Reverb10!

Happy December! Can you believe it's already here? I can't! And because this year as FLOWN by, I'm participating in Reverb10 so I can reflect and remember on everything that has happened this year and focus on what I want in the year to come.

The prompt for today, the first day, is: Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?

Y'all, 2010 was... it was so many things that I never imagined it would be. But the defining word would have to be chaotic. We went to Atlanta in January so AC could get my Dad's blessing and they could go to our favorite private jeweler to pick out my ring. We got engaged on February 4, my mom had major surgery on February 11th. Big Corporate Bookstore started making me HATE my job sometime around then too. AC was trying to figure out where we would end up in the fall while working as a minister and part-time at the bookstore. I was struggling with my weight, on anti-anxiety medication because my apartment was a former drug making facility and we didn't know it. I was down in Atlanta at least once every other month to attend dress fitting for a dress that never materialized. We found out in March that AC would be at Yale in the fall and not Emory like we had hoped. We had a super unproductive trip to New Haven (April) in an attempt to find a place to live. I planned a wedding in 6 months! Starting in July, it got even crazier:

July 31st- Last day of work. Even though I hated the company, my coworkers are some of my most favorite people in the whole world and I miss them every day. They have so much spirit, and absolutely brilliant senses of humor.

August 2nd- go home for what was supposed to be my final dress fitting. Except the dress is stuck in Alaskan snow storm? Buy a new dress off the rack the following day.

August 6th- Sold my car back to the dealer. I'd gotten my car when I was 16 and it had 3 miles on it. Getting rid of it broke my heart. That night was the rehearsal dinner. Literally working on stuff that my DoC HAD to have that night as we were walking out the door. Found out that my makeup artist overbooked and wouldn't be able to do my makeup for the wedding- DoC found replacements but it was INFURIATING and not what you want to hear the night before your wedding.

August 7th- Bridesmaids luncheon that morning because everyone got in super late the night before from out of town. Then wedding that evening...and all that being the bride entails. My grandmother fell and hit her face on an errant bag left in a dark hall; luckily it was just bruised but she was mortified.

August 8th- Leave for Paris for 7 days

August 15- Come home from Paris, start packing

August 18th- Movers come and take all our stuff

August 20th- Arrive in New Haven to our new life and home.

August 31st?- Our stuff arrives in New Haven. Can't remember the exact day, but we were without our stuff for a LONG time since it was a small shipment and so far north.

Since then, of course, I've been unemployed for going on 5 months now. And frankly, I'm okay with that until January. There were alot of actions, sure. I did ALOT of different things. But it was an even bigger toll emotionally. I finally stopped my medication, and I feel totally fine (as opposed to the 3 panic attacks I had 3 days in a row October 2009).

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And now we're coming up on 2011. And I'm excited, and nervous, and a little scared. But I want the year to be personally productive. That's more a phrase than a word, so if you made me choose, I'll go with productive. Not that 2010 wasn't productive, because it was! But while it was productive, it didn't allow me to focus on long term personal goals. I would list what I want to accomplish in 2011, but I'm sure that will be a prompt later on, so stay tuned!