Goodbye to 2017

1. What did you do in 2017 that you’d never done before?  Hm.... I tried spinning yarn for about 15 minutes and did not enjoy it. I will probably try it again, though, because it's hard to like something you stink at.
2. Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?  My goal for 2017 was to move forward in my life. I didn't really do that to the extent that I wanted to, but I was able to tear my eyes off the past at least some of the time, and did more than simply tread water. Just a little more, but it was progress.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?  No, though there seems to be a population explosion with my cousins kids having babies!
4. Did anyone close to you die?  No
5. What countries did you visit?  I remained in hell, the depths of despair. Someday, I hope to have a one way ticket out of here.
6. What would you like to have in 2018 that you lacked in 2017?  How vulnerable I would be if I answered this question completely and truthfully! I'm not ready for that, so I will say the #2 thing that I would like in 2017 is enough money to retire comfortably.
7. What date from 2017 will remain etched upon your memory?  The best day of the year was November 18th when my daughter told me that she and her wonderful boyfriend, Joel, were engaged, and she sent me a picture of her ring - her face was the happiest I've ever seen it. I truly believe and have faith that Joel is the right man for her; he is a good, steady, loving, kind man who gets her and loves all her quirks, and she is completely besotted with him.  He is the love of her life. They are good together. So, ya, that was a really good day. 
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?  Living through it without melting into the ground.
9. What was your biggest failure?  so many failures, every day. I'm trying to not dwell on them and instead to look forward.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?  Yes; chronic pain and depression, and 2018 will probably hold at least two surgeries for me.
11. What was the best thing you bought?  Yarn!  GOOD yarn!  Natural fiber yarn! MERINO and CASHMERE YARN! It is such a pleasure to work with good quality yarn!  Other than yarn, the best thing I bought was a Starz subscription so I could watch Outlander which is my new obsession.
12. Where did most of your money go?  Mostly to first and second mortgages, utilities, gas, etc. Very little left over for anything that is not a necessity.
13. What did you get really, really, really excited about?  OMG OUTLANDER!!!  I am obsessed! It is the best time waster in the universe!
14. What song/album will always remind you of 2017?  The Isle of Skye, which is the theme for Outlander
15. What do you wish you’d done more of?  Oh my... so many ways to waste time and avoid doing what is most important in life.  I guess I would have to say, prayer, contemplation and iconography, in that order. 
16. What do you wish you’d done less of?  Working
17. How will you be spending/did you spend Christmas?  I wasn't sure until last night, but I will be spending it with my little brother Ken and his family. 
18. Who did you spend the most time on the phone with?  Mostly with my daughter. We text and message a lot. When we talk on the phone, we talk for hours and hours and never get bored. She is hilarious. She cracks me up all the time. 
19. Did you fall in love in 2017?  Ok, this is a surprisingly difficult question. I am in love with someone, and I do love someone, though in years past, I put that in a little locked place. This year, for some inexplicable reason, I can no longer keep it in it's little box.  On the other hand, another way to answer would be that I have fallen in crazy love with a fictional character, James Alexander Malcolm McKenzie Fraser. 
20. How many one night stands in this last year?  No one night stands. I am worth so much more than one night.
21. What was your favorite TV program?  Outlander, Doc Martin, Grey's Anatomy
22. What was the best book(s) you read?  Outlander
23. What were your favorite films of this year?  Our Souls at Night was a quiet, wonderfully introspective film that I loved.
24. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?  My birthday is on September 14th and I turned 62. I spent it driving from Cindy's apartment in Atlanta after the hurricane warnings lifted.
25. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?  Enough money to retire comfortably, and not in poverty.
26. What kept you sane?  Knitting. Solitude. Chocolate. Limoncello.
27. What political issue stirred you the most?  Radical and soulless Republicans have hijacked the government.
28. Who did you miss?  Other than my parents, and missing them is a constant ache that never, ever goes away. The person I miss most is named Bill. 
29. Who was the best new person you met?  Jeanie K. I didn't meet her in 2017, but I got to know her much better in 2017, and she is a wonderful addition to my life.
30. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2017.  No matter how hard I try, I am not capable of creating the life that I want and that I need.