Happy New Year!
We spent New Year’s Eve hopping boroughs at two different parties. It was so much fun! The more the merrier. We started at our friends Rebecca and Sarah’s apartment, where they’d set up a crazy delicious spread of appetizers. And you should have seen the dessert! I brought these chickpeas (my new go-to party dish).
Sarah made a deadly-good champagne punch with sherry, pineapple juice and fresh berries. We guzzled classily.
Then we headed to Brooklyn for party #2, to celebrate Shayne’s (temporary) return to New York! She’s been in Scottsdale, Arizona for the last several months, and it was so nice to see her and Danny. And all these lovely ladies! 2013 will be the year of togetherness, I think.
But let’s take a look back at 2012! It was a good year. A crazy, surreal, chaotic, wonderful year.
I started 2012 unemployed. The restaurant I’d gotten a job with was supposed to open at the end of December, but didn’t end up getting going until late March. It’s kind of funny to think back to just how much time I spent in my apartment for the first half of the year! Amazingly, though, I don’t remember being bored, and I cooked a lot.
Most importantly, though, I started spending more and more time with B. (He’s more than an initial, and I’m planning on introducing him to you soon.)
We took our first trip together in February, to upstate New York. It was freezing cold, and it snowed, and everything was perfect. We cooked a lot, and watched an old Tommy Lee Jones movie, and ate pancakes.
I also took an awesome girlfriend trip with Anna and Danielle, to the Berkshires. It was also freezing and snowing, so we warmed up with hot cookies and red wine. We ate good food, and looked at art, and stayed up late talking in bed. Have I mentioned how much I love my friends?
In March, I killed my first (and only, to date) lobster. It was mildly traumatic, but I’m really glad I did it. (You can read more about it here.)
B and I hosted our first party together on St. Patrick’s Day. We made key lime pie cups and got our friends together and we made merry on a bright Saturday morning. I love having people over, and I can’t wait to do more of it.
My family came to town for Easter, and we spent a long, cozy weekend together in Southampton. My mom is from Indiana, so we only get to see my aunt, uncle, and twin 15 year old cousins once a year. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve felt more and more grateful for the people in my life.
I’m glad we had that time together, because disaster struck in mid-April. I went to work with a headache, and went to the hospital less than 12 hours later with bacterial meningitis. After four days in the ICU and four more days in the hospital, I went home feeling fragile, confused, but extremely lucky. Friends and family from all over the country- the world, even- made me feel loved and cared for and again, I felt so, incredibly grateful for the people I have around me. (I think this is becoming a theme.)
It’s now been 8 months since I got sick, and although I have a few scars and am not in quite the same physical condition I was in when I went into the hospital, I feel really good. The doctors said my immune system might not be as strong as it was, and it’s true- I’ve gotten sick more this year than I have before. The scary thing is that the initial symptoms I presented with are very similar to common cold and flu bugs, and sometimes it feels like it’s all happening again. I still think about what happened every. single. day. Sometimes I feel like I’m dwelling on the past, but repeating “I almost died”- though true- doesn’t always hit home. I was unconscious during most of the really serious parts, so I don’t know if it’ll every fully register.
I got off my prescribed antibiotics just in time to go to Indiana for a family friend’s wedding in May. It was a beautiful ceremony, and a very happy time. Things were starting to feel normal again.
B picked me up from the airport after the wedding, and we drove down to Maine for a week where we stayed at a beautiful bed and breakfast. Although he had to work during the day, I enjoyed spending the time alone and getting used to walking again (the medication messed with my circulation, and it really hurt to stand up for more than 30 seconds). I also got to hang out with my friend Sarah!
In June, meningitis growing more and more distant, we got playful. We took and adventure trip to Staten Island, riding the ferry and exploring the grounds. We learned how to forage for food in Central Park. We took a two-day road trip!
We spent a perfect July week in Michigan with our oldest friends. Jenny and I have known each other since we were mere months old!
I dabbled in veganism, and tried new foods. While I am now freely eating eggs, dairy and fish again, I still enjoy a lot of my favorite vegan recipes, like this “egg and cheese“!
We took another trip to New England, this time to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. We were- surprise!- thinking of moving to there, or to Portland, Maine. We loved both places but decided to stay in the city… but wait, that hasn’t happened in this timeline yet!
My mom and I took our annual “mother-daughter weekend” trip to New Jersey. It was so much fun; I look forward to these trips year-round. We got really close this year.
I said goodbye (for now) to the restaurant industry and started a new job, with regular hours. The learning curve was a little steep, but I’ve settled into my groove and really enjoy the work now.
We went back to Southampton for one last breath of summer…
… before plunging fully into the fall for a weekend in Woodstock, an October tradition.
I turned 25, had a mini quarter-life crisis, and got my friends together to sport ‘staches.
B and I took an epic road trip (30 hours!!!) to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, enjoyed the ride, but vowed to never spend so long in the car again. Some things are worth splurging for.
We headed to the midwest for a short and sweet visit with my grandparents in Minnesota, and got to catch up with some far away friends, too.
We survived a hurricane.
Be and I celebrated 365 days together!
Right after Thanksgiving, we moved into a new apartment. Our first.
We’ve spent the last month settling in, and turning it into a home. I’m excited to share pictures with you! (I think I’ve been promising this all December….) Thankfully, we’ve come a long way from this:
The holidays have come and gone, but instead of feeling let down that they’re over, I’m excited.
2012 was a full, lived-in year, and I can’t wait to see what 2013 brings. I’ve got a couple things to share too, soon. Thank you for being a part of LVP and being a friend through the rough and tumble. Lots of love.
HAPPY 2013!
