Things That Didn't Suck in 2011

A retrospective of Things that Didn't Suck in 2011

I Recommitted to Taking Care of My Body

This encompasses three things, really. I lost a ton of weight--dropped from a size 12 to a size 6--which was my initial New Years resolution. The activities that got me there were initially secondary considerations; the objective was just to get skinny again.

Then something happened around the 4 month mark--I started to like running (after the 3 mile marker, that is--I still hate mile 2). I joined an absolutely fantastic yoga studio. I remembered that I actually enjoy cooking, and I'm pretty good at it, and 90% of my cooking is vegetarian anyways. Mainly, I just started to remember what it was like to live in my own body again--the one that was in shape and healthy, not struggling with a lot of garbage and negativity.

2011 Song Associated with This Thing that Didn't Suck: The Go! Team, "The Running Range" -- I can run up mountains to this song, and it makes up about 1/3 of my total running playlist.

Another Year in San Diego

This was really the year that East Village came into its own as a neighborhood, I think--there's definitely been a change in the vibe in the community, and the long-promised local businesses finally began cropping up outside the immediate vicinity of the ballpark. New clothing stores moved in, Monkey Paw opened up a couple blocks from my house, Knotty Barrel has proven to be a solid and mellow alternative to the now seriously overpacked beer bars, and I've seen a few new fitness studios move in, as well.

More importantly, though, I just love seeing this town. I love running through Seaport Village and seeing sailboats and aircraft carriers, I love seeing the skyline from the airport harbor, I love running through Balboa Park (basically, I have some amazing running routes).

2011 Song Associated with This Thing that Didn't Suck: M83, "Midnight City" -- The city is my church is pretty much exactly how I feel every time I get a glimpse of the skyline lighting up around dusk, or look out at blue sky meeting blue ocean just beyond the cozy beach neighborhoods.

5 Years Without a Murder Suicide

Yeah, I'm not sure how we managed it either. We marked the occasion with new anniversary wedding bands (now with 100% less warping!), a trip to San Francisco, some fancy scotch, and 6 months living together in the same house (which is a record for us, I think).

2011 Song Associated with This Thing that Didn't Suck: St. Vincent, "Northern Lights" -- There's no particular lyrical significance to this, but it's rare for the two of us to like the same music. When Wes came back, we started listening to albums straight through together; this is the first album I chose for listening, and the first song where Wes popped his head up to say "hey, this is really pretty good. I like it."

Laser Eyeballs

One of those things I've always been defined by is my crappy vision. I lost my eyesight in a hurry (like, over a weekend) when I was about 8, and from that point I embarked on a life of spending crap-tons of money on eyeglasses, contact lenses, and Excedrin to manage my near constant eyestrain headaches.

So, I had PRK done earlier this year. It's basically the best decision I ever made; I still occasionally stop, look around at the texture of my environment, and appreciate that I can see it unassisted. It also gave me a week to recover from a very difficult summer, and hang out with my mom again.

As a byproduct, I also got a lot more serious about personal financial management--this is the first time I've ever really saved and budgeted towards a specific thing.

2011 Song Associated with This Thing that Didn't Suck: Wild Flag, "Electric Band" -- This album was officially released the day after my surgery; I spent a fair amount of time lying on the bed/couch with my eyes closed and my headphones in, listening to this on repeat and wishing it was Sleater-Kinney.