How was your 2011?

[danzibr]

A week late, but hey. How was your 2011? Mine was great, pretty much. We bought a house at the veeeeeeeeery end of 2010, though I think it's worth mentioning here. My wife and I had a son on January 17th and he's been a joy. I got my MA in math, working hard toward my PhD. Life is good.

[Pika...]

Eh, I am still alive. So good I guess. :smallsmile:

[Asthix]

I am now an Iron Poet!!!

[Mauve Shirt]

I had a really rather excellent 2011! I got straight A's my final semester of school, graduated with my B.A. in German. Got a crappy summer job, earned some money. Then in September I got a much better job and am earning much more money in a slightly more interesting way! And I have a much larger appreciation for weekends.

[Starscream]

Pretty good. Moved into a new place, bought a brand new car (my first non-used vehicle), got a raise at work, went on a fun vacation.

No major complaints to ruin the good stuff, either. Worst part of the entire year was probably a kidney stone I got, but that was way back in May.

[arguskos]

Pretty good. Been a good year for rediscovering who and what I am. I've changed a lot in the last twelve months, mostly for the better. I've become a better person, in a lot of respects, and I'm really pleased with that.

I have a job, am at a great school that I really love, have rebuilt some old friendships, lost a few others, have a new and strong relationship with my family (one I never really had before). It's been a good year, really. Here's to 2012 being better!

[Sneak]

College happened. It was pretty cool.

[Em Blackleaf]

Uh, 2011 was mostly guys kissing me and then making me cry.

But I started the year by getting out of a relationship that had never really been even almost everything I wanted. In that process, I really found myself. I discovered my confidence, my acting skills, my vocal skills. I had a chance to think of myself and learned a little bit more about what I really want. A knot in my stomach that had previously gone unnoticed for a good six months loosened. I think that was the hardest part of my year but definitely the most beneficial.

I had the best summer of my life.

I was in an awesome play and my cast and I won a huge award for it that comes with the opportunity to perform it again (which is happening in like a week).

And I had ridiculous amounts of fun with friends, old and new. I became closer to a group of friends I now can't imagine life without. I learned how much fun it is to watch basketball.

Finally, I had a glorious New Year's Eve, with some amazing friends and Karaoke.

My 2011 was good. :smallsmile:

[Dr. Bath]

Rubbish. With occasional good coming in from the west.

[Warlawk]

Far and away the worst year of my life. Still trying to cope with the things that happened and sometimes venting about it in places that won't spill over into my daily life help, so you all get the run down.

Spoilered because it's long, and kind of depressing. People who want to keep the positive outlook of the thread can just skip over it.

Married 15 years with 5 kids and we're extremely family oriented, never used day care and rarely had babysitting done, always by close friends or family.

I've had some pretty extreme health troubles the past several years. Extreme fatigue, dizziness bad enough to make it tough to walk across a room half the time, memory loss, bad headaches etc. I've got a strong work ethic and been working full time+ since I was 14 so not being able to work came with a lot of guilt.

Early in the year my grandmother died, it was expected but still hard. We were close, she was our neighbor for several years and one of the first people in my life that I deeply cared about and lost. Part of closure was delayed since it was winter and the area she lived in was remote so the funeral ceremony was delayed until late july.

My wife miscarried within weeks of my grandmother dieing. We both took it hard and we had a lot of trouble dealing with it, weren't communicating or connecting well.

Summer, found out my wife was pregnant again. Terrified in general and not really ready to deal with that after losing the baby earlier in the year.

Last week of July we had my grandmothers funeral. It was good but hard, tough for me to get ready for and figure out how to cope with.

Less than a week after that I found out my wife had been cheating on me for about a month. The nights I spent alone while she was at work trying to figure out how to deal with the funeral and she was staying out with this guy. Working 2 jobs since my health was keeping me down, me terrified for the baby and feeling guilty for not working, shifting the entire family schedule around to try and be sure she gets enough food and naps and such and she's using that to stay out until 4am with this guy. Lies about doing it in the first place (they're just friends etc) then brings him to the house a couple nights later so we can meet. He's verbally abusive, breaks the news they have been sleeping together and does everything he can to start a physical fight. He takes my wifes hand and she stands there and lets him while he tells me he will do everything whatever it takes to take my family away from me. She won't let me make him leave and I promised I wouldn't beat him up. The only reason he lived through the night was because of her protection.

