another year is over

Ah, 2004, I barely new you.

What did I learn? That...

???if your job doesn't make any sense to people you meet at a party it probably doesn't make any sense, period

???modern skin care products actually do something

???no matter how careful you are, your stuff can still get damaged and lost by the movers

???the Paris/Cambridge area of Ontario is one of my favourite bits of the country, and I think I would like to live there one day

???June in Halifax is gorgeous

???Caffeine is even worse for you than I knew

???long distance fees are un-necessary, thanks to skype.com

What did I do? I...

???submitted a short story to a contest, in hopes of getting it published

???survived a record one-day snowfall of 1 metre's depth

???lived in a new province (NS), where I did things like boarding the Bluenose, photographing snow and ice, and paying too much income tax

???designed some interesting tattoos

???did a lot of walking, sometimes as much as 20km in a day

???toured PEI - one of the last provinces I hadn't seen, and in so doing, saw an experimental wind farm and the Centennial bridge

???got my first taste of long daily commutes, and it was exhausting but not intolerable

???hosted a dinner party or two

???worked for one of the largest and richest corporations on Earth

???rebuilt my web site from scratch

???finally got to see the segment of 'The Simpsons' where France nukes Springfield

???participated in an election and corresponded with two federal MP's

While the dinner parties and the short story were fun, I think that my biggest accomplishment was quitting caffeinated coffee. I feel so much less distracted and jittery, now. I can focus, and I almost feel... smarter.