Saturday, January 31

I think that there is a piece of long curly ribbon

in Rocky's belly and I am totally stressed about it. The fancy Steelers balloon we brought home yesterday has a long ribbon tied to it and I meant to cut it when we got home precisely because I know Rocky likes to chew on such things. But I forgot and this morning we noticed the ribbon was much shorter and sure enough, there were teeth marks on it. I am so angry with myself. A stupid, irresponsible mistake that can be quite dangerous for a cat.

I think he ate it at around 4:00pm yesterday and he's fine so far. Eating, drinking and acting normal. I called the vet and she just said to keep an eye on him, that sometimes kitties just pass these things on their own, but if they don't, it can require surgery. And of course it is the weekend so if anything happens later in the day or tomorrow, it's off to the emergency vet for us. Please cross your fingers that Rocky gets it out on his own.

I feel like such an idiot.

Friday, January 30

Steelers Nation Baby.

I'm pleased to report that when we went to Party City today to buy black and gold balloons, I noticed that all the Steelers paper products (plates, napkins, etc.) were sold out and the Cardinals were not. As we were picking out the balloons, the cashiers were talking about Sunday and one woman said, "the Steelers are going to win." So when we went to the check out counter, Will said, "we think the Steelers are going to win too!" Which made us an easy mark for her next question, "do you want to get a Steelers balloon too?" Of course! Did they have Cardinals balloons? I think not.

Tomorrow is all about prep for me. I have to make the baked beans and cole slaw. I also plan to start decorating the house with the balloons and streamers. The pork roast will be cooked overnight again (which means I am going to wake up all night from the smell) and then god knows how I am going to survive until 4:00 PM! The excitement is building.

I'm nervous about the game. It's definitely not going to be an easy. It'll be a good one and fingers are crossed that we will come out on top. Watching media week on NFL Network this week started making me really nervous. It seemed like all the commentators were saying, "the Steelers are great, BUT..." And it gave me the impression that they all think the game is going to be a big upset. The underdog Cards beating the favored Steelers. But because of all that talk, it almost made the Cardinals stop being the underdog and I'm fine with that. We don't want the Steelers being too overconfident. I also think it's pretty awesome that the whole SuperBowl Champ visits the White House is on the top of the players minds this year. They want to meet President Obama!

Our friend Julie just called me to tell me that her dad sent her a SuperBowl care package that included a six packs of Iron City and Yuengling! (You can't get either out here.) I'm not a fan of either beer, but she was losing her mind. Oh and one of the bottles exploded so everything else in the box was covered in beer. You gotta love Steelers fans!

Alright, I have to focus. There are flowers to be knit. And dinners to be made.

A happy weekend to you all!

flickr faves

1/30/2009

1. Untitled, 2. Snowstorm, 3. 6A | Monday, 4. magnolia buds, 5. Untitled, 6. Laundry Day, 7. Untitled, 8. wall to wall, 9. windows in mom's room, 10. The Captain, 11. Sky Race Finish Line, 12. The fog tide rolls in....

Created with fds flickr toys.

Thursday, January 29

Delirious.

I wasn't going to post today because I am dead tired, but I'll give it a shot.

Last night we had dinner with friends at the Rio Chama bar, one of our regular spots. Said friends are moving to Milwaukee soon and dinner turned into quite a feast. Here's what was on the table:

Pan Roasted Duck Breast with Crispy Duck Spring Roll served with red lentils with swiss chard and a hoisin-chipotle sauce. (This was my meal and it was excellent.)

Seared Diver Scallops with Saffron-Vanilla Buerre Blanc served with corn cakes and vegetable julienne. (I've had this before and it is simply amazing. Always a nice treat to get good scallops in New Mexico.)

Cinnamon-Chile Rubbed Beef Tenderloin Medallions
Two Medallions of Sterling Silver natural-fed Angus beef grilled to order with chipotle cheddar mash, almond green beans, and mango salsa. (Had a bite of the tenderloin and it was mind-blowing.)

Braised Buffalo Short Rib with Fig Barbeque Sauce served with jalapeno-cheddar cornbread. (I've had this dish before too and it is super rich and super tasty.)

I didn't feel like dessert, but I did have a Smith and Kerns, a simple drink that I don't believe I ever knew about. Kahlua, cream and club soda. Quite tasty.

