Year in Review!

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1. TRAVELS:
- Houston for a wedding
- Boca Raton, Hallandale Beach, and Miami to visit Grandma Carolyn and Rob


2. NEW LOVE(S):
- introspection

3. DISCOVERIES:
- flaws
- learning to love flaws
- tea of the day at "Fat Straws"
- White Russians
- active listening
- Wii fit
- Bikram yoga
- UT Tyler counseling psych MA program
- Pastazio's cannolis


4. LOSSES:
- Neurontin (1800mg per day to be exact) ..YAY!
- a perpetually-affixed CTO vest
- quite a bit of whimsy

5. MILESTONES:
- significant recovery from spinal cord surgery (recovered mobility--no longer on bedrest (!)--no longer on pain meds)
- applied and got accepted into the UT Tyler MA in counseling psych program- classes start Jan 11th!
- learned how to help Comb feel understood during conversations
-my dad swore i'd be back to jogging sometime in 2010..well, i have a secret..i've made a lap or two around Addison Circle park...slowly but surely! i don't think it is something that will be healthy for me to do on a regular basis (something lower impact would be safer), but i just wanted to prove to myself and to my dad, that it was possible. btw, i love my dad! :D

6. THE YEAR SOUNDTRACK:
Songs:
"Use Somebody" -Kings of Leon
"Low Rising" - Swell Season
"Crack the Shutters" - Snow Patrol
"Dream" - Priscilla Ahn
Bands:
Mat Kearney, The Kooks, Swell Season

7. MOUNTAINS:
-lawsuit
-relationships
-physical pain and limitations

8. MY RECOMMENDATIONS:
Listen to yourself. Respect your limits. Connect with yourself and with others because that connection is what grounds us.

9. MOMENTS TO REMEMBER:
-a huge number of Claire's firsts. endearing moments too many to list..hopefully the photos will help keep my memories permanent.

10. ETC.:
-working on strengthening myself physically, obtaining a masters in counseling, and understanding the intricate dynamics that make many of my closest relationships what they are

11. 2009 NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION(S):
Endure.

12. 2010 NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION(S):
Stay in school. Don't do drugs. (ie. follow through with the masters program and avoid pain meds)