2024 Recap

 Well, what a weird-ass timeline have we been thrown into this year!  They're trying to tell us that the Bald Eagle is now officially our National Bird (when it always has been according to my knowledge), apparently aliens are living in the oceans (but they have yet to save us from ourselves), orbs and drones have been sighted in the skies along with a mysterious fog that doesn't act like real fog, and a host of other weird things going on.

Wild, I tell you; wild!

This year's booklist looks more like a slaughterhouse than a "read pile" with the amount of abandoned books that I did not finish.  10 out of 50 I left unread.  They were just trash, for the most part.  But I had some really stellar gems in those 40 that I did finish.  The most recent was a book called The Shadow Key by Susan Stokes-Chapman.  That was a lovely gothic novel that I truly enjoyed and will be reading more of Ms. Stokes-Chapman's works in the future.  The other one I was really surprised by was An Intrigue of Witches by Esme Addison.  It's always lovely to find a nice local author, and even better when you find that they've written something magical that transports you right into the world they've written.  Even now, months later, I can still vividly recall how she set the scenes up.  Simply beautiful!

My goals for the year fared much worse than my booklist.  I wanted to have this separation all taken care of and done and dusted by the end of the year.  Unfortunately, it has been nothing but a long hurry up and wait.  I was hoping that I'd have my finances all squared away after dealing with it.  But, here I linger...waiting.  And to top it off, my car got totaled earlier this month, and I'm waiting on information on that before I get another.  So, to say my goals are a WASH is an understatement.  But, I've survived another year. So, that's something.

The year did have it's moments though.  

My niece has been a bright spot and watching her grow has been a lot of fun.  Spa days with her are the best days!  

Being in my happy place (iykyk) has also been wonderful.  Getting to hear those waves roll in gives me peace.  

In August I found my first live sand dollar while I was holding my niece's hand in the water.  So, that was  really cool!  

I had another hurricane on my birthday, but still enjoyed it!  I went to Tweetsie Railroad for the first time ever on my birthday week and that was cute.  Sadly, the weekend after Helene came through and destroyed a lot of the area.  Hopefully it will recover.

I celebrated 5 years at my second job this past year.  I can hardly believe I've been there that long.  And at my main job, I will celebrate 25 years of service  next year!  It's funny how I've been in the same sector for so long that people who knew me when I started in my 20's are now coming back into my life, and it's so delightful to see us at the (almost) end of our journeys.  After next year, only 5 years left!

I've got a lot of projects in the works for 2025, and I'm getting started on them already now.  And despite all the setbacks of 2024, I'm motivated to get those items crossed off my list.  I'm really optimistic about it.  Now, as long as my body and the universe cooperates!

Happy New Year

What is your favorite room in your house?

When I was growing up, one of my favorite things to do was to sit down with house plan books and to look at different layouts.  I would imagine what each room would look like, and how it would be decorated.  Which would be my favorite place to spend time?  What would the lot look like?  Where in the world would it be, and how would that impact the landscaping?  What color schemes and decor would be featured in each house?

As with my nature, every house I looked at on paper had a different feel to it - and none of them was favored more than the other (as you know, I don't make up my mind easily).  I loved the houses for different reasons.  Even if they were on paper and in my mind.

I often wonder how many of those houses actually ever got built by anyone.  And if they didn't, how the architect may have felt about that particular snub to their work.  But, in my mind, those houses lived.  They were built, if not in reality, then in my conscious.

And  I just got sidetracked because over at
http://design-milk.com/favorite-tv-home-apartment-floor-plans/
 they have ALL my favorite character's layouts.
Even Golden Girls and Will and Grace!

I never had an affinity for one room over another until I became a teenager.  That's when my bedroom became my sanctuary.  Everything I ever wanted lived in that room.  My water bed, my cat, my favorite videos, my books.  Everything I wanted to keep close to me.  It was all there.

Now that I am older, you would think that my favorite room would have changed to the kitchen or living room, since I have a house of my own.  But, instead, I find myself still captivated by my bedroom.  My pillows.  My blankets (especially the heated one in the winter).  My retreat.

The revelation surprises me, because I find that I haven't changed all that much.  But then also doesn't surprise me, because I am a creature who loves warmth, comfort, familiarity, safety and surety.  And those things can only be found in my dreams.

What is your favorite room in your house?  Did it change if you moved?  Have you lived in one place your whole life?