a year in review

everywhere i look i see year-end wrap ups. so i thought i would like to do the same on my little blog. as this year comes to a close, so does the 24th year of my life.

2006 was a pretty good year for me. i found a better job (and managed to not quit or get first from my first one), a better apartment, and traveled a lot. i made new friends, spent time with old ones, and celebrated a very happy one year anniversary.

its hard to categorize and list which things were most important to me this year, but i might as well try, right?

this year was pretty eventful for my family, but only in good ways, thankfully! my brother graduated high school and went away to college. he's all grown up and making his way in the world out in chicago. my other brother bought himself the shell of a 1968 camaro and is determined to rebuild it from the frame up.

in extended family news, my grandparents moved yet again and are building their fourth house in north carolina. and two of my cousins (and one cousin in law) got pregnant – although by press time only two of those babies were actually born…

my friends

along with all my new co-workers, who i look forward to cultivating friendships with in the coming months, i made some pretty nice new friends this year.

first is my lovely friend lauren from forbes. she now lives in brooklyn which is very convenient. we’ve had some pretty fun times since she started at forbes in july, and i hope to have more happy brooklyn moments in the future.

i also met and moved in with a fun new friend, carly, who actually is more roommate than friend since we never see each other, but who i hope i get to see more of in 2007.

i’ve also rekindled some friendships with old friends from stamford and college, and those relationships have blossomed in a new way. friendships are different now that we’re older and living on our own and working. the relationships are more adult, but there is something satisfying and fulfilling about them. I even reconnected with old friends from pre-birth

unfortunately, this year i have also lost touch with quite a few formerly close friends. although i never believe that all hope is lost (just look at the recently rekindled friendships i was just talking about) i don’t think that the coming year will really work towards mending these friendships. i do think about old friends quite often and wonder what they are up to. maybe they think about me too. if they are ever in new york I hope they look me up.

traveling around>
i went some pretty amazing places this year. i think i traveled this year more than ever before. the best trip by far was the cruise to the caribbean, but trips to hawaii and mexico are close seconds.

i also got to go up to vermont to visit my cousin twice, traveled to virginia to hang out with matt’s family many times and spent a few days in delaware with jennifer and visited boston once, too.

this year made me realize how much i really enjoy traveling, and i look forward to doing more in the very near future (especially since i have 3 weeks of vacation time to blow through). i’m already planning to go to chicago in the spring, and north carolina for easter. i’m sure matt will want to do some big trip after the rich list closes, and maybe he’ll bring me along again. we’re even starting out the year with a trip to philly for a wedding (and there will be another wedding trip to kentucky in the summer).

my apartment



no matter how much i enjoyed living alone, i am the first to admit that my old apartment in crown heights was less than satisfactory. i practically had a nervous breakdown there one night this summer when i had the air conditioner, my tv, my cable box, my computer and a vacuum all plugged into one outlet in my bedroom and it was too hot to leave that room and the electricity kept dipping so low my cable box would reset. that was it. that was the point that made me get up and move.

the apartment hunt was another stressful time for me. ultimately, i'm glad i moved when i did, because of the cruise and the new job it would have been crazy to move out at the end of my lease on october 31. but meeting so many women and seeing so many apartments, it drove me nuts.

once i met me new roommate and moved in, i’ve had no issues with the apartment. I’m happy to be in a nicer building in a nicer area and near better subways. I even enjoy spending time there alone.

my job

getting my new job was the best thing to happen to me this year. this blog has documented my trials and tribulations and the ongoing stresses of my last job and the five-month search for a new one.

but i will be the first to admit that a lot has improved in the past two months, since i took the position. first of all, i no longer am hunting for a job, which was a miserable experience, exhausting and demeaning. i no longer have to write redundant cover letters about how well i’d fit into different companies. i’m not saying i lied in those letters: i truly believed any of those jobs i applied for would have been better than the one i was currently in. (i still think that)

one reason i hated my job so much was because i felt underappreciated and unproductive. now i am busy at work. i know i contribute to something every day and i get lots of positive reinforcement. i like what i’m doing, i like the people i work with and work for, i like their business style and there’s nothing to complain about on that front at all.

i also think i got into this fairly new company at a really good time. there is a lot of growth potential, and the company is definitely going to grow in the coming year, which will mean only good things for us reporters.

what’s more, i got a raise and more vacation days. nothing wrong with that!