2010/2011 Happy New Year!

Song of the day: “I will survive” by…something Gaylor? Gloria? Maybe I should check…nah. Who cares anyway? Let’s get down to business instead.

The last day of the year is almost gone and it has been a turbulent year to say the least.
I mean seriously, so much is different now from last year that I figure I might as well do a bit of what all the big networks are doing and look back upon 2010.

So what all happened? Personally, this year and the last are pretty much a blur for me, but I am trying, rather desperately, to come up with some good ones.

Okay.

First one: As of this evening, around midnight last year, I think it was I smoked my last cigarette. Now, I would like to say that it was my New Year’s resolution, but considering that at the time I had forgotten that it was old year’s eve, that would be a gross lie. Hah.
But anyway. My first anniversary as a none smoker, after six years of chain smoking. Personally I would say, “Let’s celebrate it with a nice cigarette,” but that would be kind of counter productive, now wouldn’t it. *snort*

I did prove my own point to myself, I’m happy to say. Smoking for me was definitely an oral fixation, and not all that hard to overcome. I liked smoking, and if the prices hadn’t gone up so much (just last week the bastards brought the prices up another 30 percent, or so) I would still be doing it. Heck, if it weren’t for exorbitant taxes and my refusal to fatten the coffers even more, I’d be lighting one up right now. *sigh* Alas, this is not the case, so I am once again a non-smoker, blast it.

But enough about that.

Second one: We did it. We won the bet. We built a greenhouse without buying anything other than screws and paint and it worked out splendidly. We scavenged, we scrounged, and we dove into places that I would much rather forget, but it is there and plants are growing in it even as I write this down. It’s beautiful, it’s sturdy and it’s there. What more can a person ask for?

Third one: Tenant is hardly ever using her wheelchair anymore, and that after her doctors proclaimed that it was highly unlikely that she would ever walk again. The arm they claimed she would not be able to use either, might not function properly yet, but she can raise it, tighten a fist and grab hold.
These days she walks down the mountain in the morning and then back up at the end of the day with hardly any assistance, and without breaking out in a sweat.
Screw the doctors!

Fourth: We build the basin, which, admittedly crashed again just weeks ago, but we’ll rebuild and know what to do now to make it as sturdy as it should be to hold the water that will come. The rocks are there and waiting, so are the bricks, so just as soon as the infernal rain stops coming down we’re going to tackle the wall once more.

Fifth: We lost quite a few dogs. And I much rather not linger on that particular issue.

Sixth: I finished writing two books, which should both be ready to go out to publisher in one, maybe two months. They were written, edited and re-edited within the time we allotted for the task and soon we will see if the effort was fruitful. I do admit to being curious about what the responses are going to be.

Seventh: Ehm. Is there a seventh? Just kidding.
There is the yard, of course. We had quite a successful year with our own veggies this year. More zucchini’s than we could eat, but luckily the dogs loved them. Same goes for the tomatoes, which the dogs loved as well. Hah. We had cauliflowers, melons, eggplants, onions, potatoes, leek and more chard than we could eat…which the dogs didn’t like, for a change. Hah. There were the piles of pumpkins, the strawberries (way to few of ‘m) bushes full of peppers, the broccoli, cucumbers and the white and red cabbages. All of them delicious, and several of them saved long enough for an occasional soup this chilly winter.

Eight: The weather. We’ve had a relatively cool summer to follow a chilly spring. We hit the hundreds only a few times after all, and the coolness stayed consistent through out autumn where we’ve already hit the lows that were three degrees from the freezing point. On the plus side, I don’t mind as much as I used to. Hah.

Nine: Remodelling and building wise we’ve been busy, I guess.
1. We built tenant’s solarium, and put up a wall in her kitchen. Sure, the new floor still has to be poured, but once we’ve done that, all will be beautiful in there.
2. Also put in a floor in big brother’s room, of course, along with a new bed with a drawer system beneath it and new walls and everything. While busy there we also put a lick of paint on the wall so it’s looking good.
3. We fixed my broken floor earlier this summer, of course, and soon we’re going to put in my new floors as well, so, yay.
4. The bus was painted, and a new wooden partition built behind it. Soon we’ll be putting in vinyl tiles in there as well, so it’ll be a good as new.

Ten: Got a job. Yes, finances are low and it just couldn’t be avoided any longer. It’s not bad either. I get my exercise, meet lots of fascinating people and earn a few extra bucks that’ll pay for dog operations if nothing more.

Eleven: Had a massive amount of car repair bills, in particular since we got the Daewoo for the smaller stuff. Seriously, for the car bills alone we could have a full-time job. The way I figure, soon the car will be entirely new. Hah.

Twelve: I took the first step in starting a column by spending a day at a cocktail lounge. I’m still working on the format of the telling, but I’ll get there. As of now I am looking for interesting jobs that I could do for a day and write about, so if you can think of something, feel free to leave a comment and suggest one.

Should I do a thirteen? Okay, last one. After two years and half a year of doctor’s visits, my foot is finally starting to show some improvement. I now actually have moments per day where it doesn’t hurt, and that is still the best news of this year, I think. Hah.

Seriously, I’m starting to lose track. Stuff pops up in my head but then I don’t know what I’ve already had, and what not. Maybe I should leave it at this. I’ve described everything in the blogs anyway, so if you’re a “follower” you’ll remember most of this stuff anyway. Hah.

So let’s wrap this up and move onto 2011.
Edits are still going well. We passed the middle of the book, so yay!

The past two days I spent working on the new patio door I am designing. No, not the one I had already finished three days ago, that one was for inside. But a heavier, sturdier and pretty hardwood one for the outside. It’s starting to look bloody gorgeous, and is definitely worth the effort of spending the whole day in smoke and sawdust while I sawed the slats to the right size. Seriously, I can still smell the stuff now, after a shower and dinner. For some reason the hardwood I’m using smell likes a mix of cinnamon, clove and nutmeg. Very pungent.

Added to that, we headed into the yard for a bit…it felt like we were in northern England in October for all the green and wetness, to check how everything was doing. While we were wandering through the moist undergrowth, looking for an occasional tomato and pepper, the dogs were happy for the break in the rain too, and dashed up and down the mountain with noisy appreciation.
In the yard, all was well, so I could get back to work on the door. Since the sawing table overheats on the long stretches, we spent the time in-between sawing sorting through the piles of screws and doodads.

Which brings us to the very last words of this year.
Hope you had as great a year as I did, and that the next one will be even better.

Have a GOOD and HAPPY New Year!!!