Wednesday, December 31, 2014

“Each age has deemed the new-born year the fittest time for festal cheer.”


Well, would you look at that... the year's practically over.  Which means it's time for me to write a post commemorating the past year, and since I'm way too pretentious to just call this post "New Year's Tag," I had to quote Sir Walter Scott in the title line.  Because that's what I DO.

Um, anyway, let's get to it.


What did you do in 2014 that you’d never done before?

Flew on a plane all by myself without any grown-ups or anything, got my driver's license, had my ears pierced and acted in a real professional play.  In that order.


Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make one this year?

I usually make resolutions at my birthday, not New Year's.  It's a new year for me in March. :D



Did anyone close to you give birth?

Nope. Sadly.  I feel the lack of small cute babies to hold... but I'm starting a second nannying job next week in which I will be taking care of a sweet three-month-old girl, so I'm quite excited about that!!


Did anyone close to you die?

Also nope, praise the Lord!


What countries/states did you visit?

Missouri was the big one this year. ;)


What would you like to have in 2015 that you lacked in 2014?

Ummmmm... stronger faith.  And a published book, maybe?


What date from 2014 will remain etched upon your memory?

Several of those! October 4th, the day my best friend showed up in my kitchen and practically gave me a heart attack, was a biggie. ;)


Did you move anywhere?

I did not! And coming from a girl who has moved six times, that's a nice thing.  We've been in one house for over four years now and I don't intend to leave anytime soon.



What was the best month?

Probably October.  ;)


What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Getting my license at long last! And successfully parallel parking a 12-passenger van to do so.  (It took two tries, but hush.)


What was your biggest failure?

Not growing in character as much as I would like to have... but I prefer to look at that as Room For Improvement rather than failure.



Did you suffer illness or injury?

Had a nasty throat infection in January that lasted nearly a month.  Not fun at all.  ("My sore throats are always worse than anyone else's." :P)  But no injuries, thankfully!


What was the best thing you bought?

Airline tickets. :D  And this is going to sound dumb, but a white wooden bedside table with a cute shelf and drawer for my bedroom... it's the first piece of furniture I ever chose, paid for and took home all by myself.  Heehee.



Whose behavior merited celebration?

My darling friend Ally got herself the lead role in a musical this fall!  I was very proud. :D


Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Um.  Eh, heh.  This is a public blog so I think I'll skip that one.  Suffice it to say, several people's.



Where did most of your money go?

Gas.  :P  Yay driving!  (Wish I was driving one of the cars in that picture, though... I have a weakness for 50's Cadillacs, preferably the pink and Tiffany blue kind.) And US Airways, haha.


What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Having Melody come for a visit, going to Ally's, and getting a new car!  Well, new in the new-to-us sense... it's a 1994 Toyota Camry which was no longer needed by some very dear friends of ours, and so now it sits in our driveway and saves me from having to drive the van.  WIN.



What was the best concert you’ve been to this year?

I didn't go to many concerts this year (unless recitals count) but I did get to see three different musicals live-- Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables and Cinderella!  If I had to pick a favorite it would probably be Les Mis, simply because of the great affection and attachment I have to the story.  Plus, I went to see it with my sister and four of our friends, and we had a blast experiencing our all-time favorite musical. :D


What song/album will always remind you of 2014?

"Let It Go," because people won't. :P



Compared to this time last year, are you:
1. happier or sadder?  Ummmmm. About the same?
2. thinner or fatter?  Again, the same. Haha.
3. richer or poorer?  Somewhat richer because I've saved a little more, but not much. :P


What do you wish you’d done more of?

Reading.  I'd planned to read 50 books in 2014, a number I didn't think was unreasonable, but I only ended up finishing 35.  Heh.  I want to do better in 2015.



What do you wish you’d done less of?

Wasting time on the Internet and worrying. :P


What was your greatest musical discovery?

Collabro!  Seriously, go listen.



How did you spend Christmas?

With my family.  We kids did our traditional sleepover-in-the-younger-girls'-room, listened to Adventures in Odyssey upon awakening, opened presents in the living room, had a fabulous breakfast and then spent the rest of the day at my maternal grandmother's with my mom's side of the family... it was a lovely quiet celebration.


How are you spending New Year’s?

We went to my aunt's house today to hang out with extended family and eat ham and macaroni and cheese, and tonight we're going to observe tradition again and stay up till midnight watching Anne of Green Gables with lots of unhealthy snacks. :D



Who did you spend the most time on the phone with?

Melody. Surprise, surprise. :D


What was the best book you read?

Hard call.  Maybe Christy by Catherine Marshall?  Technically this was a re-read, but it had been several years since I picked it up and I appreciated it SO much more this second time around.  The Fault in Our Stars was also pretty amazing, though I had some issues with some of the content so I can't recommend it unreservedly.


Add caption

Did you fall in love in 2014?

Fictional characters count, right?


What was your favorite TV show?










...Take a wild guess.



Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

*didactic voice* Hate is a very strong word.
I do dislike a few people that I didn't this time last year, tbh.  But let's try and dwell on the positive, shall we?  Happy thoughts, Wanda!


What did you want and get?

My driver's license! (yes, I know I keep harping on this one, but SERIOUSLY do you know how COOL it is to DRIVE MYSELF PLACES WITHOUT AN ADULT IN THE FRONT SEAT??)


(basically me)
What did you want and not get?

A cat, haha.  (I'm not planning to get a cat.  But I was reminded many times this year of how much I like cats and how much I want one someday.)


What were your favorite films of this year?

