Well, today is the last day of 2009.  HALLELUJAH.  From what I can tell, everyone I know is pretty excited about that fact.

But, before we close that door (at the top of the stairway to hell) I figured I should let you know about the Wyche Christmas.  While I was working for practically 7 days straight, a very generous co-worker offered to cover my 7am-3pm shift on Christmas Day.  I had hoped to take the time to get to Raleigh a little early to surprise Beth, but unfortunately I kind of just ended up sleeping in.  But still, I made it there, and a little later on the Virginia Wyches (Mama, Daddy, & Andrew) arrived.

If you’ve read anything about time I’ve spent with my family before, you’re probably aware that where two or more Wyches are gathered, obscene amounts of food are consumed.  This year was no different, but we were also following another classic Wyche rule – Wyche Time.  So we had dinner a little late, but it was absolutely delicious.  It was worth it to have the fantastic meal that Sister Dearest prepared.  This meal is rapidly becoming a family tradition: smoked salmon, mashed potatoes, asparagus, peach salad, and (a new addition) of some kind of squash dish that was quite good.  Altho of course, the meal is secondary to the conversation at the dinner table…and ours spent a large amount of time revolving around…chickens.  But really, we had a great time.  My amazing cousin and her fiancee, Maggie & Matt, joined us for a little bit, so of course that conversation was delightful.  Other classic holiday moments include watching “A Christmas Story”, unloading the giant cooler that my parents cart around with them, opening presents (and of course not finding the perfect present for my padre…he’s so hard to shop for!), playing phone tag with Bob, and me trying to teach Andrew some yoga in between pestering him about his life.

Unfortunately, I had to leave to head back to work at the end of the night, but the rest of the family headed down on Whiteville the next day (Saturday) – I heard there were 24 Wyches at Dale’s   Jealous I couldn’t be there!

At any rate, I hope you’ve had a wonderful holiday season as well, and that you experience an even better New Year   I’m currently in Washington, D.C. for the holiday, and will be heading to Pittsburgh, P.A. tomorrow – I’ll be sure to keep you posted on all the ensuing festivities

  

Unfortunately for y’all, I have had a lot of issues with 2009.  And thus I need to work through some things in the form of generic and annoying surveys.  Enjoy.

In 2009 I…
[x] broke a promise
[x ] made a new best friend
[ ] fallen in love
[x] fallen out of love
[ ] been in over 2 relationships
[x] lied
[ ] went behind your parents back
[x] cried over a broken heart
[x] disappointed someone close
[x] hid a secret
[x] pretended to be happy
[X] kissed in the rain
[X] kissed on a first date
[X] slept under the stars
[x] kept your new years resolution
[x] forgot your new years resolution
[x] met someone who changed my life
[ ] met one of your idols
[x] changed your outlook on life
[x] sat home all day doing nothing
[ ] pretended to be ill
[x] left the country
[x] almost died
[x] given up something important to you
[x] broke something expensive
[x] learned something new about yourself
[x] tried something you normally wouldnt try and liked it
[x] made a change in your life
[x] found out who your true friends were
[x] met great people
[ ] snuck out of the house
[x] stayed up til sunrise
[ ] pigged out over the summer
[ ] met someone from myspace in person
[x] cried over the silliest thing
[x] got into a car accident
[x] found a person I never thought I’d become good friends with
[x] had friends who were drifting away from me
[ ] had someone close to me die
[ ] had a high cell phone bill
[ ] had a fist fight
[x] went to the beach
[ ] saw a celebrity
[x] gotten sick
[ ] liked more than 5 people at the same time
[x] became closer to a lot of people
[x] kissed someone as the sun set

  

1) Was 2009 a good year for you?
It was pretty rocky, actually.  I’m excited for it to end.

2) What was your favorite moment of the year?
Hmmmm…probably reaching the top of the volcano in Guatemala.

3) What was your least favorite moment of the year?
April

4) Where were you when 2009 began?
In Whiteville, NC

5) Who were you with?
The family & MW

6) Where will you be when 2009 ends?
Washington, D.C.!!!!!!!!!

7) Who will you be with when 2009 ends?
CRISTINA & Keegan

Did you keep your new years resolution of 2009?
I think I did a pretty good job on my goals.

9) Do you have a new years resolution for 2010?
I have lots of goals.

10) Did you fall in love in 2009?
I began 2009 in love.  (stealing Amanda’s answers on these things…)

11) If yes, with who?
We all know who.

