State of the Union, of sorts, and what I'd like to expect in 2007.

I've had a great week at home so far. Well, specifically the days after Christmas. I got to see some great friends I hadn't seen in over a year. I got to experience the cool part of Richmond (i. e. not Virginia Center Commons) with Kristel. I spent last night bar-hopping in Adams Morgan with Megan and Morgan, and it was the first time I got to visit DC and actually enjoy it. (I also got my picture taken.) Today Megan and I went shopping in Georgetown and I spent a lot of money, but it was still great fun (especially after running into fellow JMU English major alum, "Goose," at the J. Crew on M Street). And tonight I went out to Fairfax and saw Erin, Shannon, and Martha.

There were a lot of people I meant to hang out with while I was home, and I'm kind of bummed and I don't have another week to do a full tour of Virginia.

On the way home from Fairfax, I spent some time thinking about 2007. I rarely make resolutions, but I do have a few goals that I want to achieve in the next year. At the top of the list is making it out to the East Coast for MACRoCk and maybe a trip to New York. And there are a few others:

1. I'd like to read more books, and I may try to read a book a week again, even though I failed that in 2005.

2. I want to make more mix CDs for friends, since mailing them is a good way to keep in contact with people. (Everyone knows that sending packages is a great way to guilt your friends into keeping in touch with you.)

3. I want to work out more, since I've discovered that my metabolism is (finally) starting to slow down, and the small muscle mass I do have is dropping, my stomach is actually getting larger, and I'm unfortunately still the same weight.

4. I desperately need to get a new job, and the prospect of something new is encouraging and would be a major part of my happiness in 2007.

5. I want to follow that old rule my mother set for me in college: "Eat a salad every week."

6. I'd like to write more, in non-blog terms.

7. I want to finally frame the artwork I've accumulated over the last three years.

8. I want to take more (and better) pictures.

9. I want to start a savings account.

10. I want to have a better idea of where I'll be in two years. Grad school? Chicago? I'd like to have a clue come next December.

For New Years my sophomore year, which I spent in Indiana with Martha and friends, we all went around the room right before midnight and retracted one mistake we made that year. Since then, I've always come up with a couple of things that I wish I could just take back every year. This year, however, it's hard for me to come up with something so horrible that I want to forget. Sure, I've done stupid things and used poor judgment, but at this point, I've come to realize that instead of trying to pretend those things didn't happen, I should accept them and more on. This blog has been a good way for me to do that; if I happen to embarrass myself or put myself in an awkward(.com) situation, I've written about it. I'm kind of proud of myself to embrace, in a way, my flaws and stupid moves and turn it into something that other people find entertaining. I'd like to keep doing that next year, and I'd like to keep this blog alive for a long time to come. I've really enjoyed hearing from people I barely know or complete strangers - people I didn't already know and MAKE read this site - who have told me how much they enjoy reading what I write.

I don't really have a great way to end this - it's almost one o'clock in the morning and I'm tired and kind of sick from last night and feeling gross and dirty in that general hangover kind of way. All of those things are keeping me from pure, 100% eloquence. To sum it all up: I hope 2007 is a great year, and I hope everyone who has followed my life in 2006 will continue to listen to what I have to say, at least every now and then.


Happy New Year!