How is 2012 quickly drawing to a close? Yes, it is true what people say: the years go by faster and faster the older you get. This past year was a mix of hardships and saying good-bye to several friends who left my area, as well as various events and activities that shaped the year for me. This list is a personal reflection of the past year, rather than a list of current events or a political piece, with dates as close as possible to the real month of occurrence. I enjoy reflecting on the past before starting a new year. It is good to have new goals and aspirations.
January
- I began blogging on WordPress. Yay!
- A mild winter in Illinois. That’s awesome because I walked a 1/2 mile each way to work due to the scarcity of close parking at my job.
February
- My birthday month. Why does it feel like the last 5 years or so are gone in a blink?
- I attended my second ever University of Illinois Basketball game. It was a nice family time with my Dad, and Illinois beat Iowa, so that was exciting.
March
- It was fun to co-coordinate a faculty/staff service outreach at my job. We volunteered at the Eastern Illinois Foodbank, a foodbank that helps provide food to hundreds of soup kitchens and food pantries in the central Illinois area.
- I become the proud owner of a iPhone 4. It is super cool, but dislikes when I try to use it as a PHONE from my apartment. However, the apps, being able to easily check and write e-mails, and the camera are all great features.
- Winter Jam Tour at the Assembly Hall with my friend, Sabrina
April
- My church purchases our own building after the building we rented was damaged by a fire. My church had been dislocated to a hotel for around 3-4 months, so the purchase of our own building was exciting.
May
- My friend Carolina moved to Arizona when her husband graduated and expediently got a great job.
June
- Summer= swimming (in my attempt at fitness).
- Around this time (ish), I become a poet who publishes on poemhunter. I enjoy writing poetry, especially about love, heartache, and God/faith.
July
- More swimming. Summer seemed to go by at warp speed. I did get to go see the New Amazing Spiderman on the Fourth of July.
- I covered many job duties for my co-worker who was off work for 3 weeks due to an accident. I also spent around 4 months (off and on) for my co-worker typing forms, scanning forms, e-mailing people (some out of state, out of country, or no longer with my department), and playing Nancy Drew with solving discrepancies in legal check-outs of equipment loans, mostly for laptop. This was to get forms for approxiately a few hundred pieces of equipment updated for legal check-out.
- My co-worker who was my back-up was promoted, so it was challenging during the 6 weeks before her replacement was hired and started.
August
- I took a min-vacation to see my family in my hometown area. We took a one day road trip to see the Chicago Bears training camp at Olivet Nazarene University.
- My friend Amy moved out-of-state in order to complete her degree in Art.
September
- I spend around $300 on an oil change and new brakes when I am told that my brakes are 95% gone. I am glad this was found before winter, but sad to try to figure out how to pay for that in my tight budget.
- My friend Melissa moves to Champaign for a new job. I was blessed by that fact, but I also got a $100 rent credit when I referred her to my apartment complex. Yay!
October
- After 2 years and approximately 3 months, I got into a close parking lot by my work building. If you know the ordeals that I went through before this time, you will know why this was a HUGE positive for me (I even paid around $70/month for a few months for a private gravel lot in order to be able to get a break and actually get to places on time after work).
- I join Pinterest and become semi-addicted.
- My first ever 5K! My friend Melissa encouraged me to do it. I am not a runner, but I loved walking the 5K. It was a fantastic experience.
- I voted for my clerical union contract. We had been without a contract for 14 or 15 months which was pretty discouraging, in spite of my union’s persistent negotiations.
November
- I paid off my 5 year loan on my 2006 Ford Taurus! Woohoo!
- The Woodfield Mall bus trip that I was attending with my Mom got cancelled, but all was not lost when my Mom visited me and we spent the weekend shopping at a outlet mall and many great local places.
- My first laptop that I have ever personally ordered was stolen when FedEx left it unsigned for outside of my apartment the day after Thanksgiving.
December
- Old-Fashioned Christmas at my church. I got to go on a horse and carriage ride! It was amazing!
- I bought a new laptop after my laptop that I ordered online was stolen.
- E-mail day of action that I participated in (off work time, of course) since my signed union contract giving all clericals a small raise and pay-back got stalled by my University when there was no real follow-through and months of stalemate. Justice is important. I will note that the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) can locate information that can be quite discouraging, such as discovering that “snack bar attendant” and “helper-kitchen” earned more pay than I did, until recently.
- I reach over 100 likes on my WordPress blog. Yes, sometimes I am addicted to my Stats!
- Christmas with my family, after a two-day delay when my car would not start, got jumped twice, and eventually resulted in me paying $420 for a new alternator and serpentine belt.
- My first ever pedicure, that was at a spa with my Mom, twin sister, and niece, It was part of my Christmas gift from my Mom. It was amazing!
Flashback- Me (on left) and my twin sister, Jody (on right), when we were little
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