Anyway, good times were had and we got home early enough. I went to bed at around 9:30 or 10:00, as I am prone to do. Woke up at 12:42 with dreams of felting flower petals lingering in my head. I got up to drink a glass of water and immediately knew that I wasn't going to be falling asleep again. I felt wide wake. What happened to the nights of at least sleeping through until 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning?! I would welcome a night like that. I realize some of you probably aren't even in bed at 12:42am, but for me it is not a time that I like to be awake. I found myself on the couch, hoping for a good late night movie, but no such luck. Instead I watched an episode of House. The guy who used to play Buffy's non-vampire boyfriend was the ailing patient in it. After that it was super slim pickings and I ended up watching an episode of Law & Order from 1991! Samuel L. Jackson and Philip Seymour Hoffman were both in it. And nobody had cell phones.

I went back to bed at 3:00am and discovered that Will was awake. We talked for a few minutes and then he ended up going out to the living room to watch television. I did finally sleep a bit, or at least I assume I did since I had a few dreams, but it wasn't good sleep and I felt like death warmed over this morning. What's the deal? Last year around this time my insomnia got increasingly worse as well. I wonder what it is? All I know is that I want to be rested up for the Big Game on Sunday.

Needless to say, today hasn't been a super productive day, although we did manage to complete most of our errands. We were both functioning in slow motion mode and spent far too much time gazing at various card selections, trying to pick cards out for upcoming birthdays. This afternoon I did manage to get halfway through knitting bag number six. I'll finish it this evening and felt it tomorrow.

I have some rambling to do about football, but I'll save it for tomorrow. Which is finally Friday. (I've thought every day was Friday since yesterday.)

The President's pick for the SuperBowl? The Steelers!

Obama says Steelers 'close to my heart'
Thursday, January 29, 2009
By Jerome Sherman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Barack Obama loves the Chicago Bears, his hometown team. But the Steelers rank No. 2 for the new president, and they're his pick for the Super Bowl.

"I wish the Cardinals the best," Mr. Obama said at an Oval Office meeting this afternoon with Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner, according to a report on Politico.com. "But I am a longtime Steelers fan. Mr. Rooney, the owner, was just an extraordinary supporter during the course of the campaign."

"Other than the Bears, the Steelers are close to my heart," Mr. Obama said.

Monday, January 26

What I've been doing.



Yep, that's about it. Knitting. And felting. And knitting some more. I've been experimenting with hand felting a bit. I've never had too much luck with felting by hand, but after two days of doing little else, I'm getting better at it. The handbags I'll probably keep doing in the machine because they take so much agitation, but smaller things, I just hate to waste so much water and electricity. I went out and bought some cheap bamboo place mats yesterday and they really help with the hand felting. I've also been having fun making felted balls.



I'm not sure what I'll do with them. Maybe make a bunch more and string them together. At any rate, it's a good way to use up bits of yarn.

Surprisingly enough, I hardly watch anything football related last week. I guess I needed a break? I don't know, last time we went to the SuperBowl, I was glued to the television for the entire two weeks. I plan to take in some Total Access this week. Our UPS man is for the Cardinals. As a longtime Cowboys fan, he hates the Steelers. Plus I imagine most Cowboys fans don't want us to take the lead with SuperBowl wins. Anyway, I am starting to get that big game anxiety so soon I am going to be grocery shopping and planning the snack menu.

Other plans this week...maybe a hike? a movie? I still have loads of knitting to get done, but good lord, I have to leave the house sometimes too.

Cross your fingers that I get some sleep this week too. Last week was not a good sleep week for me. I'm starting to get kind of aggravated about it again.

Thursday, January 22

I'm not a big fan of reality television,

but I just might have to watch this one if it really happens. Michael Irvin is to host a show in which the winner receives a spot on the Dallas Cowboys roster.

Too bad I can't try out. Heh.

Wednesday, January 21

Here's to you my dear.

Here's to  you my dear.

Happy Birthday BamBam! Even though we can't be at your cocktail party tonight, I thought I would put on my shiny dress and make a birthday toast to you. Hope you have a fantastic evening. I can't wait to see the glamor shots! Much love to you from me and the boys.

Tuesday, January 20

A new day. And football.

Before I get to the football, I will say that I am so delighted that we now have President Obama in office. What a great day for this nation. And this event totally eclipses football, that I know, I am just not good at writing about such things.

As for the football, well, I have to say, even with the Steelers having a good record this season, it never really occurred to me that we would make it to the SuperBowl. And here we are. Going to the SuperBowl. I love it but for the fact that waiting through two weeks is torture.

