I was very sad to see Corpus Christi fading in the distance behind the car as Jose and I drove back to Houston yesterday, mainly because it signalled the end of my long (but never long enough) holiday vacation. I know that many people find the holidays stressful and are glad to see them end, but not me. While it was nice to get back home, I loved every minute of vacation.
My flight from Charlotte to Houston was unexpectedly eventful when I threw up on an airplane for the first time in…ever? I can remember feeling bad on planes before, but never actually throwing up. I still don’t know what happened. I spent the first hour reading. The flight was bumpier than usual thanks to a line of weather between North Carolina and Texas, but nothing too awful. Maybe it was the Starbucks I’d just finished, maybe it was the constant low-level turbulence, maybe it was just the fact that I was tired — but all of a sudden I found myself racing to the back of the plane and barely closed the bathroom door before peppermint mocha came back up. Then I discovered that the sink in the bathroom was not working. It was not a fun flight. Thankfully my layover in Houston was long enough that my stomach calmed down and the flight to Corpus was much more enjoyable. It only took about 40 minutes and I was able to watch the coast the whole way. We even flew right over Clear Lake and I spotted my apartment from the air.
My two days in Corpus were spent relaxing with Jose and his family, doing some more shopping, and celebrating New Years standing in a back yard that was quickly growing colder by the minute thanks to the cold front that is now here. It might actually freeze tonight.
All in all, 2007 was a great year and I have no complaints. I certified as an ARD Support, started training for my new job, took some fun trips (skiing, Boston, Cleveland, Austin, Seattle) and did a lot of races. I was fairly successful on my resolutions for the year, including completing a half ironman, playing the flute, and working a launch (two, in fact) as an ARD Support Officer. Sadly, I did not lose 10 pounds, certify as Rendezvous Support, or visit a new continent, but I’ve got high hopes for knocking those items off the list in 2008:
+ Take more pictures. I haven’t spent as much time on photography lately as I’d like. It’s something that I would like to make more time for.
+ Read more. Jose buys books all the time and gets so excited about them that he rarely actually finishes one before moving to the next. While I find it hard to not finish a book and thus my methods are different, he does inspire me to read more — instead of wasting so much time on the computer.
+ Certify as RPS.
+ Work a mission as RPS.
+ Get my finances in order. I do a pretty good job of this, so what I really mean is more specific. I’m already saving. What I don’t know is what I should be doing with that savings. I need someone to teach me that thing that rich people do where they turn money into more money.
+ Visit a new continent. Japan! Japan! Japan! Now we just have to figure out when to go…
+ Do another half ironman. Lone Star in Galveston at the end of March if I’m in town; if not, maybe Longhorn in Austin in October?
+ Lose weight. (I will not repeat how much I hate this resolution, however, it remains something I need to do.)
+ Do something fun and unique for my 30th birthday. Any ideas?
My apartment complex left me a lovely letter on my door while I was away, reminding my that my lease is up at the end of February and letting me know that they will be raising my rent by either $40 or $80 per month depending on whether I renew with a 6-month or 12-month month lease. While I likely won’t be making any major moving decisions before having to sign another lease, here’s my final resolution:
+ Figure out whether I am likely to stay in Houston beyond 2010 and if so, buy a house. For real this time.
Happy 2008!
Gavin says
+ Read Gavin’s books “The Tipping Point” and “South” and return them. Or, just return them. 🙂
Glad to hear you had a great vacation! Ours has been great too, despite the hiccups in our flights. See you and Jose soon.
barbara says
I’m with you – I was not ready for the holidays to end this year. There is always the stress part, but the good far outweighed the stress!
June says
Y’all are crazy. I couldn’t wait for the holidays (and the time off) to be over with. Especially Christmas.