I Will Not Take These Things Forgranted

It's time for the my (new) annual Year in Review. I'm feeling contemplative and nostalgic. Watch out. Here goes:

Best things that happened in 2005:
1. Meeting, dating, loving Ryan
2. Getting the Nike internship
3. Getting hired (and re-hired) to teach at the MTC
4. Going back to Brazil
5. Emma and Noah (new niece and nephew)

Worst things that happened in 2005:
1. Let's not talk about it... (email?? honestly)
2. My parents deciding to move across the country
3. Leaving Oregon
4. Having my heart broken (see No. 1)
5. The gumby dress

Most significant locations of 2005:
1. Nunns Park (Provo, Utah)
2. Hug Point (Oregon Coast)
3. Saddle Mountain (Clatsop Co., Oregon)
4. My sister's driveway (Payson, Utah)
5. A dirt road in Promorar (Angra dos Reis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

Funniest/oddest moments of 2005:
1. A Brazilian I barely met telling me he wants me to be the mother of his children
2. Two of my best girl friends "breaking up" with me for a few weeks (I'll give them the temporary insanity plea)
3. Overhearing an Elder ask, "Do you like hamburgers?" as part of the message of the Restoration at the MTC
4. Going on a date with a guy... and another girl
5. Any conversation after 3:00 pm with all of my roommates present

Places I visited or lived in 2005:
1. Provo, Utah
2. Clifton, Virginia
3. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
4. San Diego, California
5. Beaverton, Oregon

Coolest things I did in 2005:
1. Hiked Saddle Mountain at 4:00 am under a full moon (no flashlight) to watch the sunrise
2. Went somewhere I've never been and started a life for myself there
3. Looked out over Rio de Janeiro from the top of Pão de Açucar at night
4. Wrote and recorded a song all by myself
5. Finished my minor in art history

Realizations of 2005:
1. Corporate America isn't as glamorous as I thought
2. Even when you think you know, you might not
3. Playing "worst case scenario" with real-life situations really puts things into perspective
4. I'm graduating in a few months and don't really want a career
5. It could be worse...

Most significant songs of 2005:
1. The Luckiest - Ben Folds
2. Kingdom Come - Coldplay
3. Happy Together - The Turtles
4. Cannonball - Damien Rice
5. Am I The Only One - Barenaked Ladies

Most played songs on iTunes of 2005:
1. Brasilena, Carioca - Ryan Andrus
2. Brighter Than Sunshine - Aqualung
3. Pink Moon - Nick Drake
4. Wandering - Ben Folds
5. Heartbeats - Jose Gonzalez

-Toad the Wet Sprocket-