you want and not get?
Copious amounts of free money, a salary that I think I'm actually worth, a house.

30. What was your favorite film of this year?
The Wicker Man! The original with Sir Christopher Lee.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 28 and I honest to god do not remember. I think I had to work. Dan and I probably went out to eat.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Starting with a much higher salary. I've spent a lot of time being stressed about money, so having that load off of my shoulders would have been great.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2015?
Wear clothes? I work in a lab, so there's not room for much fashion. Safety first.

34. What kept you sane?
My cats, my family, and playing video games.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Anthony Hopkins. Also had a Peter Cushing phase, is that weird because he's dead? I hope not.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
I was really happy when the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage. Otherwise politics is the usual depressing mess.

37. Who did you miss?
My parents, my brother, and all of my extended family. Going home once or twice a year is hard on me. I don't see them nearly enough.

38. Who were the best new people you met?
Jo is cool people! She's a lot of fun.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2015:
I am pretty damn smart and capable. More capable than I think.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
I'm not one to believe in magic/ But I sometimes have a second sight/ I'm not one to go pointing my finger/ When I radiate more heat than light -RUSH, Presto