An Annual Review: 2009 State of "My Life Thus Far"

I am ever so hesitant to publish this year's post, primarily due to the fact that so much of my daily life is still in a crazed state of flux. But in keeping with my ritual of an annual review of my life from July to July, here goes...

I have recently exterminated the once-comfortable occupants of my formerly fabulous closet. With an ample supply of wine and Edy's help, I was able to differentiate between the good stuff that I should maintain, and the stuff I need to rid myself of. I.E., anything that says, "Hi. I like to pretend that I'm under 30." With that, I find myself at least 40 pairs of shoes lighter and have completely hacked up my wardrobe within an inseam of it's life. It will be a miracle to find anything beyond slacks, solid colored t-shirts and jeans at this point. Once I develop a new fashion strategy, I will rebuild.

I can complain all day long about the challenges of finding a suitable house, but the truth is, I'm at my own leisure. I've looked at over 80 houses now and should be quite content to continue looking until I find precisely what I'm looking for. I need to remember to take the advice of others lightly, and to stay true to what's important to me regardless of what other people would have me tolerate.

Thankfully, I can scratch the "find a new job" challenge off the list. For now. Thanks to some good friends in my network, I'll soon be off on another challenge within my current organization (but still across the way). Here's hoping I will find more space to grow and develop my skills in other areas. See? Who you know could be such a life saver. This new role promises to be interesting so stay tuned.

And still, I continue to take up freelance makeup work as it ignites the creative being inside of me. It turns out loud music, lipstick (and drama), glamour and cocktails surround my ideal job. Not exactly breaking news there! So fashion shows aside, we'll see what transpires.

Pretty much, my year in review boils down to this: In getting rid of all of the old ideas, possessions, methodologies, circumstances and monotonous ways of life, I have opened myself up to the emerging possibilities of everything that is new. The blissfully and wonderous unknown. These are all changes I should have made years ago, and adjustments I should continue to do from time to time in attempts to remain sane. Change is seldom perfect, and life's path doesn't always seem so linear when you're navigating your way through the storms, but it's a definite indicator of progress. Already I feel stronger in mind and in character.

And to think all this time, I have fought tirelessly to stay exactly the same. How ass-backwards and bizarre! I heard it once at a conference and it still stays with me, "If nothing changes, well, nothing changes." It pleases me to realize that this is no longer a statement representative of my life's choices. Not me, not this year. Hopefully not ever again.

God willing, next year's post will be really good. :)