Lo-Res

I like to think I started a tradition for myself with last year's recap of the top ten great things I'd done with my life since the previous year. My reasoning: there are lots of things I'd love to do, promise to complete, aspire to finish, etc. -- what better way to self-fulfillment than reflection and a little pat on the back?

In no particular order:

1. Reunited with my family on my native turf.
2. WWOOFed for real!
3. Visited all three major parlimentary capitals of the EU (The Hague, Luxembourg, Brussels).
4. Said goodbye to my life in the Vosges.
5. Moved to New York City with someone I love.
6. Joined an orchestra.
7. Got into graduate school (I start in two weeks!).
8. Bought my first grown-up Christmas tree.
9. Got a real-ish job (I start in two days!).
10. Went on a Belgian adventure with a great friend.

I like how diverse my lists are -- my life seems to run on seasonal semesters, and so a January-to-January summary will span several very different periods. The New Year's Eve celebrations alone are enough to warrant their own list (maybe in 8 years?) -- this time last year I was in Paris, miserable and alone, sitting at a bar so I could at least be in public to listen to the Parisiens count down to midnight: "Dix, neuf, huit..." Pathetic. This year was a bit more social: Don and I went to his improviser-friend's apartment in Chinatown for a party, which was fun until we tried getting a cab... (think of the elements in this equation: 2:30am, Lower East Side, Snooki-lookalikes...).

It has been, finalement, a pretty interesting and rather rough year. The transition from alpine tranquillity to the harried New York life has not been easy, nor has the adjustment of living with a significant other (the rewards, needless to say, always outweigh stress). I'm still very much set on retiring to the Vosges one day  -- or the Berkshires, whatever -- but I think for the moment, the city life suits me well. It would be a crying shame to have finally begun living the New York lifestyle proper -- by which I mean taking advantage of everything the city has to offer, not shopping at Hermes and spilling coffee on commuters -- only to escape from its frenetic grip prematurely. I'm going to stick this one out.