She fights tooth and nail to keep this guy around and sleeps with him again as I'm pouring out my heart and soul trying to keep us together. Turns out he's a real piece of crap. He found out she had miscarried and basically manipulated her into sleeping with him that way (he "lost" his baby girl, turns out she was taken away because he was an unfit parent, but he never said that part to her). He had a weed habit and likely other drugs and was a drinker (my parents split because my dad was a drunk and her dad drank himself to death, we don't do drugs or drink regularly and avoid those who do very actively). They texted back and forth multiple times a day, every day, she worked with him and just insisted they were now just friends but half his texts were much more than just friendly texts. Every time I told her something was important to me, it ended up coming back to bite me in the ass when it invariably got used to hurt me or she did whatever I said it was important not to. This went on for a couple months till I pretty much snapped and filed a police report. Since he was on probation with 11 cases in his record (drugs, DUI, false 911 reports, harassment) it meant he couldn't really mess around with it or he would go back to jail. They still worked together but she was very good about always being home on time and letting me know what was going on, they never talked and she was finally ready to start fixing things.

About a month after all this started we found out the stress, lack of sleep etc had caused her to miscarry again. So this had cost us our baby.

She was worn down from working too much and not feeling connected when we had trouble after losing the baby and my grandmother. She pretty much just shut down. She seems legitimately regretful and wants to fix things. I'm pretty messed up, on antidepressants and came very close to suicide more than once. We've moved and have completely new phone numbers and such so he has no way to track us down short of a lot of effort. It's possible, but at least now I can feel like it's not a worry that he's going to get drunk/stoned and show up and make me kill him. He's 145 and like 5'8" while I'm 6'2" 240 and in good shape, I'm not worried about him physically, just that I'd snap and beat him to death and end up dealing with the consequences of that.


On the up side, things are much better now. There's still a lot of baggage to deal with, but we're both wanting to, looking forward and trying hard. I channeled a lot of that emotion into time and motivation for working out. Since august I've packed on muscle and dropped 60 pounds. We're in a bigger house with a great big back yard, great location etc. I'm actually in a pretty positive place right now, the above isn't a pity parade, it just helps sometimes to put it all out there.

Here's to 2012 being a better year! Would be tough not to unless the world ends (and there's been plenty of times I was in a frame of mind where that would have been an improvement :smallyuk: )!

[Kobold-Bard]

Short version: it sucked.

Long version: was deleted because it was too whiny.

[Asta Kask]

Short version: it sucked.

Long version: was deleted because it was too whiny.

+1.

:smallfrown:

[CoffeeIncluded]

I'm sorry about everybody who had a terrible year, especially since mine was so good. I got into my first choice of college, am maintaining an A average at said university, I'm coming out of my shell, I'm much more social than I used to be, overall my life is going really well, especially compared to 2010.

[fergo]

Mixed.

Managed to get through my first year of university (although my grades really need improving). This September marked me and my girlfriend's first anniversary, which was fantastic. She came over to my home for Christmas so I got to spend it with both her and my family.

On the other hand, the summer pretty much sucked, since I didn't get to see her for four months (religious/cultural differences with her family--basically because I'm not [insert ethnicity here]). Still, I can't complain.

Danzibar: That's fantastic :smallsmile:. Congratulations.

Warlawk: :smallfrown: It's good that you can get through it all and still be positive about the future :smallsmile:.

[Moff Chumley]

2011 was the strangest and probably most difficult year of my life. I am in no hurry to repeat it but I'd like to think it left me better than where I started so I'm not gonna complain too much. :smalltongue:

[danzibr]

Well, initially I was going to respond to only a couple posts, but that seemed unfair. Here goes!
Pika...: That is indeed something to be happy about. At least I think so.

Asthix: What's that? Like Iron Chef? 'Cuz that's totally cool.

Mauve Shirt: Grats! And ever been to Germany? Wife wife and I went (though we weren't married at the time) for her brother's wedding. Even though it was really cold (went in December), it was really cool, no pun intended.

Starscream: Grats on the new place and car. I forgot to mention we got a car too, but not new. And ugh, kidney stone. I'm pretty sure I passed a gallbladder stone and it was terrible. Nothing showed up on the ultrasound though.

arguskos: That is good. I also did a bit of self-finding. My advisor always pulled the Nike slogan on me and I finally started doing it, again no pun intended. I have to remind myself that being a human isn't an excuse to be weak, but rather a reason we can be strong.

Sneak: Cool.

Em Blackleaf: Ahhhhh well best wishes on the romance front. Glad about the good stuff though.

Dr. Bath: I totally don't understand it, but I like the Aku stuff.

Warlawk: Sorry to hear the bad news, though it's great you're staying positive. I can't imagine my wife and I having a miscarriage or the worse stuff happening. I truly hope things stay on the right track.

