In Answer to Your Questions............

Linda, over at All & Sundry posted a list of end of year questions, that I thought I'd answer. Well as many of them as I can. Honestly, some of the questions are just to clever for me to answer at the end of the year. But here, goes..... (my answers are in Italics)

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before?
 We took a family road trip to San Diego for a baseball tournament in July. I-5 through the San Joaquin Valley is probably the most misrable stretch of road in North America.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
 In short, oh hell no! I would like to make a resolution for 2008, but my track record for keeping them is pretty dismal.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
 Nope, we're all too old for that. And I'm too young for grandkids (did you hear that boys??)

4. Did anyone close to you die?
 My sister-in-law died after a long battle with liver cancer. We were never particularly close, but I feel that I should have been closer.

5. What countries did you visit?
 Does San Diego count as a country?

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
 More time for my attempts at writing

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Memorial Day weekend 2007 - see question #10 for the why. Pain sticks with me.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
 Starting this blog.

9. What was your biggest failure?
 Not sitting down and spending time writing more. I have a long term goal of going back to school for my MFA in Creative Writing in the next few years, but I have to actually spend time writing for that to be a realistic goal

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
 I received a lovely compression laceration that required three stitches and bruised by leg from knee to ankle over Memorial Day weekend. I now have a beautiful scar on my shin. Did I mention that I scar easily?

11. What was the best thing you bought?
 My new car, an Infinity FX35.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
 All three of my sons. They are all growing into wonderful men. Especially the youngest, who is showing glimpses of being really concerned about the world around him. He is finally passing through that "it's all about ME" stage.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
 My husband's brothers (both of them)

14. Where did most of your money go?
 Besides books and yarn? With regard to disposable income, likely sports stuff for the kids.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
 The really large tax refund I just learned we may get for 07.

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
 "I'm with the Band" by Little Big Town

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
 a) happier or sadder? 
b) thinner or fatter? 
c) richer or poorer?
 a) likely happier; b) definitely fatter, unfortunately; c) about the same income wise.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
 Write and Knit, and Exercise

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
 Eat

20. How did you spend Christmas?
 At home with family, the extended family came to my house and my SIL and I shared holiday dinner responsibilities. It worked out great!

21. Did you fall in love in 2007?
 Only with my hubby all over again.

22. What was your favorite TV program?
 Doctor Who and Torchwood (sorry, I'm a British SciFi geek)

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
 Do George Bush and Hilary Clinton count? Wait a minute, I hated them last year, too!

24. What was the best book you read?
 The Faith Club by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver and Priscilla Warner. Makes me look at religious differences in a whole new light.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Nuttin' But Stringz

26. What did you want and get?
 A down pillow! Yummy!

27. What did you want and not get?
 A spinning wheel and latin dance lessons

28. What was your favorite film of this year?
 The Bourne Ultimatum or Elizabeth: The Golden Years

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
 Not much on the birthDAY itself. Just went out to dinner. But I got concert tickets for Little Big Town and Sugarland in Reno for my b-day, so a couple weeks later, we flew to Reno for the weekend and saw the concert. Reno really isn't an exciting town, but it was still a fun weekend.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
 If I had the willpower to lose weight.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
 If it involves jeans and a pair of boots, it's me!

32. What kept you sane?
 Knitting and Prozac

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
 David Tennant of Doctor Who

34. What political issue stirred you the most?
 Barak Obama getting into the presidential race. Yay!!

35. Who did you miss?
 Most likely my oldest son, away at college. He's fun to talk to.

36. Who was the best new person you met?
 New people? What are those? I met a new group of people at the end of the year - The Eastside Stitchers - a knitting group I am hoping to become more involved with. All lovely, giving people.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
 Sometimes I have to take control, even if it doesn't make other people happy at the moment.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

Somebody's got to be unafraid to lead the freak parade

Somebody's got to be unafraid to lead the freak parade

Somebody's got to be unafraid to lead the freak parade

To lead the freak, to lead the freak, to lead the freak parade