Well ain't it just like the present to be showing up like this?
Happy New Year, flist!
1. What did you do in 2010 that you'd never done before?
Went to Comic-Con; got a Hollywood internship; moved to Southern California; got a tax refund; drank Scotch; went to Las Vegas; met midtownmandy and Co. in person; got gussied up for the Teen Choice Awards; made a Youtube video.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
From last year: "(Okay, actually, I resolve to keep running and to update P.S. BTW like a normal person, and to become a renowned and consistently paid TV writer.)" Results: Yes; no; TBD.
I don't think 2011 is a year for resolutions, per se; more like hope and vision and intent and a whole lot of imminent Craigslist-poring-over. I just want to do what I can, trust, and live it well, you know?
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
ALL OF THEM.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Erik Fitzpatrick, friend to many and husband to bilunabirotunda. He's much missed.
5. What countries did you visit?
Does Los Angeles count?
6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?
Stability. A life. A job I like and a steady place to live, with the cat and a non-inflatable bed. A church I love. Friends, current and yet to be. A way into TV.
7. What date(s) from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Wednesday, May 19--the day (evening) Erik was killed.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Maintaining some structure and sense of activity in the absence of a real job; finding, getting, and moving for my internship.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Failure to finish my pilot script, The Passion Pit.
10. Did you suffer any illness or injury?
Nothing a little Nyquil couldn't cure.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Gas. I did a lot of road-tripping this year, and didn't have money for much else.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My parents, who let me live with them, kept the neck-breathing-down to a minimum, and never seemed to doubt me. My Oakland friends, the warmest people I know, who welcomed me home and kept me company (and, in the case of captainoz, gave me couch rights and a spare key).
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
The American conservative machine--and the people who were shortsighted enough to fall for them--made me crazy. On the other hand, the ones I voted for didn't help themselves out much, either.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Describe this "money" of which you speak...?
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Comic-Con and road-tripping with carmen_sandiego; all things choir + drinks; surprise trip to LA in August!
16. What song will always remind you of 2010?
"Down River," by The Temper Trap, for its fantastic hopefulness and romanticism.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? About the same.
ii. thinner or fatter? About the same.
iii. richer or poorer? Poorer, but the promise of income is nigh!
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Writing, always. Also praying.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
I don't know, you guys; this was a pretty chilled-out year for me. Doing less of anything might have been fatal.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
I spent it with the family in my jammies.
22. Did you fall in love in 2010?
Not at ALL--on purpose, actually.
23. How many one-night stands?
My answer to this question never does change, does it?
24. What was your favorite TV program?
Chuck and Bones. And The Wire. And Parks and Rec. And Modern Family. And The Big Bang Theory. So, all of them?
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nah. I'll stay to the right, thanks.
26. What was the best book you read?
Death Comes for the Archbishop, by Willa Cather, in which not much happens, and it is GREAT.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
The Temper Trap + Mumford and Sons.
28. What did you want and get?
A Hollywood internship, a Disneyland annual pass, and an iPhone. Also, sleep.
29. What did you want and not get?
A TV-writing job and a two-bedroom Spanish-style apartment (with parking and laundry) all to myself.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
I don't know, you guys: this was a pretty good year, movie-wise. Inception! Toy Story 3! The Social Network! Tangled! Harry Potter 7.1! The King's Speech! True Grit! All kinds of delight.
On the other hand, I finally saw The Fall, and I loved it, and then I got a copy, and then I made lots of other people watch it, and then they liked it too. DVD of the Year, easy.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
For my thirtieth birthday, I went to Disneyland and then road-tripped to Phoenix for some time with with my very oldest friends (and one very tiny baby, whom we took for her first trip to the mall); beforehand, my Oakland peeps took me wine tasting, where we sat on picnic benches in the shade and drank and ate fancy chocolates, then sat on more picnic benches in the shade and ate fancy burgers while the sun set over the Napa Valley. If you ever wonder why I'm so spoiled, this kind of thing is probably it.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
A better TV setup. Sharing a single TV and a single-tuner DVR with my parents was by far the most stressful thing about living at home.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010?
Poverty chic/DC Redux. I bought very few new clothes this year--so it's jeans and Chucks for everyday and a casualized, accessoried-up version of my State Department wardrobe for work. And lo, I have felt the power of a pair of $6 Target dangly earrings!