On Sunday, we had another crowd at the house. The food was a hit again, although we decided that the bbq pork is better than the bbq beef. I was on pins and needles for most of the day and through most of our game. No matter that the Steelers looked good and had the lead throughout the entire game, it was close enough that it was hard to breathe. And Hines getting hurt in the first quarter didn't help. But Ben was cool and collected, the defense managed to rattle that unshakable rookie quarterback, and Troy sealed the deal. Yeah, fourth quarter, score 16-14, plenty of time left that anything could happen. Thank god that what happened was an interception and touchdown. We went wild. Until that helmet-to-helmet hit anyway. I don't like to see anyone laid out on the field, no matter who they're playing for. But fortunately, McGahee is expected to make a full recovery. That whole thing took a bit of the wind out of our sails.

And now, well now it's hard to get the "Here we go Steelers..." out of my head.

(And you've gotta love that Rooneys gave Obama the ball from the AFC Championship game!!)

Monday, January 19

Happiness is rolling in the dirt.



It was so nice outside today. Incredible. And now you see why Rocky is always so dirty.

I did not roll in the dirt, but I did take a break from knitting to go for a walk around the railyard. It felt good to be out.

I'll have more for you tomorrow. Too pooped right now.

And we did it!

Steelers are going to the SuperBowl!!!

And now I have to go clean the house. Cheers!

Saturday, January 17

On the agenda for today.

Run.

Make bacon for breakfast.

Do laundry.

Start baked beans.

Make cole slaw.

Knit.

I think that'll do it. Not much to say this week, really. I've spent a lot of time unknitting knitting mistakes which is super frustrating after awhile. I've also become addicted to House. Every episode is kind of the same, but I have been charmed by Dr. House. He makes me laugh.

Big game tomorrow. I'm trying not to think about it too much.

Friday, January 16

***



A friend sent us some t-shirts from Pittsburgh. This one cracks me up. (Although technically shouldn't it say "Steelers"?)

flickr faves

1/16/09

1. Untitled, 2. Untitled, 3. Bailarina, 4. sister birch, 5. Untitled, 6. dizzy, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. lion's den, 10. Untitled, 11. a new year, 12. January 1st

Created with fds flickr toys.

Wednesday, January 14

Pom Poms



Inspired by this tutorial, I made some pom pom flowers over the weekend. It was fun, actually, to use up some of my scrap yarn and to pull out the glue gun. I think my pom poms aren't quite fuzzy enough. Such a cute idea though.

Tuesday, January 13

In the morning.



I didn't really get a good shot of the BBQ pork. I took this after Will shredded it and was getting ready to put in the BBQ sauce and other ingredients. We cooked it over night and all night long I had dreams about crock pots.



Another photo I should have taken was this table filled with food, but by that time, my mind wasn't on photos, it was on the game. Here we have holiday presents for some of our football friends, two footballs, the awesome Steelers plates and napkins that Julie's mom got for us, a few platters for snacks and of course, the whiskey. Later we had to move everything around so there was room on the table for the crock pot, baked beans, potato salad, buns and cole slaw. We had quite the feast.

Have I mentioned that I can't wait until Sunday?!

Monday, January 12

Here we go Steelers!

rocky in his knitted football helmet

I'll tell you what, the cats are going to be so happy when football season is over. Now they are getting tortured by being forced to pose with cute knitted football helmets on! Rocky actually used to like watching football with us, but he stopped after Jerome Bettis retired. Seriously. Never watched another game after that last Super Bowl season. They pretty much stay outside on Sundays as they have absolutely no tolerance for the crowd and the noise, although occasionally Rocky will stop in and check the floor for dropped snacks.

Anyway, WE WON!! And it was an awesome game. Success all around. We had a much bigger crowd here than usual, but all went well (we only had one spilled beer on the couch and one dropped plate of food on the floor) and the BBQ pork and baked beans were a hit. It was such a great day. And now...good lord, another whole week until the next game! I woke up ready to start planning the menu. But how do you top BBQ pork? The general consensus is that you don't. Yesterday's guests requested the same menu for next Sunday. But we may do BBQ beef instead of pork.

Last night I had a dream that the Steelers were my high school football team. I got to hang out with Big Ben and Hines Ward. It was awesome. I was actually a little bummed when I woke up. I wanted the dream back.

