Happy New Year('s Eve).........

I don't usually make New Year's resolutions, because I think most of the time they just set people up for failure. Besides, I'm already PERFECT the way I am, so why do anything different?

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

This year I'm going to make a small New Year's resolution, but I'm sort of hedging my bets.

Here's my resolution: I'm going to be BETTER at housekeeping.

See, that's not very difficult because it won't take much to be better. I don't mean to give the impression that we live in a slovenly mess, but housekeeping isn't high on my list of things to do in my spare time. I keep the laundry done, I never leave dishes overnight, and I try to keep the kitchen swept and mopped in spite of the fact that it's white tile and debris starts showing up even before I have put the mop away. I keep the toilet and sink in the hall bathroom relatively clean (Hubby's bathroom is his own territory, and I leave it to him to clean it. Or not.) because that's the one guests have to use when they are here. The floor in the hall bathroom is absolutely unmanageable. It has 40-year-old tile, and the grout was stained with red mud even before Hubby moved into the house. If I win the lottery tonight, that bathroom is first on my list of things to redo. Oh wait.... I'll probably get a new house.

So there's my New Year's resolution. I'm going to be a better housekeeper. I'm not going to be perfect, you will NEVER be able to eat off my floors, and Better Homes and Gardens will never schedule a photo shoot here. My mother will never visit without pursing her lips and shaking her head. But I'm going to do better. And I won't even mind, because the extra time it will take will be harvested from my NOT having a part-time online teaching job in addition to my regular one. I am so looking forward to coming home and NOT having to jump on the computer immediately to grade assignments. What a relief.

As I look back on 2010, again this year I have chosen a favorite blog from each month. They aren't necessarily the most frequently commented-on blogs, perhaps not the wittiest, certainly not the most fraught with deep meaning, but they're the ones I chose as I reviewed the entire year. If you've already read them once, don't feel obligated to read them again.

January - The Ghost of 615
February - Couples Skinny Dipping (Don't worry - no pictures!)

March - Hypothetically Speaking

April - From the "Is This Really Necessary?" Department

May - I've Created a Texting Monster

June - My BRAG Peeps

July - Happy Endings

August - Some of My Proudest Moments as a Parent

September - Typo? Or Freudian Slip?

October - My Imaginary Friend

November - Musings About Cycling in Mississippi

December - Dear Gym Dogs



Happy New Year!

End of the Year Review....

I shamelessly stole this blog format from a blogger called Cynical Dad who I'm pretty sure has no clue of my existence. If you are a regular reader of my blog (thank you!), you don't have to read them again. They're not necessarily my best writing, the most profound, the most touching, or the most humorous. They're just ones I liked. My blog, my rules.

It was a toss-up between recapping my favorite blog topic for each month and posting my favorite photographs of 2009. Then I discovered that I didn't take many photos in 2009.

I don't usually make New Year's resolutions, but I am resolving to take more photographs in 2010. If I take many, many photographs, some of them are bound to be decent.

I also resolve to ride my bicycle more miles than the 619 I rode in 2009. I had a goal of riding 2009 miles in 2009, and I missed it by a BUNCH. I rode 1063 in 2008, 1813 in 2007, and 2006 was the year I had set a goal to ride 2000 miles that year and ended up with 1998..... Two stinkin' miles short! It was cold, rainy, and drizzly on New Year's Eve that year, and I was going to ride my bike up to the middle school and back (2 miles round trip), but Hubby pointed out the low visibility and talked me out of it. I decided having him plan my funeral on his birthday would be sort of a downer, so I accepted the fact that I ALMOST reached my goal.

I'm going to have to draft Katydid, Rozmo, and VT to help me reach my goal of 2010 miles in 2010. Come on, y'all!

Here are my favorite posts from 2009.

January:

A very strange coincidence that fascinated me.

February:

The dangers of creating cycling routes using computer software.

March:

A picture of me and all my cousins on the front porch of our grandparents' house. Since this blog post was written, the mystery of whether or not my brother was flipping the bird has been solved.

April:

A post about one of my most precious former students. She still gets in touch with me every now and then, and I still love her.

May:

A heartwarming story about another former student. This time it wasn't really about her, but about the kindness of strangers.

June:

An unsolved mystery letter I found in my mom's things along with pictures and other memorabilia. I wish I had the energy to solve this particular mystery.

July:

A hilarious story about my former sister-in-law. I go back and read it every now and then when I need a good laugh.

August:

This one about my clean desk. I repeat it here because we are halfway through the school year, and my desk has remained clean ALL YEAR.

September:

The letter I wrote to members of the 6:30 spinning class at the "Y" letting them know how I feel about their staring in the door toward the end of our line dancing class.

October:

Signs of the apocalypse from the casino.

November:

A post full of joy after a wonderful bike ride with two out of three of my favorite cycling buddies. VT wasn't able to come that day.

December:

A proud post about an award that my Sweet Girl got.



Happy New Year to everyone who reads my blog, and to every single person you love. Mwah!