I'm using more or less the same categories from last year to slice up this year. I did have one big event for the year - namely, changing jobs. Admittedly, I am with the same company and technically in the same department, reporting to the same manger, but working for an entirely different customer. Four months isn't really enough time to judge, but I think it was a good move for me. I needed a change and I'm particularly happy not to have to deal with two truly Dilbertian things at my previous job: 1) our director made the IT folks put a special feature on everyone's email, so that we all heard a drum roll when we got an email from him and 2) the twice weekly daily. The latter was originally the thrice weekly daily, which was supposed to be a daily report only our director didn't really want it every day. It's abbreviated TWD (pronounced "twid") and the process of producing it is sometimes called "twiddlation." The head of my current customer organization is sane.
As for reading, I read 258 books in 2006. About 3/4 of those were rereads. That included rereading all of Dorothy L. Sayers and Edmund Crispin. I found the former more mixed than I'd remembered, with a couple of the novels being a bit tedious what with too many things depending on railroad timetables. But, when she was good, she was very very good, and I was happy to find that both Murder Must Advertise and The Nine Tailors were as delightful as i had remembered. I also reread and was impressed by The Lord of the Rings. The single book I enjoyed most over the past year (excluding re-reads) was Have Glove, Will Travel by Bill "Spaceman" Lee and Richard Lally. Overall, I'd say the author who gave me the greatest pleasure over several books was Alexander McCall Smith.
I got rid of 318 books, by the way. I have about 100 more ready to go out the door, too. I'd like to get rid of another 500 or so, but that will take a while. I have no idea how many books I acquired over the year, but I'd probably guess it was less than 100, given the typical trade ratios at the used book stores and being pretty good about not buying new books other than travel guides. I fear that the recent opening of a branch of Olsson's in Crystal City (i.e. inches from where I work) will lessen my resolve in the coming year.
I did 19 Volksmarch events. That included the capital walk in Washington, D.C., as well as three state capitals (Salt Lake City, Atlanta, and Boston). I finished the National Heritage program, as well as getting my 75 event award. The programs I'm working on now and my progress on them are fifty states (21/50), 51 capitals (11/51), Walking the USA A-Z (18/26, including having gotten "Q" by doing a walk in Quincy, Massachusetts), Railroad Heritage (5/25), Riverwalk America (3/20), Spirit of Walking / Cemetery Stroll (2/40), American Authors / Literary Landmarks (2/15), College Campus (6/20), Walking Europe in the United States (4/20), American Revolution (8/15), and U.S. Presidents (10/15). I'm going to make a real effort to finish the latter two this coming year.
Of course, I did a lot of traveling. Business trips took me to Los Angeles (four times), Denver, Salt Lake City, and Cape Canaveral. My major vacations were to West Africa (Ghana, Togo, and Benin) and to Poland (with my mother). My other overseas trip was a long weekend excursion to Belgium and Luxembourg. As for personal domestic travel, I went to Savannah (Georgia), Atlanta, Cleveland, Pittsburgh (for the National Storytelling Conference), Dallas, New York (for my 30th high school reunion, including an excursion to Valley Forge, Pennsylvania on the drive up), Williamsburg and Yorktown (Virginia), Boston, and Las Vegas.
I performed at the Folklore Society of Greater Washington Minifest in February and the Jewish Folk Arts Festival in November. I also went to a lot of story swaps and the trip to Williamsburg was for a storytelling festival. Musical performances I attended included Garnet Rogers, the Tone Rangers, and The Bobs. I saw the Washington Savoyards perform Patience and saw She Loves Me at The Arena Stage. I saw remarkably few movies and most of those on airplanes. Two notable ones I saw in the theatre were Wordplay and Little Miss Sunshine.
I completed three items from my life list. I saw a total solar eclipse during my trip to Ghana in March (and it was everything I hoped for). I went to a minor league baseball game while I was in Salt Lake City in May. And I went to Chelm during my trip to Poland in August. I made progress on several more items. As I mentioned above, I did four more capital Volksmarch events and saw one more Gilbert and Sullivan operetta. I'm still slogging through the Bible and am now up to Jeremiah, while still finding it tedious going. I've continued to progress on various reading lists. Elizabeth showed me how to do entrelac and I am working on an afghan using the technique, but it's been behind several other knitting projects. And I have a plane ticket to Easter Island.
Finally, I did at least three things I'd never done before: 1) have a mammogram, 2) do a rainforest canopy walk, and 3) have a hot stone massage. All in all, not bad as years go.
Happy 2007!
Copyright 2006 Miriam H. Nadel