I don't know how we're going to get through the week. The excitement around here is palatable.

One last thing, I'm sorry to see Tony Dungy retiring, I've always liked him. But I certainly respect his decision to spend more time with his family. It'll be interesting to see how the Colts are affected by the changing of the coaches.

Sunday, January 11

Game Day (Playoffs)

Game Day (Playoffs)

It's hard waiting until game time.

Thursday, January 8

Somehow I ended up with an awful lot of photos

of people doing shots on New Year's Eve. Lucky for me, I only take Polaroid shots.









Is it Sunday yet?

I'm so excited about the game on Sunday, I can hardly stand it. (An obvious sign that perhaps I have too much time on my hands.) One thing of the things that I have been obsessing about is the Game Day menu. We always have a nice array of snacks: chips and salsa, brie and crackers, Utz Pub Mix, peanuts, veggies and onion dip, green chile and cream cheese tortilla wraps. Sometimes Will busts out his spinach artichoke dip. Oh and cheese balls, but we didn't buy another barrel of them after the last one grossed us out with all the oil at the bottom. And part of my fun on Sunday mornings is getting out all the serving plates and preparing all the snacks.

But now it's the play-offs. And we got a crock pot for Christmas. So we're stepping things up a bit. BBQ pulled pork (and Riblets for the vegetarians). Cole slaw, potato salad and baked beans. Yum. I'm going to make the cole slaw and baked beans on Saturday. It'll help curb some of the game anxiety. I've never actually made baked beans before. Reading the recipe, here's me: "oh, you actually *bake* baked beans. Duh. I have to leave out the pork and bacon though so that everyone can eat them. I bet they'll still be good.

So we went out this morning and hit two grocery stores and the beer store and hopefully we're done. (When it comes to grocery shopping, we never seem to be done. It's ridiculous. One Sunday morning, Will went out to pick up some things while I prepared the snacks. Upon his return, we discovered the baby carrots were bad and god forbid we don't have baby carrots for the game so I had to go back out. And today we forgot the cabbage for the cole slaw, but at least it hit me while we were still in the parking lot.) Game Day gets expensive after awhile. But we love feeding our friends.

I really wanted to get some cheesy black and gold decorations or plates and napkins or something, but you know, you just can't find that sort of thing this far away from Pittsburgh. I settled for some cheesy football plates and napkins from Target. Perhaps I need to make a trip to Pittsburgh so I can stock up on Steelers paraphernalia for next season.

But because we've had to run around so much this week, I've hardly gotten anything else done. I'm still not doing so well with the focusing and time management thing.

Wednesday, January 7

It's official.

Eric Mangini is the new head coach of the Cleveland Browns.

I'm okay with that since I've never been a big fan of Mangini. Now we never have to be friends.

And because I get easily distracted,

I whipped up this Chunky Newsboy Cap earlier today. It's knits up super quick. No matter that I have five other projects that need to be started. While I was taking a shower, I was thinking about football which led me to think about the black and gold yarn that I have leftover from another project which led me to decide that it would be a really great idea to make a hat out of it!



It's for one of our friends who comes over for games on Sundays. I think she'll like it. And actually, it's so cute, I may make one for another one of the Sunday group. Or maybe even for me.

Ta-da!

My first sweater, the Shalom Cardigan.





my first sweater!

I'm pleased with the way that it turned out. As I was laying it out to block, I did notice a mistake in it, but it's not a huge one. Nonetheless, perfectionist that I am, it made me twitch a bit. What I did, I purled 5 stitches that should have been knit so there is a break in the pattern. I'm over it now though. And I don't really even wear this type of cardigan, but I chose to make it because it's simple and a good way to begin my foray into sweaters. I think it's pretty darn cute!

Some of favorite photos from Christmas with the family.

my sister and her youngest daughter

mom and dad

the crystal knows all

caroline and will

caroline and the red hat

gingerbread house and the pooping moose

sock snowman

Tuesday, January 6

Odds and ends including the search for jeans.

I just read that Chargers wide receiver Vincent Jackson was picked up for a DUI early this morning. Dude, you're in the play-offs, why are you even out drinking?!

