Friday, December 31, 2010

Last day of Twenty-Ten


Wow... It seems I have a LOT to say. This post may be a long one, be forewarned... The trouble is, there is so much I want to touch on, and I don't exactly know where to start... At the very beginning of 2010, January 3rd [go here to read post] I went into 2010 with a word and I had a very specific goal in mind, I wanted to capture the whole year.

[A bit of an explanation - For the past few years, I've followed Ali Edward's lead, and chosen a word, to... Well, to say live by, isn't quite right, but I suppose to be aware of... Check out Ali's post for her 2011 word here.]

My word for 2010 was document. Without patting myself on the back too much, I have to say that it was a success. I wanted to document the kind of 'every day stuff' of the entire year. I wanted to take a picture each day, and keep track of all sorts of things. Things like: how many times we ate out, how often we had fast food [because yes, on occasion, we do have fast food] I wanted to keep track of the movies we watched, groceries, trips to Starbucks EVERYTHING. By the end of January, I had come to my senses... It doesn't sound like a lot of work, but it was ridiculous... So I did 2 things, I kept track of how many loads of laundry I did through the year, and I took a picture a day.

Now, the picture a day... This was not an easy task... Again, it might sound like not a big deal, but I'm talking 365 days here, and except for the occasional day here and there I managed to do it. Having said that, you must know that by the end of February, I was ready to throw in the towel. But by then, I'd documented 2 months worth of pictures... So I pressed on. In June I celebrated 6 months down, and 6 to go, and several times I wanted to quit. But I didn't. I kept on. I mainly did a week at a time, I also did a few months at a time. I know now that as I'm finishing off December 31st, 2010 I'll look back and be so grateful that I kept on. I kept track of the every day stuff, that in 5 years from now will look so different from now. I have to tell you, I'm glad to put this to rest. Would I do it again for 2011? Nope, not a chance. I do have an idea in mind to capture photos for 2011, but it's certainly not going to be as detail oriented as 2010 was.

I have decided that my word for 2011 is FAITH. The definition of faith is this [according to on-line Websters Dictionary]:

Faith: [noun]
1a. : allegiance to a duty or a person : LOYALTY
1b. (1) : fidelity to one's promises (2) : sincerity of intentions
2a. (1) : belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2) : belief in the traditional doctrines of religion.
2b (1) : firm belief in something for which there is no proof (2) : complete trust
3 : something that is believed especially with strong conviction

I'm also planning on taking Ali's class One Little Word through BPS. I think it will help me keep on track for the entire year. Sometimes you start off with great intentions (like the year my word was choice) Only to have a few months go by and the word goes out the window. So that's my word for 2011, I'm looking forward to it on a number of levels.

I don't have an official tally of the laundry yet either, but I will. I know you're curious, saying to yourself "well, how many loads DID she do?"

I also wanted to make a collage of some of our pictures from 2010. I had to limit myself to 3 pictures a month, not an easy task... It's crazy to have a glimpse of the past year in a mere 36 pictures!

Happy New Year to you! I wish you all the best for 2011. [I'm not going to enjoy saying 2011 as much. Loved the whole twenty-ten thing]

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