Kobold-Bard: Hope things start looking better. Hey, at least Kobolds are awesome, Bards are awesome, and Kobold Bars are especially awesome.

Asta Kask: So... was 2011 good?

CoffeeIncluded: Grats on the good grades. I only started pulling 4.0's in grad school. I always slacked a bit in undergrad.

fergo: Thanks! Bummer about the lack of acceptance (if that's the case), but having a good girl is worth it.

Moff Chumley: Good philosophy, see good in bad, I like. Okay, that was from The Fifth Element. Seriously though, glad you're through it and better off for it.

[Blue Ghost]

First half of 2011 was one of the best times of my life. Great times with friends, starting to find my purpose in life, major achievements, all around awesome. After I got to college, it was... not bad, I guess, but not the best either. Starting to make friends, but it's really slow. Never sure if I'm doing what I'm supposed to. And my grades were not good at all. Still, it could have been worse.

[Riverdance]

Awesome year. No major injuries. First quarter of school sucked as usual, but I love my school so it was ok, and I just got what is probably the best report card I've ever gotten.

[Karoht]

A week late, but hey. How was your 2011?

I made progress towards goals. Nearly saved up for the wedding, I owe a trivial amount on my Line of Credit (get one, totally better than any credit card), took a fantastic vacation.

I set a goal to crack the top 10 on my server. We made 11th last tier, 8th this tier, and we're currently fighting for 3rd place. So yes, goal reached.
Yes I'm talking about World of Warcraft. Yes I'm a raider. No I'm not a stereotype person living in my parents basement, I own my own house thank you. And no I'm not an elitst jerk, I just play well, and play well with others who also play well and aren't elitist jerks.

Participated in the Diablo 3 Beta. Bwee.

I participated in setting a world record with Thrill the World. Ended up on the news several times as a result. Prior to that I organized the choreography of a bunch of zombies, also dancing Thriller. And then flashmobbed the Calgary Comic Entertainment Expo. And we're doing it again this year, only on the main stage in front of fans. Opening for George Romero. Yeah.

I met one of my heroes, namely Jonathan Freakes of Star Trek fame. He's getting old, but man is he still a cool person.

I met Felicia Day. We talked about WoW for 5 whole minutes. And I didn't stutter or embarass myself. Bwee.

I helped my friend launch his business, namely a medieval supply store, that is doing very very well. We started this together years ago looking at wholesale distribution with Cas/Hanwei, and he took the ball and ran with it. To see it grow to the point where he now has a storefront after all these years is an astounding sight.

I rescued a kitten from a tree, got a stick to the eye for my trouble.

I was on TV. I was in a commercial for a bank I used to work for. It was actually a very cool experience. Technically we filmed both commercials in 2010 but it aired in 2011. The other one is supposed to go up "soon" according to the advertising agency.

Calgary Barcraft, the first and second, were both awesome. And it's great to see gaming get to this point, where people are actually watching it as a form of entertainment, down at the pub, with some beers and grub.
Also, the nerdballers were louder than the footballers. No lie.
"LEE-NOCK! LEE-NOCK! LEE-NOCK! LEE-NOCK!"

The rest of the great and fun things I did, aren't really big details or have way too much context behind them, so I'll stop there. Cheers. Best of luck to everyone in 2012.

[Moofaa]

Same as every year since 1980. Pointless.

I predict the same for 2012.

[Moff Chumley]

Same as every year since 1980. Pointless.

I predict the same for 2012.

How can a year have a point? :smallconfused:

[Mx.Silver]

Bad. 2010 probably holds some responsibility for that.

[Karoht]

Same as every year since 1980. Pointless.

I predict the same for 2012.All years are pointless, it's just a measure of time afterall.

However, a year of time in your life can have some meaning if you give it one. Like setting goals. I'm not a big believer in new years resolutions or anything, but having a project or a goal and working on it tends to help. At worst, it kills the monotony.

My new years resolution: 1920 x 1260
And I've already broke it.

[Aedilred]

2011 was a pointless year in which I accomplished nothing.

Well, that's not entirely true. I accomplished, like, one thing. But even already I am having difficulty remembering that 2011 even happened. I can remember 2010 like it was yesterday, but 2011 doesn't seem to have furnished me with one memorable incident for my mental archives. In fact, my mental calendar has pretty much already deleted 2011 altogether - I think of the summer of 2010 as "six months ago".

The only thing I'll remember this year for, I think, is as the starting point for my new career, assuming that comes to anything, but it's far too early to tell at this stage.

[The Valiant Turtle]

My 2011 was pretty good in most ways with the notable exception that I was unable to attend any playground meetups which has caused some minor sanity slippage.