2008: almost over, praise Jeebus

Man, all in all, 2008 was a pail o’ fail. Lots of unpleasant things happened, and offhand, there’s nothing that immediately stands out as the best moment of the year. At the risk of sounding like Syrup McSweetmush, though, it’s always important to remember that I have my health, a home, enough to eat, amazing friends and family, a stable job (hey, as long as people drive like morons, I’m probably safe), and a fabulous boyfriend. Sometimes I lose sight of the fact that the good far outweighs the bad in my life.

Anyway, here’s a list of the yays and the nays of 2008. These are in chronological order, more or less, and I’ll start with the bad ones first because it’s always nice to end on a positive note.

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CRAPPY CRAPPY OY OY


1. Padre had to have open heart surgery, which was terrible on a number of fronts. Obviously, the worst thing was the pain and recovery process he had to go through, but it also put so much stress on G and his family. And on a purely selfish tip, I spent three weeks without G, which was miserable. I stayed busy by going out with friends, reading, and watching movies, but I missed G so much.

2. At my apartment complex, I found a note on my car from the guy who parked next to me claiming I’d damaged his car by hitting it with my door. Never mind that I was ALWAYS really careful when getting out of my car, especially because D-Noz usually parked so far over the line. I left him a note saying that I didn’t do it, tough shit, and he left me ANOTHER note saying that I had to pay up or he’d take me to small claims court. I filed a claim with my insurance and let them take it from there.

3. My brother had to have surgery for a malignant growth on his leg.

…all of the above happened in January, by the way. January 2008 needs to be kicked in the tits.

4. My brother was officially diagnosed with Asperger’s. I guess an argument could be made for this being a good thing, since he was able to get the proper therapy, but the diagnosis itself wasn’t exactly a happy occasion.

5. My apartment was infested with beetles that bored holes in the ceiling and left bits of sawdust and beetle shit everywhere. They started out in my closet, and after the exterminator came out, they relocated over my fucking BED. Needless to say, I flipped out. I thought they had come back recently, but it turned out to be a poor spackling job on the painter's part, so yay for that at least.

6. I had to go home from work a mere 15 minutes after getting there because I broke out into a cold sweat and almost fainted. K, bless her forever and ever amen, drove me home so I wouldn't endanger everyone else on the 101. I still don't know what the deal was; about an hour after I got home, I was fine.

7. Daddy-O broke off his engagement with Saint G, and this time it stuck. As you all know, I had a tolerate/hate relationship with Saint G, but she was very good for my dad.

8. During June's heat wave, my pet shrimp died. I know it sounds goofy, but I was really attached to those guys. Rest in peace, Bruiser and the Ebi Twins, and may Shrimp Heaven be an all-you-can-eat algae buffet.

9. After a full year of having no neighbors at all, a noisy family moved in below me. Since there's no solid ground below them, thanks to the parking garage, I can feel every single fucking footstep they make. I can always tell when it's 6:30AM because my bed starts rattling, which is a treat and a half.

10. Proposition 8 passed, which is some epic goddamn fail. C passed on a quote he saw on Facebook which sums it up pretty well: "Waiter, there's a Prop 8 turd in my delicious Obama soup!"

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HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY


1. Padre and my brother both fully recovered from their respective surgeries, and are doing fine.

2. The New York Giants won the Superbowl, which was the best get well present Padre could have hoped for; he’s been a Giants fan his entire life. And since G was back east helping out, they got to watch it together.

3. We went to Hollywood for M’s birthday and spent the afternoon playing tourists. We took a bus tour of the stars’ homes and even had a sighting of Angelyne’s famous pink Corvette! I wasn’t too thrilled about running into a junkie in the bathroom of McDonald’s, but other than that, it was a fun day.

4. I fell in love with a gorgeous silk Anna Sui dress on Anthropologie's website, but it cost almost $400, so I had to abstain. Several weeks later, I was looking at the sale page and they had the dress for $88. The only size left? Mine. And, to my delight, it looks even better in person, and fits like a dream. It is officially my favorite dress ever.

5. Two Silent Hill games in one year! If Resident Evil 5 had come out in 2008 as well, I would seriously be typing this with braces on my wrists.

6. I got to see John Connolly again. As always, he was funny and friendly, and he was kind enough to pose for a picture with me.





I have this picture framed in my cube because it makes me smile every time I see it.

7. G, C, M, and I spent the 4th of July in Santa Barbara. The weather was perfect, traffic was surprisingly light (well, going there at least), and the fireworks were gorgeous.

8. My 37th birthday was lovely. I took the day off work, and spent the afternoon shopping, reading, and napping. Later, we went out to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants and I had a Milky Way martini, margherita pizza, and the best damn bread pudding in the world.

9. The Ventura County Fair was so freakin' awesome, in no small part because I got my feed on hardcore. (Ah, red velvet cupcake the size of my head, I still dream of you.)

10. G and I celebrated our four year anniversary. I could get unbelievably mushy here, but our friends read this blog, so I shall say no more.

11. D-Noz moved out! I have to say, even though he never threatened me or anything, I still wasn't too thrilled about him knowing where I lived.

12. When my boss tried to move me to a department that I loathed, I stuck up for myself and actually managed to talk her out of it.

13. Our trip to Washington DC was awesome, thanks to all the terrific (and free) museums, delicious food, and visits with R, G2, Madre, and Padre.

14. Halloween in West Hollywood!

15. Two words: Barack Obama. When I watched his acceptance speech, I was literally sobbing, and I had a weird feeling in my chest that took a moment to recognize: hope. Now, I certainly don't expect him to solve all the world's problems within days of moving into the White House; he's got a lot of work to do. But he's articulate, intelligent, and funny; I think I've watched the YouTube video of him dancing on Ellen about fifty times. Plus his wife is cool, his daughters are adorable, and he's a PILF. Yes we can...knock boots, baby!