34. What kept you sane?
My friends and my cat and my Bible.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Zachary Levi, I suppose? Which, frankly, was a little surprising to me--though probably not to anybody else. Tall cute Christian boy with a good vocabulary and a deep affection for Star Wars: ZACHARY LEVI, BOY, I DON'T KNOW.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Ironically, if anything political ever gives me an ulcer, it'll probably be health care. Which might be okay as long as it's after 2014?
37. Who did you miss?
a) Erik, a fantastic friend and an exceptional human being; the world is less fun and less thoughtful without him.
b) Sherlock, the world's sweetest and silliest cat, who's living with my parents for a few months until I move into a place without allergic roommates. What can I say? I like a fake mouse in the bathtub and a cold nose pressed into my armpit in the morning.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
I gained friends Charlene and Caroline in Oakland and insta-bonded with midtownmandy's roommates in LA, whom I have decided are the exact same level of fun as I am, which never happens.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010:
Don't apply for things that suck, and never go with a movie producer to a second location.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
"It's okay to have scars;
they will make you who you are.
It's okay to have fears,
as long as you're not scared of coming here.
But in the middle of the night,
call if you wanna talk,
'cause you know that I'll wanna talk, too."
-- Slow Club, "Christmas TV"
Gosh, 2011. You just...sneaked right up here, didn't you? Bless your heart.
I feel ready for 2010 to be over, but 2011 feels like another thing entirely--vaguer, scarier, but also more full of potential for awesomeness. Even more than last year, as in "after moving cross-country without a job," I don't know. Like, anything. I know I'm moving at the end of January, but I don't know where to. I know my internship is two-thirds up, but I don't know what's next. I know I plan to stay in LA for awhile, but I don't know what that means. On the other hand, there's some exciting (and specific) stuff I've been saving for after the New Year--mostly things involving my LA life, like joining my radio station (free tickets!) and finding a real church and trying to meet some of the random industry folks that people around me seem to know (i.e., "...well, my cousin's college roommate's brother made this movie, so maybe you two should meet!"). I took 2010 off from dating, and I've decided that that's got to end. My life to-do list is a mile long these days, and...I just want things to be better in twelve months than they are now, I guess, which I suppose isn't specific to me or to 2011. But it's true.
Here's to 2011, people. Let's make it a good one.
1. What did you do in 2010 that you'd never done before?
Went to Comic-Con; got a Hollywood internship; moved to Southern California; got a tax refund; drank Scotch; went to Las Vegas; met midtownmandy and Co. in person; got gussied up for the Teen Choice Awards; made a Youtube video.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
From last year: "(Okay, actually, I resolve to keep running and to update P.S. BTW like a normal person, and to become a renowned and consistently paid TV writer.)" Results: Yes; no; TBD.
I don't think 2011 is a year for resolutions, per se; more like hope and vision and intent and a whole lot of imminent Craigslist-poring-over. I just want to do what I can, trust, and live it well, you know?
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
ALL OF THEM.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Erik Fitzpatrick, friend to many and husband to bilunabirotunda. He's much missed.
5. What countries did you visit?
Does Los Angeles count?
6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?
Stability. A life. A job I like and a steady place to live, with the cat and a non-inflatable bed. A church I love. Friends, current and yet to be. A way into TV.
7. What date(s) from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Wednesday, May 19--the day (evening) Erik was killed.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Maintaining some structure and sense of activity in the absence of a real job; finding, getting, and moving for my internship.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Failure to finish my pilot script, The Passion Pit.
10. Did you suffer any illness or injury?
Nothing a little Nyquil couldn't cure.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Gas. I did a lot of road-tripping this year, and didn't have money for much else.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My parents, who let me live with them, kept the neck-breathing-down to a minimum, and never seemed to doubt me. My Oakland friends, the warmest people I know, who welcomed me home and kept me company (and, in the case of captainoz, gave me couch rights and a spare key).
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
The American conservative machine--and the people who were shortsighted enough to fall for them--made me crazy. On the other hand, the ones I voted for didn't help themselves out much, either.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Describe this "money" of which you speak...?
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Comic-Con and road-tripping with carmen_sandiego; all things choir + drinks; surprise trip to LA in August!
16. What song will always remind you of 2010?
"Down River," by The Temper Trap, for its fantastic hopefulness and romanticism.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? About the same.
ii. thinner or fatter? About the same.
iii. richer or poorer? Poorer, but the promise of income is nigh!
