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tacitThis year's been a bit hit-and-miss, but I think on balance the hits have it. So, yey me!
Fic
2007 shall henceforth be known as The Year I Actually Finished A Story. It was allamireal's fault for offering fun topics and deadlines when I had a day on my hands and I wrote jealous!Atlantis Sheppard/McKay fluff. Then I did it again, with a side order of oblivious!John, and again when sheafrotherdon started a challenge.
And THEN I posted a story that had a plot and everything for the Sheppard H/C Secret Santa, bringing my wordcount up to a whopping 8,900 for 2007, which is 8,900 more than the combined total of the rest of my writerly career to date.
I also got myself a beta for the first time inferret_kitty , and we've both signed up for 12 in 2008. I read that for New Year's Resolutions to work, women have to tell the world and men have to set specific goals. Well, I've done both now. Will write more in 2008. WILL write more in 2008. Lather, rinse, repeat.
I've found posting fic for dissection and critique immensely exciting - possibly the most exciting thing I've done this year, which is kinda saying something...
2007 shall henceforth be known as The Year I Actually Finished A Story. It was all
amireal's fault for offering fun topics and deadlines when I had a day on my hands and I wrote jealous!Atlantis Sheppard/McKay fluff. Then I did it again, with a side order of oblivious!John, and again when sheafrotherdon started a challenge. And THEN I posted a story that had a plot and everything for the Sheppard H/C Secret Santa, bringing my wordcount up to a whopping 8,900 for 2007, which is 8,900 more than the combined total of the rest of my writerly career to date.
I also got myself a beta for the first time in
ferret_kitty , and we've both signed up for 12 in 2008. I read that for New Year's Resolutions to work, women have to tell the world and men have to set specific goals. Well, I've done both now. Will write more in 2008. WILL write more in 2008. Lather, rinse, repeat.I've found posting fic for dissection and critique immensely exciting - possibly the most exciting thing I've done this year, which is kinda saying something...
Work
I bought a house to fix up and turned this:
Into this:
...and that's without any professional expertise or help, except for the main roof and a day of a brickie's time. That extension goes back the full length of the house, so it's about 60msq - some entire houses are smaller than that.
This means that in 2007, my (equally girlish) business partner and I have:
I bought a house to fix up and turned this:
Into this:
...and that's without any professional expertise or help, except for the main roof and a day of a brickie's time. That extension goes back the full length of the house, so it's about 60msq - some entire houses are smaller than that.
This means that in 2007, my (equally girlish) business partner and I have:
- Learnt to bricklay and laid 5000 bricks, mostly in the rain
- Learnt about wiring and wired a house
- Shovelled 12 tons of sand and four of hardcore
- Dug foundations (ok: we got a digger in for that)
- Concreted more metreage than any sane person should ever have to concrete
- Installed windows, doors, loft traps
- Used and abused several willing young men whose muscles we needed
- SATISFIED BUILDING CONTROL (who want to adopt us, now)
- Not been murdered by neighbours
- Plastered about half of the house
- Started decorating: hallelujah, praise the building gods.
Health
The major downside of the above is that I am just not cut out for hard manual labour. I am a lazy person stuck in a manual labourer's body. On the one hand, all my fat is now muscle. I have rediscovered my ribcage. You know those arm cuffs Xena wore that made her arms look really toned? Yeah. (But I'm looking forward to those biceps going away again, thanx. I feel butch.)
On the other hand, I have:
The major downside of the above is that I am just not cut out for hard manual labour. I am a lazy person stuck in a manual labourer's body. On the one hand, all my fat is now muscle. I have rediscovered my ribcage. You know those arm cuffs Xena wore that made her arms look really toned? Yeah. (But I'm looking forward to those biceps going away again, thanx. I feel butch.)
On the other hand, I have:
- Wrenched my right shoulder
- Sprained my right elbow
- Had a swollen, green right hand for six months and counting. Don't worry, it still works fine. It's just fat, and I don't know, deep bruised?