So, the search for jeans. I have two pairs of jeans that I wear constantly (not at the same time) and that fit well. One pair is from Gap and I've probably had them for 8 years? Maybe more? At any rate, they're getting pretty worn. The other pair I picked up at a second hand store about five years ago. I have about 5 other pairs of jeans that I don't like so much. Too tight or too big. Too long or too skinny. And since I am not working, I live in the aforementioned two pairs of jeans which is causing me to get a wee bit sick of them. Thus started the search for a new pair. Preferably cheap. But good lord, it is totally impossible to find jeans that are not geared toward a 14-year old girl. I don't want them up to my belly button, but I also don't want my ass crack showing. Not a great look for a 38-year old. No luck whatsoever at Target where the small sizes are two inches too long for me. I always thought I was average height, but apparently not. And the legs are either too bell bottom-y or to skinny. Whatever happened to somewhere inbetween? Today I finally gave in and went to Gap. I must have tried on 10 pairs of jeans. They actually have some mid-rise jeans which fit my waist well, but nothing else worked. Super boxy. I finally settled on a pair of "curvy" jeans. They are the perfect length but still a little too low-rise for me. I'm wearing them around the house with the tags on until I decide if I can live with them. Please tell me where I'm supposed to find jeans these days!!

Yesterday I found out that one of the purses in my old shop sold!! Very exciting news. I've never sold anything out of an actual store before. A gallery on Canyon Road no less! One sale certainly isn't going to pay the bills, but it gives me hope that more will sell. It also gives me reason to keep making more!

Okay, time for Total Access and some more scanning. I've gotten next to nothing done today and it's been extremely frustrating.

Monday, January 5

Quick Football Recap

I know I probably scare people away with the football posts, but hey, football is life. Just kidding. I do think the whole pro football fan culture is pretty interesting though. Most of the friends that we have here in Santa Fe we made via Steelers games. And the ritual of preparing for the game is one of my favorite things on Sundays. Anyway, a topic that I keep thinking on but never can coherently write on.

So yesterday I went 2 for 2 with my picks, unfortunately. The Ravens scare me and like Ron Cook, I think we're going to end up facing them again in two weeks. That said, I also think we can beat them again.

All told, I tallied our weekend football watching at close to 20 hours. That's gross, isn't it? We did leave the couch on occasion though and multi-tasked while the games were on. I finished my cardigan and whipped up a baby hat for a friend. I also did some scanning during the Eagles/Vikings game. Next week will be more of the same with the four divisional play-off games.

February 1st. And then we'll done.

Sunday, January 4

Wild Card Weekend

Because I love pro football, I've been excited about watching all the games this weekend, no matter that the Steelers are not playing. I meant to write about it yesterday and share my picks, but I never got around to it. So I'll do it now even though two of the games have already been played. I ended up 0 for 2 yesterday. (And my picks are based on who I think will win, not on who I want to win.)

Atlanta Falcons at Arizona Cardinals

My pick - the Falcons. Who actually won - the Cardinals. I really did think the Falcons would dominate this game and they basically choked, particularly in the second half. I don't have strong feelings about either team, but I would have liked to see the Falcons win. I prefer them to the Cardinals. I guess I do have to give ex-Steelers Ken Whisenhunt props for turning his team around in his second year of coaching. But I really can't see the Cardinals getting past the next round.

Indianapolis Colts at San Diego Chargers

My pick - the Colts. Who actually won - the Chargers. I was really torn about who I actually wanted to win in this game. I'm a fan of Peyton, but I wasn't sure I really wanted to face the Colts again. I found myself rooting for the Chargers throughout the game, but honestly, I don't know that I want to face them either. They're looking pretty good. But we beat them in regular season and we have a much stronger defense, so if it comes to playing them, I think we'll be okay. Especially since it will be at Pittsburgh. That Darren Sproles though. Man, he is GOOD. And he must be stopped if we end up playing them.

The game this morning is really the big game for us since it will decide our fate. If Miami wins, we play them next weekend. If the Ravens win, we'll play the Chargers.

Baltimore Ravens at Miami Dolphins.

My pick - the Ravens. Now obviously I do not actually want the Ravens to win, but I think they are the dominant team. They are one of our biggest rivals, perhaps our biggest rival this season, and I'd really like to see them lose. No matter that we beat them twice in regular season, I'd rather not face them in the AFC Championship game. As for Miami, I don't think they'll be an easy win if we play them, but I do think we'd be the more dominant team in that game. I'm hoping that since I was 0 for 2 yesterday, that I'm wrong about this one too!

Philadelphia Eagles at Minnesota Vikings

My pick - the Eagles. I think I'd rather see the Vikings win though. This game interests me the least of all the wild card games, but I'm not really a fan of the Eagles so I wouldn't mind seeing them get beat.

