2011-what I did & what I read

Every year I like to post a wrap up of my year- mostly so I can keep a record for myself.

2011 was a pretty good year overall I will have to say.

Theatre played a huge part in my year.

I was honored to play a role in two productions this year. The first was Bethel's production of All My Sons. That was possibly the best show I have been a part of. The cast, direction, set were all spot on. It was an intense story & I got to play a bitchy neighbor. :)

Probably the one of the biggest things for me this year was singing onstage in front of people I know. I have always loved acting in plays & one of my goals for a long time has been to be in a musical & be confident enough to do it with people I know in the audience. During the summer I was in a musical version of the Jungle Book. The show started with me onstage by myself.....singing in another language. I was so nervous, but I did it! I am so appreciative of the rest of the cast for being so supportive & encouraging, especially right before curtain that first night when I was about to have a heart attack.

One of my most memorable moments was the last night of dress rehearsal when I missed a cue & didn't come out during my song with Rene (the mother wolf). Thank goodness that was just dress rehearsal.

I also learned to knit this year. My friend Jessica showed me how to cast on (which I can never remember so I have to look up videos on it) & the knit stitch. I learned how to do other things by watching videos. My current project is a mini Ravenclaw house banner that I am double knitting (where the image shows on both sides, in contrasting colors). Knitting is something that I have been wanting to learn to do since I learned to crochet many years ago.

This year I was introduced to the roller derby. I love the Nashville Roller Girls & look forward to watching more games this coming season.

I saw only one show-Wicked- this year. I need to see more.

I made some new friends (mostly thanks to the theatre) who have become some of my favorite people on the planet.

I MET JOHN GREEN! One of the best things about the NCTE conference is being able to hob-nob with some of my favorite authors. John Green happens to be very close to the top of that list & I was excited to hear him speak & get my picture with him for my author wall at school.

Also at NCTE this year I rode in a limo to get real Chicago pizza. This was quite an exciting adventure for me & the other 11 teachers that crammed ourselves in that car.

I read 41 books this year, far less than my goal. I abandoned many books. I may pick some of them back up & give them another go, or I may not. We'll see. My to-read pile is quite huge at the moment.

Now, on to what I read in 2011. I have been in a reading funk the last year or so. I WANT to read, I just think I may be overwhelmed at all the good books to read I just don't know where to start ;)

January
Scott Pilgrim & the Infinite Sadness
Awakened ~ PC Cast & Kristin Cast

Old Habits: A Wicked Lovely Story ~ Melssa Marr

Zombiecorn~ John Green
Red Glove (Curse Workers #2)~ Holly Black
February
Bird in a Box ~ Andrea Davis Pinkney
Dead is Just a Rumor ~ Marlene Perez
Dead is Not an Option ~ Marlene Perez
Dead Tossed Waves~ Carrie Ryan
All My Sons~ Arthur Miller
The Dark & Hollow Places~ Carrie Ryan
March/April
Because of Winn-Dixie
The Last Little Blue Envelope ~ Maureen Johnson
Eighth Grade Bites ~ Heather Brewer
Hare Moon ~ Carrie Ryan
Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone ~ JK Rowling
May/June
Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets ~ JK Rowling
Wings ~ Aprilynne Pike
Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban ~ JK Rowling
Clockwork Angel ~ Cassandra Clare
Boy Meets Boy ~ David Levithan
Unwind ~ Neil Schusterman
Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire ~ JK Rowling
Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix ~JK Rowling
Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince ~ JK Rowling
Forest of Hands & Teeth ~ Carrie Ryan
Evermore~ Alyson Noel
July
Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk ~ David Sedaris
Forever ~ Maggie Stiefvater
Beauty Queens~ Libba Bray

Great & Terrible Beauty ~ Libba Bray
Daughter of Smoke & Bone~ Laini Taylor
The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy & Goth Girl (audiobook) ~ Barry Lyga
Dumpling Days~ Grace Lin
Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows~ JK Rowling
The Name of the Star~ Maureen Johnson
Wake~ Lisa McMann
Black Heart ~ Holly Black
Every You, Every Me ~ David Levithan
Future of Us ~ Jay Asher & Carolyn Mackler
Chime ~ Franny Billingsley

my 2010 year in review blog post

I decided a year or so ago to start doing a year end post to kind of sum up my year. Mostly for me so I can look back and see when significant things happened, but also for any of you who just really wanted to know what I did this year :) 
I didn’t find cures for diseases, or win any awards, or get my name in the tabloids, but I experienced things and learned some things about myself. I can’t complain too much.

2010

I didn’t see any Broadway shows (even on tour) or concerts this year. I think that’s a first in many years. This must be remedied in the new year.

I survived The School Year That Almost Killed Me. Not that I didn’t like the kids I had last year, I loved them to pieces. It was just a whole group of things that came together to make it one tough school year. Thankfully I really, simply adore my current group of 7th graders (I just wish more of them would catch on to two step equations) and I don’t have as many demands on my time or sanity.

I got into sort of a funk around September/October. I think I have it pegged to a couple of significant things. I officially retired as a color guard instructor- something that has defined part of my life for a very long time. It was something that needed to be done, I just hate that it ended the way that it did. Also, my eyes were finally opened to some things. Misunderstanding or not, some things could have been handled better. With all things, it’s really hard when you’ve invested so much time and effort into something. Even when the signs are all there it’s hard to walk away.

I decided that one of the mottoes for my life is- I’m too old for this crap.

(edited to add) How could I forget- I had jury duty for the first (and hopefully last) time this year.


On a more positive note:

I went to Florida THREE times. Two of those times were Orlando-once for a family trip and once for a conference. I love to travel.

I visited Hogwarts! And ate at the Three Broomsticks! And drank Butterbeer! And got a Wand! and a Pygmy Puff! I think the Wizarding World of Harry Potter might have been the highlight of my year.

I met some really awesome authors again this year and got tons of books to add to my To Read pile. Hopefully, I will achieve my goal of reading 100 books in 2011.

I played Charlotte in the play Charlotte’s Web. That was my first big role and I loved.every.minute.

I also played Cook in the high school’s production of Alice in Wonderland. While I love being in plays, I had more fun watching kids I had in class act on stage for the first time.

I sang in front of people for the first time...and I wasn’t bad! I didn’t know anyone there but the voice teacher & Mark, I was nervous as heck and didn’t look up much from the page with the words but I sounded decent.

I am thankful for my husband, Mark, who has helped me keep my sanity, helped me laugh when I felt like crying, helped me make decisions and has been my biggest cheerleader since day one.


Goals for 2011:
Read more
Write a lot more
Laugh more
audition for a musical
sing in front of people I know
see at least one show
meet Laura in person this year (Laura, we WILL make this happen this year! I’m coming to Chicago in November.)


I’ll stop there. There is so much more I want to accomplish in the coming year.