12) If yes, do they know?
He knew

14) You regret it?
Absolutely not

15) Did you breakup with anyone in 2009?
The reverse, sadly.

16) Did you make any new friends in 2009?
Yes!  And I am so thankful for them.

17) Who are your favorite new friends?
Keegan & Lauren.

18) What was your favorite month of 2009?
August & October.

19) Did you travel outside of the US in 2009?
Yep!  Guatemala!

20) How many different states did you travel to in 2009?
Virginia, Pittsburgh, D.C. Maryland, Ohio, Texas (stuck after missing a flight…), Georgia

21) Did you lose anybody close to you in 2009?
Not by death, but I certainly lost the friendship of someone close to me. (stealing Amanda’s answer again)

22) Did you miss anybody in the past year?
Oh of course.  I wish I had a bubble to live in that included all of my favorite people.

23) What was your favorite movie that you saw in 2009?
Oh hmm…maybe just because it’s the most recent that I saw, but I definitely enjoyed “Everything’s Fine”

24) What was your favorite song from 2009?
Ahhhh this is hard.  In terms of popular music newly released…Bad Romance by Lady Gaga.  In terms of personal discovery, Ghosts by Laura Marling.

25) What was your favorite record from 2009?
Ingrid Michaelson’s “Everybody”

26) How many concerts did you see in 2009?
Umm none.  I’m not a concert person actually.

27) Did you have a favorite concert in 2009?
Why no, I did not.

28) did you drink a lot of alcohol in 2009?
I plead the fifth.

29) did you do a lot of drugs in 2009?
Negative

30) How many people did you hurt this year?
Hm.  No idea.  Definitely a few at least.

31) Did you do anything you are ashamed of this year?
Nope.

33) What was the worst lie someone told you in 2009?
Well I hear crazy lies on a daily basis from my kids, so I have no idea how to answer this question lol.

34) Did you treat somebody badly in 2009?
I think probably a few, even tho it was unintentional.

35) Did somebody treat you badly in 2009?
I think probably a few, altho I’d like to think most of it was unintentional.  Aside from my cls…that was probably intentional lol.

36) How much money did you spend in 2009?
Far far too much.  More than I have…oops.

37) What was your proudest moment of 2009?
Navigating the Guatemalan healthcare system and speaking Spanish fluently.

38) What was your most embarrassing moment of 2009?
One word (name):  Dylan.

39) If you could go back in time to any moment of 2009 and change something, what would it be?
More recently I would say I would have been bolder and more sure of my decisions.

40) What are your plans for 2010?
Hmmm embracing change.  Hopefully grad school.  Most likely moving.  But I’m also trying this whole “take it one day at a time” thing and not over-plan my life.  We’ll see!

41)  What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?
Climbed a volcano.

42) Did anyone close to you give birth or get pregnant?
Rosie did!  And we have the first Wyche baby girl!  MacKenzie!

43) Did anyone close to you get married?
Laura T. from high school   Also Pete from LP!

44) Where did most of your money go?
Traveling,  food, books, drinks

45) What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Hm.  Pretty much anytime I got to see Cat or Cristina or my family.

46) What song will always remind you of 2009?
Breakin’ Up – Rilo Kiley.  And I’m On a Boat.

47) Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? happier
ii. thinner or fatter? thinner
iii. richer or poorer? same.

48) What do you wish you’d done more of?
Writing

49) What do you wish you’d done less of?
Gossiping

50) What was an unexpected surprise?
My cottage closing.

51) What was your favorite TV program?
Sex and the City

52) Do you dislike anyone now that you didn’t dislike this time last year?
Nope

53) What was the best book you read?
Oh heavens this one’s hard…Take This Bread by Sara Miles.

54) What was your greatest musical discovery?
State Radio or Laura Marling

55)  What did you want and get?
A coffee table.

56) What did you want and not get?
New car.

57) What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I worked 14hrs…and a client’s mom insulted my college education, and the client flooded the bathroom.  Then I got into a huge fight with MW.  I freaked out a lot.  It was a bad birthday.

58) What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Honesty

59) How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
Retail therapy

60) What kept you sane?
My friends & family. I don’t know what I would have done without them this year….also yoga & counseling

  

Wellll actually there are lots of reasons why my life will never be like Sex and the City, #1 being that I live in Winston-Salem and it in no shape or form resembles NYC.  But this post is not about that.

