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December 30, 2005
the happy new year soiree
it's that time of year when everyone is in a retrospective, naval-gazing frame of mind. i'm a sucker for "best-of" lists (and its evil twin, the "worst of" lists), "the top fill-in-number-here" lists, "most/least whatever" lists, and the like. i enjoy the way they turn a year's worth of data into a festive little information soiree, with the lists being tasty little hors d'oeuvres served on silver platters of totally subjective, random categories.
currently, i'm enjoying Time Magazine's end-of-year edition, which features not only its famous "Person of the Year" cover (this year: The Good Samaritans: Bill & Melinda Gates and Bono), but also a veritable smorgasbord of lists: People Who Mattered, 2005 Milestones (a nice way of saying Deaths of Notable People This Year), Must-Read Book List, 15 Who Had Their 15 Minutes of Fame. my iPod is currently brimming with the massive NPR podcast of "Memorable Moments of 2005." listening to it has been interesting: i've discovered that if i'd already heard the original broadcast, i usually remember where i was (usually in the car), and where i was going at that time. and of course i'm looking forward to laughing my way through Newsweek's end-of-year collection of memorable quotes and political cartoons.
now, lest you think i'm some completely highbrow person who reads news journals and listens to public radio, let me correct you. while i do really only read news journals and listen to public radio, i am NOT a completely highbrow person. how do i know? well, for one thing, i've become completely addicted to this site, whose logo features a tiny kitten in a pith helmet. click at your own risk... besides, a truly highbrow person would never have a site like this in her blogroll. but i digress...
given my predilection for those year-end information soirees, i admit i've been feeling some pressure to throw one for myself here. so put on your party hats and fill a glass, as i present a very random list of HadashiWorld's 2005:
1. most fond farewell: to Grandpa Joseph Y.W. Chan.
2. coolest out-of-body-type experience: watching an electrical storm at 3am in the Nyangatom desert in Ethiopia, near the border of Kenya.
3. biggest challenge: moving and getting married in the same week.
4. endurance award: to Spice, my wee Honda, for surviving another year and going strong.
5. nicest bonus: seeing much-loved people out of the normal context: my fabulous sister Erin twice in California; T.T., Lisa, and Prances in New York City; Ms.Jen back from Dublin here in SoCal. i love visiting people in their usual habitat, but there's something about switching it up that makes it an even better adventure.
6. best sunset: in Death Valley on March 9th, as T.T. popped The Question.
7. worst, and therefore best, accident: getting hit in the face with my own surfboard and needing it (my face) to be superglued back together. for those who have known me for awhile, this is clearly a banner year if something this minor was the "worst accident."
8. most interesting museum/art exhibit: "ashes and snow," a photography exhibit by Gregory Colbert, in New York City. happily, it is opening in Santa Monica in a few weeks.
9. least interesting museum/art exhibit: "Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs," at Los Angeles County Museum of Art. sorry, Tut, you were badly curated.
10. yummiest food experience: i was originally going to say black sesame ice cream, but i think i'm going to go with a full German breakfast including Nutella on Laugenbrötchen (mini pretzel bread -- mmm, bread!).
11. funkiest food experience: the Skippys One Thru Five, who in the morning would be dropping little goat poops all over our Ethiopian wilderness camp, and in the evening would be headless, roasting over an open flame.
12. best spontaneous decision: to enroll in an intensive six-week German language course.
13. worst spontaneous decision: to work on this show. i had a mic thrown at my head, for heaven's sake.
14. best venue for insta-new-cool-friends: BlogHer '05. you ladies freakin' ROCK.
15. the all-around, number-one, biggest-ever, ultra-amazing, can't-be-beat top moment of 2005: - and i know you know what's coming - the veil is lifted, my brand-new husband kisses me, and amidst cheers, laughter, and an ocean of love & shared joy, we clasp hands and begin a new life adventure -- together.
so raise those glasses, my friends, and drink up -- here's wishing you a very blessed and happy 2006!
**clinkclink!**
Posted by hadashi at December 30, 2005 1:36 PM
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