- Discovered the fun of lower back pain
- Been to Eye Casualty three times. Three! I do actually wear glasses and goggles, so this one irks.
- Gained three new scars - right pinky, left hand, right shin
- Wrenched my neck
- Lost the ability to touch my toes
Romance
2007 was supposed to be the year I found my future husband (much like the years 2000 through 2006). But I did have two brief but fun flings; the smart but neurotic teacher I dated all Spring, and PWP Guy, who was utterly gorgeous and who I dated for two weeks, then dumped from sheer sexual exhaustion. Plus, we had nothing in common. But mostly the sexual exhaustion.
Also went on half a dozen terrible first dates and got 7000 hits on match.com. Seven thousand. How is it possible to have still only managed half a dozen dates?! In my defense, I have been pretty busy with work.
In 2008 I will apply myself to finding future husband.
2007 was supposed to be the year I found my future husband (much like the years 2000 through 2006). But I did have two brief but fun flings; the smart but neurotic teacher I dated all Spring, and PWP Guy, who was utterly gorgeous and who I dated for two weeks, then dumped from sheer sexual exhaustion. Plus, we had nothing in common. But mostly the sexual exhaustion.
Also went on half a dozen terrible first dates and got 7000 hits on match.com. Seven thousand. How is it possible to have still only managed half a dozen dates?! In my defense, I have been pretty busy with work.
In 2008 I will apply myself to finding future husband.
Other stuff
I spent two weeks in Barcelona studying Spanish, which was brilliant. My house got burgled and I had my bag stolen, which was less good. The first of my friends got married. I started taking Spanish evening classes and loved it, but dropped out after a month because I couldn't motivate my tired ass out of the house after work. I reconnected with lots of school people through the marvel of facebook. I went on weekends to London (four times), Bristol (twice), Liverpool, Manchester, Scunthorpe, Yorkshire and South Wales. I hosted two University get togethers, and Christmas for 10.
I did not collapse from sheer exhaustion - rather I spent a lot of 2007 hiding away in my room as an unmoving lump at my computer, discovering LJ and the wonders of interactive fandom. Hello, fandom!
I spent two weeks in Barcelona studying Spanish, which was brilliant. My house got burgled and I had my bag stolen, which was less good. The first of my friends got married. I started taking Spanish evening classes and loved it, but dropped out after a month because I couldn't motivate my tired ass out of the house after work. I reconnected with lots of school people through the marvel of facebook. I went on weekends to London (four times), Bristol (twice), Liverpool, Manchester, Scunthorpe, Yorkshire and South Wales. I hosted two University get togethers, and Christmas for 10.
I did not collapse from sheer exhaustion - rather I spent a lot of 2007 hiding away in my room as an unmoving lump at my computer, discovering LJ and the wonders of interactive fandom. Hello, fandom!
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no subject
Date: 2007-12-30 09:11 pm (UTC)Good luck with the husband hunting in 2008;)
no subject
Date: 2007-12-30 11:41 pm (UTC)And the other day I made my housemate change a lightbulb. Yep. But, it was a weird one, okay?!
no subject
Date: 2008-01-03 08:08 am (UTC)Dude, embrace the biceps. Xena is one hot chick.
and PWP Guy, who was utterly gorgeous and who I dated for two weeks, then dumped from sheer sexual exhaustion
O_O
I hate you.
no subject
Date: 2008-01-03 01:50 pm (UTC)You know, I think I hate myself a little bit as well. But we had absolutely nothing in common, so it was getting awkward. And the time he showed up at my house at 11.30 at night I felt I ought to reassess my relationship goals! But, yeah. It was a good two weeks. ^-^
Dude, embrace the biceps. Xena is one hot chick.
I will take that under advisement, thanks! And I'm kinda liking having definition rather than flab, for once. My two modes are hard-core-manual-labourer, or slug-queen in my twirly computer throne. The house will be finished in the next couple of months. The biceps' days are numbered.
no subject
Date: 2008-01-04 05:32 am (UTC)Ha, I know what you mean.