The reason I’m referring to is this:  I grocery shop.  Because I cook.  Because I’m poor and can’t spend my money on shoes (Reason #3 being that I would never spend $300 on a pair of shoes). 

This thought occurred to me today, dear readers, because of snow.  (Reason #4 my life will never be like SATC is because it is purposefully never winter in the series, post Season 2 - and yes I agree it’s sad I know that.)  Winston had a fairly consequential snowstorm yesterday, which is pretty exciting.  I do like snow, but I don’t like ice.  And apparently the two are pretty good friends.  Anyway, I digress.

So, the snow.  Nevermind that I got snowed in at work last night – that wasn’t so bad (and I appreciate Adam & Lauren’s hospitality, but will promptly be buying them multiple space heaters for their birthdays).  No, what had happened was this…

I’m going to try to create a highly informative visual image for y’all.  And since I watched The Golden Girls last night, it’s going to go like this:  Picture it.  Winston-Salem, 2009.  Awkward and clumsy (but delightfuly charming) twenty-something heads to the store for necessities to survive the winter storm.  And by necessities, I of course mean bread, eggs, milk, and more alcohol than I care to admit (for a possible-but-perhaps-ill-fated Christmas party).  Our brave heroine has chosen, for reasons which we will soon review in the next sentence, to wear boots.  Because of the snow.  Because people wear boots in the snow and it keeps your pants from getting soaked and adds oh-so-necessary height and distance from the ground.  But these very attributes also make walking in the snow a bit…treacherous.  Especially as our heroine is, as you will remember, remarkably clumsy.  She makes it from store to store alright, and to the car, etc.  And she has even remembered her helpful (and environmentally sound) reusable grocery bags, which make carrying lots of things at once much easier (which is necessary as she lives in a classic 4th floor apartment and does not, understandably, want to make more than one trip to the car).  But there is still the walk from the parking space to the building.  With multiple heavy bags full of, um, delights & things, much of which can be broken, and all of which used up precious pennies.  The walk is down a steep hill covered in, not snow, but slush and ice. 

So this is the situation I was presented with.  On one arm, I have the bread, eggs, and milk (milk = heavy, and then of course, I’m mildly terrified I’ll break the eggs and smush the bread) and on the other arm I have a surprisingly hefty bag of choice beverages – beverages which frequently come in glass bottles.  And all I’m thinking as I’m taking tiny, tiny steps in my boots is that I am the clumsiest person I know, perhaps only equal to my madre, and that it is actually frequently subject to a plethora of jokes from a variety of people and that on top of that I also frequently uphold Murphy’s Law so of course I’m *expecting* to fall in the snow and break everything I just spent money on, and possibly even some body parts since I’m also paranoidly thinking of the time my (if you remember, equally clumsy) mother fell in the ice and shattered her arm.  So it occurred to me that this would never be a dilemma that would arise in the life of Carrie Bradshaw (and not just because it’s actually incredibly mundane and I’ve already said too much about it) because she doesn’t ever carry groceries.

Besides, further proof that my life is not a mirror of SATC?  If Carrie were to actually buy groceries and carry them through the show in a pair of super cheap boots (and if we set aside that she is actually practiced & adept enough in heels to run marathons in them, while I reside mainly in tennis shoes and flip-flops on a daily basis & trip in *those*- Reason #5) and say for the sake of the argument that she were in this position, she definitely would have fallen.  Because she’s clumsy too.  And while she was daintly cursing and picking up shards of glass mixed in egg yolks, a talldarkandhandsome stranger would mysteriously arrive (despite the fact that it’s not the greatest neighborhood) and assist her in not only salvaging what was left of her groceries, but would dress any minor cuts she had sustained and would have promptly taken her shopping for new groceries, which would have eventually led to…well, this is a family-friendly blog after all.  But I’m sure your imagination can take you from there.  Thus, Reason #6 (and probably 7) why my life is not like Sex and the City.

Admit it tho…You totally thought I was going to fall while you were reading this.

  

I have to copy Sister Dearest’s post and welcome the beautiful MacKenzie Shaw into the world   She came in on Sunday morning (Dec. 13th, 2009) weighing in at 8lbs 9oz (which I’m actually pretty sure was my weight…)  Anyway, I’m crazy excited that Mackenzie has graced this earth with her presence, and I’m pretty excited to meet her in 2010.  Here’s a pic of her:Yay MacKenzie Shaw!!!!!!