If we're taking this to mean favorite films that came out this year, the only one I've actually seen is Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb.  As for films I saw for the first time this year, David Copperfield (okay, it's a miniseries-- hush), Newsies, Frozen,  and of course Saving Mr. Banks.



How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?

Vintage-inspired librarian chic, with not-infrequent interjections of Whatever's Handy.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I turned 19 on March 16th, and spent the weekend celebrating in various quiet ways-- cake and presents with my family and seeing a local production of Pride and Prejudice with my sister and a dear friend!



What kept you sane?

Melody. Haha.  She puts up with a lot, pooooooooooor deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeear.


What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

Shrinking the USA so I could live closer to some of my dear, faraway friends.  ;)




Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Ummmm... probably Benedict Cumberbatch.  Heehee.


What political issue stirred you the most?

Heh... I try to stay out of politics on my blog.  Most of the time.  I will say that I experienced a lot of confusion and battling opinions over the Ferguson trial, but farther than that I will not go, so as to keep the comment box civil.  Heh.


Who did you miss?

Duh?  And, um?  Also, obviously?


Who was the best new person you met?

I actually didn't meet very many new people in 2014... although I have had the opportunity to interact with quite a few new blog followers and commentators, all of whom I am very grateful to have "met"!  (Wow. Weird phrasing there.)


Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2014.



Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

"Who can say if I've been changed for the better? But because I knew you, I have been changed for good."


Five things I want to do in 2015:

~Go see Melody
~Publish a book
~See Masked air on YouTube :D
~Start my new nannying job!
~Read more books than I did in 2014, haha


Five people I’d like to know better in 2015:

All of you!

*random pretty picture of tea to close this post*


How was your 2014?

7 comments:

Ashley said...

I'm putting this same tag up tomorrow!

I'm thinking about getting my driver's license next year!

"Let It Go, because people won't" Hahahaha :D

I too planned to read 50 books but only read 36 :(

Christy is a great book!!

Blunderboy Cabbagepot!!!

Newsies is amazing!!!!

Same for me with the Ferguson stuff!

I'm so excited for Masked!!!

Looking forward to getting to know you better too!! (That sounded kinda creepy...)

Melody said...

Loverly post! But heyyyy... is it my imagination or did you forget that I came to see you in March/April of 2014, too? HAHAHA. I mean, I can understand the October one being more significant because Reasons, but you did say "having Melody come for a visit". ;P

Reading! Yes, same. I think my goal was 30 books and I'm not sure how many I actually read. Cough.

Yay us for talking on the phone so much! ;) Quite a difference from, say, 2012, when there were not as many options. Haha.

Oh, come on, WAMB deserved at least an honorable mention. ;)

Awwww I want you to have a cat. Well, someday. ;)

I didn't know you actually liked David Copperfield that much, haha. I've only seen Frozen once and that doesn't exactly break my heart. :P

I do not either keep you sane. I keep you INsane. Duhhh. We both are. And we don't suffer, we enjoy every minute. ;D
(Just the same, I'm flattered. Heehee.)

YES YOU MUST COME SEE MEEEE
I would say I feel cheated that since I surprised you I didn't get to have you here this year, until I remember that you wouldn't have come this year anyways. Heh.
But close. ;)

I hope you can publish a book. That would be swellissimus. :D

"All of you" is not five people. ;P

I feel a little bit like copying you and filling out this tag but it's kind of late now and besides, I'm no copycat. :P I probably wouldn't be able to think of answers for everything, ha.

Naomi Pitts said...

I love this tag. I remember last year I was reading everyone's answers like crazy, and here I am doing it again... and loving it.

"And a published book maybe?" -- *sigh*, I can relate. Every year I'm hopefully awaiting a positive answer to that question, hee. Have you written any other books besides 'Only a Novel?' (which I really enjoyed)- if you have, I'd be interested. I enjoy your writing style a lot.
That white wooden beside table sounds adorable. Do you mind if I put it in one of my books? :-)
Collabro is amazing, right? They don't sound pop-music-ish, too! Which is great!
FICTIONAL CHARACTERS ALWAYS COUNT.

~ Naomi

Emma Jane said...

Happy New Year, Amy! :-)

I think it's cool how everyone's doing this same tag. I always find it interesting, especially with interesting people, and of course I count you among those. ;-P

Hurrah for getting your driver's license! I turn sixteen in a month, and I'm WILDLY excited to start driving. I can just IMAGINE how wonderful it will be to be able to drive myself places without anyone else....I've imagined it lots of times. There will be lots of very loud Broadway involved. Haha. :-)

I'm so happy you got to see so many good friends this year! That's got to be one of the happiest things there is, being able to see dear friends from far away. I hope I get to meet my best friend someday soon, but there is an entire ocean between us to be considered, so....yeah.

On your birthday I went to see Les Miserables!!! That struck me as kind of ironic. :-)

I REALLY want to see Newsies. Robert Duvall's in it. YES PLEASE.

I enjoyed reading this, and sharing in some of the awesomeness of your year! I hope the new one is just as wonderful as you can imagine!

~Emma

deryn joy said...

COLLABRO, man. *shakes head in utter wonder and appreciation.

congrats on the license! I'm still working on that parallel parking thing myself.
phooey.

Anonymous said...

haha the for good lyric sums up my entire life and all my relationships. love your blog btw!

paperdollmom said...

I too was reminded a lot this year how much I love cats! I would love to have a pet, but we have a daughter that is severely allergic. Anyways, here is a link to my own answers: http://hauntedverse.blogspot.com/2015/01/2014-tag.html