The passing year in review ~ Stuff I did in 2009

Well, folks, it’s almost over…2009.  Last year, I wrote about a few of the goals I had for 2009, and how I hoped to better myself in the coming year. I thought I’d let you know about some of the things that have happened, some of the things I’ve done and some of the things I’m proud of.  Then it’s time to plan for the the next year.

 

 

2009’s goals

I have blogged about most of the things that I’ve been proud of, as far as accomplishments go. I guess this blog has really served to fulfill a couple of the goals I had for last year.  I wanted to write more, to express myself, and to publish my thoughts for others to read. I think this probably also has become an artistic endeavor. I started two series on my blog, Good Eats in Town, and Our New England Life. I hope people have enjoyed reading them.

I worked pretty hard and consistently studying Spanish, too. I took a conversational Spanish class and continued my studies at Spanishpod. Spanishpod has been invaluable, and not only have I learned a language, but I met new people from around the globe and have made some REAL friends, too.

I spent many other hours, last winter, exploring artistic endeavors with water colors and pen & ink. I would fall into my pad, and emerge exhausted, hours later, with a creation, and expression, or just an exploration. During the summer, I expressed myself with a more tangible medium of wood, soil, seed & stone. I shaped and worked the natural world around me and built things in the yard, some just for the fleeting season, some for enjoyment for years to come.

2009’s projects

Every year I write a list of projects that I would like to accomplish. For years, they were the same old projects, put in the Someday category. For some reason, something has changed in the last year or two. Really for both Tracy & I and the family…so many changes.  I’ve gotten rid of, at least in my head, the Someday category. Someday is where you put things you don’t REALLY plan on doing.  I just started DOING, instead. This was also reflected in what we did as a family, taking vacations, doing stuff together, bettering our home.  I’ve blogged about all this stuff already, so I won’t bore you here with all the details. I just wanted to post some of the things we did, things that I built, just to share, and to say “look what I did!” Kind of a pictoral chronology of my favorite accomplishments.

 The hand hewn gate 

Fenced and planted my garden

The Trellis

The fire pit…”Brad”

Visit to Fort Ticonderoga and the Gardens

Acadia National Park Vacation

The Garden gate

The Shed

 

Christmas Dinner 2009

 

All of the good photos are courtesy of Tracy Huntley, My lovely wife and very artistic photographer

So there you have it…a sampling of some of the things I did and am proud of over the past year. Of course, there is so much more…but this is getting long and I have to go….New Year’s Eve preparations are still yet un-prepared.

Thanks to my beautiful wife, my fantastic kids, loving family, old friends who have always been there, old friends I’ve reunited with, and new friends who have come into my life.  

Happy New Year!! See you in 2010!