Appetizer
How do you usually celebrate on New Year’s Eve?
We stay home! The last couple of years we’ve cooked prime rib for dinner which is wonderful because it is less costly to eat at home than go out to a restaurant, and you don’t have to get dressed up, deal with crowds, or worry about getting home safely. And there are always plenty of leftovers!
Soup
Name one thing unexpected that happened to you in 2006.
I did not expect this year to be filled with the challenges to good health — mine and others’ — that we encountered. I am feeling much better, but my asthma was totally out of control and I was quite miserable for awhile there.
More surprising, however, was my sister’s diagnosis of colo-rectal cancer. She will have her last chemotherapy treatment this Saturday, December 30, so, hopefully, 2007 will be a better year for her. It has been very difficult watching her fight cancer. She is very stubborn and determined not to be downtrodden, discouraged, or to surrender to the disease.
I have now driven her to her treatments a total of three times, most recently today. Each time I have come out of that building feeling very grateful and blessed.
Salad
Where was your favorite place that you visited in 2006?
I really only traveled on business this year and did not do as much of that as in previous years!
I guess that my favorite place this year was not far from home. We have driven up to near-by Jackson a few times for breakfast or lunch and to shop in — are you ready for this? — a pawn shop there! I had never been in a pawn shop until one of my best friends, Robin, showed up last year wearing some new jewelry. I thought that her husband had given her a gift and commented on how thoughtful he was. Then they started giggling and Rob said, “Shall I tell her?” They had gone on a motorcycle ride and discovered the store. So every once in awhile when we want to “get out of Dodge,” we take a little ride and see what treasures we can find there. It’s about as close to actually shopping as I ever get! (Hey, that’s what the Internet was invented for, right?)
Main Course
What resolution is your top priority for 2007?
I have two that are of equal importance: The first is to continue on my quest toward good health. After being referred to the allergist and undergoing tests, he put me on a regimen of injections. I also attend water aerobics religiously and although I don’t diet per se, I do try to make good choices which means, for instance, that there is always a bottle of fat free dressing in the refrigerator in my office, as well as at home, so that I can grab it on the way out to lunch with my colleagues. I also keep fat free yogurt, fruit, granola bars, etc. on hand at all times. I just feel better when I eat better and remind myself of that fact when I am tempted to eat junk.
The second resolution is to be the best flutist I can possibly be which means that I must spend inordinate amounts of time practicing. Right now I am focused on the music we will be performing at Carnegie Hall on March 28, 2007. I am determined to play nearly perfectly.
Dessert
Using just three words, describe 2006.
Humbling
Exasperating
Enlightening
3 Comments
That was a really cool post. I hope that you and your sister both find health and happiness in the new year!!
Hello – I hope your resolutions come to fruition. I read your profile page and we like many of the same books. How cool to play flute at Carnegie Hall! I played flute in school, but not since. I still have an appreciation for the lyrical sound of a flute.
And yes, I only exercise to the amount of comments my blog receives. Thanks for contributing to my health.
What a nice post! I hope for your health this next year. I was a flutist and in choir in high school and can imagine what an impact asthma can have on those activities. Love your site, you seem like a very interesting person. 🙂
Happy New Year!