BrockLi Soup

Holy crap, July’s almost over already! Wouldn’t you agree that this is a good time to review our resolutions for the year? I’ll start:

1. Go to the gym: This one hasn’t gone that well. I did pretty good in March and April, but it fell apart when I went to SF in May and they closed the gym at the hotel, and then I moved when I got back and just fell out of the routine. But, I went down there yesterday and today, and I’m hoping to get it back into my routine this week.
2. Spend less time just hanging out in the apartment: Since moving into the city, I’ve been going out way more than I ever used to. Check!
3. Get a handle on my finances: Going OK.
4. Be more positive about life in general: Ehhhh. So-so.
5. Try brewing beer: Not yet. Like a novelist investigating their topic, I’ve spent a lot of time drinking beer.
6. Do more personal projects: Haven’t had time, but I’ve got some ideas.

So, could be better. How’s your list been going?

Now that we’re a full twelve hours (and change) into the new year, I think it’s about time for a little self-evaluation with regards to resolutions.

1. Go to the gym: It’s where I started my day.
2. Spend less time just hanging out in the apartment: I’ve already been out of the apartment TWICE. I know some people (ahem, roommates) who aren’t even out of bed yet.
3. Get a handle on my finances: Unless you count the bill payments I scheduled online last night (they’ll be processed in the next couple of days), I haven’t spent a dime. I DID go down to Olsson’s (second trip out of the apartment) looking for a Moleskine daily planner and the Little Miss Sunshine DVD, but they had neither so I’m still doing OK.
4. Be more positive about life in general: I’m just bursting with joy this morning.
5. Try brewing beer: Not yet. Maybe I’ll start small: “Try drinking beer.”
6. Do more personal projects: I took care of a lot of little crap this morning - the kind of stuff that only takes ten minutes, but just keeps getting put off. I’ve also started plans for a big project that’s been percolating for a few weeks and combined all my little to-do lists of smaller projects, so I know what I’m up against.

Not so bad, eh? I think we can all agree that 2007 is already a strong contender for Best Year In The Second Half of This Decade So Far.

Someone pointed out earlier this week that we’re about to start the second half of the decade. Was that Y2K shit really that long ago?

Last new year’s eve doesn’t seem that far off, but this certainly wasn’t a quick year. A lot happened, so January seems awfully long ago. Let’s review, shall we?

January Dane Cook and Dropkick Murphys both came to RIT, and some other crap probably happened.

February I quit smoking (again). It doesn’t last long, because I remember smoking when RyanD and I road tripped to North Carolina to see Dan and Casey. I see the ocean for the first time, and hug a palm tree.

March I started my second co-op and met some cool people because of it. I had my first St. Patrick’s Day as a legal drinker, and finally wrote down some requests in the event of my untimely demise (don’t forget those, people).

April I spent a few days agonizing over where to settle down after college, even though none of the obvious choices came to fruition. We threw a kickass BBQ, and saw Flogging Molly. My love affair with Flickr began, though it’s fallen by the wayside lately. BP and I buy a big bottle of Jack Daniel’s and…

May …drink it in record time. The stars aligned and Cinco de Mayo and No Pants Day happened in the same night. Fonny and I try our hand at parenting with some Triassic Triops. I got to try food poisoning (thanks again, James), and got a ride home from the cops. We invented a new sport. The school year ended with a bang, and Kidder and Brie move out. Fonny and I spend the next two weeks weeping inconsolably. BP and JymBob moved in, I tried some wine, and we spent a night in Toronto to see Against Me!

June We threw a swanky champagne party, wherein Sharon and I played Edward Champagne Hands and got all messed up. BP and I started watching Scrubs - again. Skynyrd came, and Cupcake yelled “Freebird!” a whole lot.

July It was a relatively uneventful month. I visited Potter’s place in the Adirondacks and played paintball for the first time. Somewhere in there, I got my motorcycle license, and Jym moved out (no one weeped) so Sara could move in.

August I spilled beer on my crotch, and we were introduced to Gogol Bordello by way of another Flogging Molly concert. Then we threw the Redneck Party and BP got a Fantastic Flying Funship. At the end of the month, I started playing racquetball and finally got another car (Malique).

September I taught the guys how to bump start a car, and went back to classes after six months of co-op.

October I failed my first test, just two months before finishing my educational career. I quit smoking on (around) the first of the month, and haven’t touched a cigarrette since, despite several long drives, lots of drunken nights, and at least one evening around the campfire (the three toughest times). I turned 22, we threw BROCKTOBERFEST, and I played my last game of hockey.

November November was freakin ridiculous. It started off with National Drunken Writing Night, a five-part epic of drunken tomfoolery. I finished my undergraduate career, and BP threw me a kickin going away party. I added up my student loans and cried myself to sleep. I made the plans for the most important trip of my life to date, and then up and moved to Virginia.

December I spent this month wondering how the hell I wound up in Virginia and watching movies, and Christmas happened too.

I’ve made a couple reasonable resolutions for 2006. I want to spend more time in DC. There’s a lot of cool shit up there, but I’ve only been there a couple times. I still need to do the touristy things. That’s where the history comes from, after all. I want to read more books and learn more. My “things to learn” list has been growing for years, and now I actually have some free time to learn stuff for real. I want to watch more movies, too; I’ve seen a lot since moving here, but I’m only up to 93 so far this year (down from 120-ish last year).

I also want to do more side projects of my own and write more here. I’ve really only worked on the AJAX version of Webfault, and I haven’t even touched that in months. I haven’t been writing much, either. I was so psyched about blogging when I started it and thought I’d be writing a lot, but it dwindled quickly. I’ve just been a layabout lately. It would be good to do some more programming and writing.

I have high hopes for 2006. I’ve got my own place (for now), I’ve got a real job, and my real life has begun. I miss college, and that won’t go away any time soon, but things are going well. It’ll be a good year.