A Year in Review…2016…

Another year.

Another recap.

2017 is the Year of the Rooster.

2011…The House…
2012…Denver and Andy Grammer…
2013…If it Ain’t One Thing…
2014…The Phantom Smoke Stench…
2015…WTF Day Is It…

2016 was The Year of…The Whole Gaddamn World is on Fire…

Seriously. It’s been a year. Oh ye gods.

It’s a common (proven?) theory that things always get worse before they get better. But how much worse do things have to get before the corner is turned? 2016 was awful in so many ways for so many people and everyone is ready for it to just be DONE. Though that was the consensus at the end of 2015 as well, with the belief that 2016 had to be better and it turned out so much worse. Will 2017 continue the trend? Or will we finally get that turn around so many so desperately need? I don’t pride myself in the least on being a perpetual pessimist. But it is difficult to see things any other way when so many people are in so much pain.

Here’s hoping 2017 brings about positive change, even if it takes the whole year to get it.

1.) Where did you ring in 2016?
We marathoned the entirety of Breaking Bad over our Christmas break and finished it out on NYE.

2.) What did you do in 2016 that you’d never done before?
I died my hair blue. I liked it but it was short-lived, and it’s way too much work to maintain.

3.) Did you keep your new year’s resolutions and will you make more for next year?
Dead horses and all that.

4.) Did anyone close to you get engaged or married?
My cousin was supposed to get married in October, but they cancelled the whole thing two weeks before the date without explanation. (Though they are still together.)

5.) Did anyone close to you become pregnant or give birth?
One of my cousins welcomed his second baby the same week our grandma died.

6.) Did anyone close to you die?
My grandma died in February. She was 99, six months shy of her 100th birthday. Now Bob and I no longer have any surviving grandparents.

7.) How did you earn your keep?
I am a housewife, dammit. (Not even close.)

8.) What countries places did you visit?
We didn’t go anywhere this year. We are okay with this.

9.) What would you like to have in 2017 that you lacked in 2016?
A decent sleep schedule.

10.) What dates from 2016 will remain etched upon your memory and why?
There are a lot of depressing and tragic dates associated with this year. I’m picking a happy one.
September 30th, seeing Andy Grammer and Gavin DeGraw play live.

11.) What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I survived. It has been a rough year for many reasons. But I survived.

12.) What was your biggest failure?
I didn’t get as much stuff done as I wanted to.

13.) Did you suffer illness or injury?
I had a mystery plague in the middle of summer that lasted a full week and took another couple months for my system to fully rebound.

14.) Did you ever encounter the police?
I should change this question to “Did anyone crash into one of your cars?” because that is the only reason we ever encounter the police. No police this time, but Bob did get a new bumper from a bad driver. (It was minor. Everyone is fine.)

15.) What was the best thing you bought?
Concert tickets to see Andy Grammer and Gavin DeGraw.

16.) Where did most of your money go?
House stuff, car repairs, and medical bills.

17.) What did you get really excited about?
New music and live music. Bob got really excited about Final Fantasy XV.

18.) Compared to this time last year, are you…
…happier or sadder? Angrier. Read the news.
…thinner or fatter? Thinner, somehow.
…richer or poorer? Richer, I suppose. Bob got a new job.

19.) What do you wish you’d done more of?
Cleaning and organizing, as usual.

20.) What do you wish you’d done less of?
Reading the news and crying.

21.) How did you spend Christmas?
Christmas Eve with my family. Christmas Day with Bob’s.

22.) What are your short and long term goals for 2017?
Short Term: Annual appointments.
Long Term: Organize my iTunes library and rip all the CDs I don’t have in digital format yet.

23.) What was your favorite TV program?
We watched the first season of Mr. Robot. It was pretty good, if a little Tyler Durden-ish.

24.) What were your favorite books of the year?
I didn’t finish anything that was particularly memorable this year. I really need to read more books.

25.) What was your favorite music from this year?
O.A.R., Gavin DeGraw, and Nine Days all put out new music that got heavy play.

26.) What song will always remind you of 2016?
She Sets the City on Fire by Gavin DeGraw. Because the switch flipped on Sir GDG.

27.) What were your favorite films of the year?
We watched a lot of movies. I’ll say Lazer Team. Because Rooster Teeth. Or Rogue One. Because Star Wars.

28.) What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
I turned 37. What.
It was a Saturday. I had a headache. We ordered Chinese food for dinner and died my hair blue.

29.) What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
A different election result. JFC.

30.) How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2016?
Pajamas and hoodies every single day.

31.) What kept you sane?
Bob and music. Always.

32.) Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
O.A.R. and Andy Grammer are still front and center and the switch flipped on Gavin DeGraw.

33.) Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2016.
Some people just want to watch the world burn. And just when you think the flames might be getting a little lower, somebody hucks another 55 gallon drum of gasoline onto the heap.

She Sets the City on Fire
Gavin DeGraw

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