So there you go. We'll see what happens.

I was surprised that both the Cardinals and the Vikings had trouble selling out their stadiums. The NFL had to extend the time they have to sell tickets in order to avoid black outs of the game in those areas. I mean, it's first time the Cardinals have been in the play-offs in forever, you would think the fans would be ready to cough up the cash for the game. And I thought Minnesota was big on football. I am guessing it is in part due to the state of the economy and the high price of play-off tickets. But still, that would *never* happen in Pittsburgh. And in fact, if the Steelers had to travel to either of those places, I imagine the games would have sold out easily as Steelers fans go everywhere.

Lastly, I also was excited about this football weekend because it gives me time to knit all day too! I never knit during Steelers games, but other games, yes. I am almost done with my Shalom Cardigan. All I have to do is bind off the stitches and block it and then, my first piece of clothing that isn't a hat or scarf! Yes!

Saturday, January 3

781

That's the number of Polaroid photos, give or take a couple, that I posted to Flickr in 2008. I did a search, just out of curiosity, and I have to say, I found that number a bit shocking. Whoa. Mind you, I did not take all of the 781 photos in 2008. Remember I was posting a bunch of old shots there for awhile as well as a handful of old family photos. Still, pretty crazy.

And perhaps too much? I don't know. I know some people only post their best work on Flickr whereas I tend to post just about everything (although I do edit out some, trust me). Sometimes I think that I should post less, but you know, I've always used my Flickr as a giant photo album so I don't really want to stop posting the family shots and cat photos and things that maybe bore people to death. After all, it is my Flickr. And I guess I shouldn't worry about what other people do and compare myself. (But sadly, I do.) As for me, I look at just about all the photos my contacts post. I find it all interesting.

Friday, January 2

flickr faves

Totally forgot it was Friday until this evening!

01/02/09

1. Untitled, 2. Untitled, 3. dead kids, 4. Maples on grain, 5. cold pond, 6. 2-2, 7. Witches Hair, 8. snow!, 9. Electric Feel, 10. Untitled, 11. morning light, 12. bleeding lung

Created with fds flickr toys.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

I know, I'm a day late, but yesterday I was too tired to focus on the computer due to the fact that I actually stayed up until midnight on New Year's Eve. As most of you know, that's waaaaaay past my bedtime! In fact, we didn't get into bed until after one in the morning. And sadly, going to bed late doesn't mean I sleep late. I still wake up at five. So I spent the first day of 2009 feeling very, very sleepy. I did manage to get some knitting done so the day wasn't totally unproductive.

We had a lovely time on New Year's Eve with a few friends. I have a lot of scanning to do now! I went to the party armed with three packs of film, figuring that I'd maybe go through one of them. Nope, I used all three. It was fun. Back in the days when I only used Polaroid film on "special occasions", I always took shots on New Year's Eve of friends and the parties we had. (A few of them are here.)

I slept a little better last night, but I still am not feeling all that focused today. I'd like to reflect on 2008 a bit as well as on the year that is ahead, but it's not coming easy. I feel fairly neutral about 2008. Will and I had two wonderful vacations, I got a couple of new Polaroid cameras that fast became my favorites, and we made some new friends. On the downside, I lost my job. But all-in-all, it was a fine year.

I'm not one to make resolutions, but there are some things I'd like to do in 2009. (Uh, like find more focus in my life.) A few of those things are:

- Run longer distances.

- Travel more. Take more day trips.

- Get my Etsy store together again.

- Further my knitting skills.

- Start sewing again. Start writing in my journal again.

- Take better photos. (A tough one. I need to expand my view or come up with a project or something. I don't push myself enough when it comes to photography.)

- Go to the eye doctor. (Seriously, I've been procrastinating this for a year now.)

Some will come easy, some not. I'd also like to start sleeping normally, but I don't think I have that much control over that issue. I also need to stop spending some much time on the internet. Every time I walk by my office, I end up checking my email or looking at Flickr and sometimes it ends up with me staring at the screen for 30 minutes or more. I don't get enough email that I need to check it a million times a day and it really just is a time suck. I have such a tendency to dilly dally and get distracted...I guess that gets me back to wanting to be more focused.

I think it will be a good year. Why not? Maybe I'll even find a job that I love to do. I'm open to the possibilities that exist.

All the best to you in 2009. Let's kick some ass!