2009: An Itemized Reflection

So last year right around this time [and consequently one of my last blog posts--tenure-track life is NOT conducive to blogging] I reflected on the passing year in list form. I enjoyed trying to remember the previous 12 months, and so I thought, it being a frigid Maine night during my winter break from USM, that I'd try my hand at a 2009 version of the year in lists. I am going to try and refrain from any "Best of the Decade" lists, mostly because I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that we are entering into a new decade, but one or two may slip in. Was Y2K really ten years ago? Seriously? I'm getting old. Happy reading [if anyone else besides me even reads this--blogs are almost as self-indulgent as twitter and facebook] and I'd love to read some of your 2009 lists!

Biggest 2009 Life Changes:

Giving up Diet-Coke [and all caffeine, actually]. This occurred in early August.
Becoming a Vegetarian [This also occurred in August, though I now occasionally eat fish]
Becoming a Level-II Reiki practitioner [Hoping to be Level-III in 2010--energy healing is amazing--let me know if you want to have a session]

Best Overall 2009 Discovery:

Acupuncture. It's changed my life--I don't know what I'd do without it. Thanks Jason at Rocky Coast Family Acupuncture in Portland--you are AMAZING!

Random Facts:

This is the first year of this decade that we attended no weddings.
At one time over the course of 2009, we knew 11 people who were pregnant.
2009 marked our 7th year of marriage :).

Proudest Moment of 2009:

Finishing the Maine Half-Marathon in October. 13.1 miles is far, even when you walk most of the way!

Newest Internet Time Suck:

Twitter [Thanks to Derek Peplau] But I must admit, it's fun, informative, and useful on personal and professional levels!

Most Exciting Professional Moment of 2009:

Seeing my name in print in a book in my chapter in Tom O'Connor's Two Centuries of Faith.

Most Exciting Professional Development of 2009:

The exhibit on Modernism in Georgetown, Maine is definitely a reality [Summer 2011, Portland Museum of Art]; I'm co-curating it; Yale is publishing the catalogue.

Best Books I Read [or am reading right now] This Year [in no particular order]:

Tim O'Brien, Going After Cacciato [One of the only ones of his I hadn't yet read--the culminating book to my senior seminar on history through film and fiction--and a brilliant novel]
Michael Pollen, In Defense of Food [and the companion Food Rules: An Eater's Manual]
Upton Sinclair, The Jungle [yes, I only read this for the first time this year, before I taught it]
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath [same comment as above--some classics just slip by....]
Chuck Klosterman, Downtown Owi: A Novel
Elizabeth Strout, Olive Kittredge
Richard Russo, That Old Cape Magic
Charlaine Harris' Nine Sookie Stackhouse Novels [pure trash--vampires, faeries, etc. but I loved every moment of them]
Juhmpa Lahiri, Unaccustomed Earth [wonderful short stories]
Ruth Moore, The Weir [Classic 1940s Maine novel--worth the read!]
Carolyn Chute, The Beans of Egypt Maine

Top 10 movies I saw this year [in no particular order]:

Up [I cried for the first 30 minutes, I think]
Precious [So disturbing and yet, so powerful]
Food Inc. [Everyone should watch this]
Avatar [not for the plot--just for the beautiful 3-D world]
Fantastic Mr. Fox [brilliantly done by Wes Anderson--the vignettes are perfect--I laughed the whole time]
Up in the Air [Required viewing in this economy--esp. if you or anyone you know has spent time jobless]
Away We Go [Sweet and believable]
Adventureland [Great Indie flick--good tunes, too]
500 Days of Summer [One of the better love stories I've watched]
Zombieland [Steve made me see this--I thought I would hate it--it was great]
The Hangover [This is only on here because it made me laugh so hard--believe me, it was dumb, funny, but dumb]
[Star Trek should probably be on here too]

The Five TV shows I make time to watch even when I shouldn't [Thank Goodness for Tivo]:

Mad Men
True Blood
30 Rock
Friday Night Lights [I promise you this is the best show you're not watching]
Glee
[And also Gossip Girl, but that's too embarrassing to admit, oops.....]

Number of Movies on Moviefone's 50 Best Movies of 2009 that I have seen: 17

Sites most Frequently visited by me on the interwebs in 2009:

Google
Google Book
Facebook
Twitter
Post Secret
New York Times
JStor
Sirius Satellite Radio On-line listening
The USM Homepage and Mainestreet

The Best Professional Conference I Attended in 2009:

The 50th Anniversary Conference of the Maine Women Writers Collection in June entitled "Women in the Archives"--great panels, great connections, and fascinating inter-disciplinary folks from all over the country.

The Best Christmas Card of 2009:
It's a tie between the George Bischof Christmas letter and Morgan Lake Adams and Tim Schneider's story card.

Best Maine Adventures of 2009:

Open Lighthouse Day hike to Squirrel Head Light in Arrowsic
The one day trip to Lubec [and back--10 hours in the car] this fall--gorgeous place, gorgeous drive--can't wait to go back!
The Kingfield adventure in search of Chansonetta Stanley Emmons at the Stanley Museum
Popham Beach and Fort with Megan and Steve.
Sebago Lake in the rain with Mike and Erica.

New Record for longest houseguest [at 59 Underhill]:

Megan MacDonald--most of Summer 2009.

Books Assigned this semester that resulted in the best overall papers from my students:

Upton Sinclair's The Jungle
Jack Kerouac's On the Road
Tim O'Brien's Going After Cacciato
Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart

Best New [to me] Cookbook:

The New Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen [vegetarian]

Best Technology Purchase of 2009:

My Nikon D60--it's one sweet camera.

Most Unique Party We Attended:

Morgan and Tim's Sake Tasting Party

My best YouTube Discovery [other than clips I pull for class like Superman shorts from the 1940s]:

Any of the "Drunk Histories"
The one on the Burr/Hamilton Duel is particularly good: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6V_DsL1x1uY

Favorite New Class I Taught:

It's a tie between my Spring Semester Photographing American History and my Fall Semester Senior Seminar--History through Film and Fiction [this might be the best class I've ever had the privilege of being a part of--never mind teaching]

Most Interesting Research Trip of 2009:

A Month at the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson in Arizona. Lesson learned--avoid the desert in June and July because 109 is REALLY HOT!

Favorite Coaching Moments of 2009:

When Hannah broke 140' in the discus; when Katie PR'd in the weight; when Vanessa broke 35' in the shot-put; when Matt PR'd in both the shot and the weight with a dislocated thumb at our first indoor meet.

Biggest Disappointments on the 2009 Chicago Bear Roster [Most Disappointing to Least] [This is so obviously Steve's list]:

1. Jay Cutler
2. Orlando Pace
3. Nathan Vasher
4. Tommy Harris
5. Matt Forte
6. Lovie Smith [the Coach]

Top Five Reasons You should Hate Brett Favre [This is also Steve's list]

1. He's selfish.
2. He thinks he's the coach.
3. He always chokes late in the season.
4. Those [expletive] Wrangler ads.
5. He's a waffling little girl.

If you need more lists, might I suggest Time Magazine's 'The Top Ten of Everything--2009:'
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/completelist/0,29569,1945379,00.html

2010 Resolutions:

Write more.
Exercise for at least 30 minutes EVERY DAY.

Happy New Year to All! May this decade bring us all peace, health, jobs and joy.

Libby