Thought I would start off  2009 by stealing Pop Culture Librarian‘s creativity and methodology for recapping on the past year.  But in the interest of moving things along, I am only answering the questions I want to reflect on.  Here goes:

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?

Um, yeah, there was that whole moving to Germany thing.  Never done that before.  Ditto on the total language immersion (the other countries  I’ve lived in for any substantial period of time — Uganda, Sierra Leone —  had English as the official language).  Meaning that there are more “firsts” this year than I can shake a stick at.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

Well, I am working my way through by 31 Things list, which is more oriented toward my birthday than New Year’s resolutions.  But I definitely have goals for this year, like: run another half-marathon, pay off one of my credit cards, complete a German language certification, write a paper based on my fellowship project.  More on 2009 in a later post.

5. What countries did you visit?

The sweet thing about living in Europe is that you can take off on weekend jaunts to other countries!  Besides touring tons around Germany, we went to a wedding in Ireland, spent a weekend in Amsterdam, and back when I was still living in NYC, spent a week in Mexico.

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory?

Well, how about June 23rd, the day I left New York?  Or November 5th, the day I woke up to find the world changed for the better?

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Well, I was pretty dang proud of nailing the fellowship that is letting me spend this year living and working in Germany.  It is crazy to think that at this time last year, all of that was still up in the air!

9. What was your biggest failure?

I could always always always use more practice with my German.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

See number 7.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

I wish I had more time spent with family.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Facebook is an addictive time-suck!

26. What was the best book you read?

The Heart is  a Lonely Hunter, by Carson McCullers.  This book totally blindsided me with its fabulousness.  Sometimes I wonder about the impression I leave on people here in Germany, with conversations with me nodding a lot and saying much less than I would in English.  It makes me think of this book, of people ascribing whatever meaning they need most to the listener.

28. What did you want and get?

To be closer to mein Schatz.

29. What did you want and not get?

You mean you don’t become fluent in another language overnight?

30. What was your favorite film of this year?

Milk, hands down.

31. What did you do on your birthday?

On my actual birthday, I was packing up all of my earthly belongings.  I celebrated a week earlier with a rain-drenched picnic in Prospect Park.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

Lots more running.

37. Who did you miss?

Yeah, pretty much everyone.   You know who you are.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008:

Dream big, work for what you wish for, and never stop looking for challenges.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:

I was pretty inspired by Diving for Pearls quoting of Sunscreen the other day, so I will refer you over there.

Final Thoughts:

Wow, what a year.  It almost feels like two years squished into one.  The first half spent in my “regular” life back in Brooklyn and the second half as a foreigner in Germany.  Both had a crazy amount of joys and challenges.  And I wouldn’t change any of it for the world.

Maybe tomorrow, I will start thinking about 2009.