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Writing, always. Also praying.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
I don't know, you guys; this was a pretty chilled-out year for me. Doing less of anything might have been fatal.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
I spent it with the family in my jammies.
22. Did you fall in love in 2010?
Not at ALL--on purpose, actually.
23. How many one-night stands?
My answer to this question never does change, does it?
24. What was your favorite TV program?
Chuck and Bones. And The Wire. And Parks and Rec. And Modern Family. And The Big Bang Theory. So, all of them?
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nah. I'll stay to the right, thanks.
26. What was the best book you read?
Death Comes for the Archbishop, by Willa Cather, in which not much happens, and it is GREAT.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
The Temper Trap + Mumford and Sons.
28. What did you want and get?
A Hollywood internship, a Disneyland annual pass, and an iPhone. Also, sleep.
29. What did you want and not get?
A TV-writing job and a two-bedroom Spanish-style apartment (with parking and laundry) all to myself.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
I don't know, you guys: this was a pretty good year, movie-wise. Inception! Toy Story 3! The Social Network! Tangled! Harry Potter 7.1! The King's Speech! True Grit! All kinds of delight.
On the other hand, I finally saw The Fall, and I loved it, and then I got a copy, and then I made lots of other people watch it, and then they liked it too. DVD of the Year, easy.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
For my thirtieth birthday, I went to Disneyland and then road-tripped to Phoenix for some time with with my very oldest friends (and one very tiny baby, whom we took for her first trip to the mall); beforehand, my Oakland peeps took me wine tasting, where we sat on picnic benches in the shade and drank and ate fancy chocolates, then sat on more picnic benches in the shade and ate fancy burgers while the sun set over the Napa Valley. If you ever wonder why I'm so spoiled, this kind of thing is probably it.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
A better TV setup. Sharing a single TV and a single-tuner DVR with my parents was by far the most stressful thing about living at home.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010?
Poverty chic/DC Redux. I bought very few new clothes this year--so it's jeans and Chucks for everyday and a casualized, accessoried-up version of my State Department wardrobe for work. And lo, I have felt the power of a pair of $6 Target dangly earrings!
34. What kept you sane?
My friends and my cat and my Bible.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Zachary Levi, I suppose? Which, frankly, was a little surprising to me--though probably not to anybody else. Tall cute Christian boy with a good vocabulary and a deep affection for Star Wars: ZACHARY LEVI, BOY, I DON'T KNOW.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Ironically, if anything political ever gives me an ulcer, it'll probably be health care. Which might be okay as long as it's after 2014?
37. Who did you miss?
a) Erik, a fantastic friend and an exceptional human being; the world is less fun and less thoughtful without him.
b) Sherlock, the world's sweetest and silliest cat, who's living with my parents for a few months until I move into a place without allergic roommates. What can I say? I like a fake mouse in the bathtub and a cold nose pressed into my armpit in the morning.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
I gained friends Charlene and Caroline in Oakland and insta-bonded with midtownmandy's roommates in LA, whom I have decided are the exact same level of fun as I am, which never happens.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010:
Don't apply for things that suck, and never go with a movie producer to a second location.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
"It's okay to have scars;
they will make you who you are.
It's okay to have fears,
as long as you're not scared of coming here.
But in the middle of the night,
call if you wanna talk,
'cause you know that I'll wanna talk, too."
-- Slow Club, "Christmas TV"
Gosh, 2011. You just...sneaked right up here, didn't you? Bless your heart.
I feel ready for 2010 to be over, but 2011 feels like another thing entirely--vaguer, scarier, but also more full of potential for awesomeness. Even more than last year, as in "after moving cross-country without a job," I don't know. Like, anything. I know I'm moving at the end of January, but I don't know where to. I know my internship is two-thirds up, but I don't know what's next. I know I plan to stay in LA for awhile, but I don't know what that means. On the other hand, there's some exciting (and specific) stuff I've been saving for after the New Year--mostly things involving my LA life, like joining my radio station (free tickets!) and finding a real church and trying to meet some of the random industry folks that people around me seem to know (i.e., "...well, my cousin's college roommate's brother made this movie, so maybe you two should meet!"). I took 2010 off from dating, and I've decided that that's got to end. My life to-do list is a mile long these days, and...I just want things to be better in twelve months than they are now, I guess, which I suppose isn't specific to me or to 2011. But it's true.
Here's to 2011, people. Let's make it a good one.