2012 started with a whimper and ended with a bang. Yes, I know the saying is whisper, but in my case it really was a whimper. It was the first New Years Eve that I'd spent alone & I didn't do a very good job in distracting myself from this depressing fact. I don't remember all of the details, but I probably spent some time on Match.com & some time thinking about what I wanted to accomplish in the New Year. Two things were definitely at the top of my list: going on some dates & finding a new dentist (it had been 2 years since my last visit).However, before either of those happened, I received an email with a Groupon offer to learn how to rock climb & decided to try it. I received a 3-hour lesson on a Friday night with about 9 other students, along with a 2-week membership- all for about $25. I was so scared! I was the last person in the group to get on the wall. I was terrible at it, but the adrenaline had me hooked. I convinced myself that if I practiced enough I would get over the fear. That weekend I bought my first pair of climbing shoes - red suede Five Ten coyote lace-ups.
Shortly after I started climbing, I became a vegetarian. It wasn't a planned diet change - it just sort of happened. I had tried a vegetarian diet for a week in 2011 and had struggled with it. I even had meat mares (dreams about eating meat or accidentally eating meat). This time around, I really didn't think about it much & found some good sources of protein that made it easy (greek yogurt is my favorite!). I eventually worked some seafood back into my diet in July, so I'm now a pescetarian, but no plans to eat animal flesh in 2013.
Ugh... dating. I went on my first internet date in 2012. I had been on Match.com for a couple of months at the end of 2011 before finally deciding to pursue some dates in January. I needed some pushing from friends to "stop being so picky" and just go on some dates. I can't remember if I ended up meeting 2 or 3 guys... I think just two. There was the "almost divorced" bio-chemist who liked to ski in the French Alps & lived with his sister. I stuck it out for 4 dates with him. Even though he was really cute, there just wasn't any chemistry & he stopped pursuing me after I refused to kiss him and told him that I didn't think we were a match. Next was a red-headed, mountain biker who worked in advertising. He wasn't the cutest guy, so he was going to have to win me over with his personality. He had some experience in rock climbing, so I thought maybe we could at least be belay partners? Wrong. I've never wanted to climb less for someone. He had zero personality & took our climbing date so seriously that he actually snapped at me for giving him beta on a climb. I couldn't get rid of him fast enough - even bailed on our after climb beer plans. However, he was good for one thing - which I never appropriately thanked him for - he introduced me to Meetup.com. Discouraged by the internet dating scene, I was eager to join some rock climbing Meetup groups and possibly meet some single guys there. Ha! I quickly learned that this is not a good pool for finding single guys. However, it is an awesome pool for finding some of the most crazy, fun, strong & sassy climbing chicks on the planet. So thankful for the friends that I've made through Meetup!
After much procrastination, I finally found a new dentist & started the long, painful process of restoring my teeth. I spent at least 20 hours in my dentist's chair over the course of 5 months ticking off a 2-page list of work that needed to be done. I also had my first (and last!) experience with in-office teeth whitening. Ouch. After all of that work, I decided to consult an orthodontist to straighten my teeth as well. I'm now 21 weeks into a full-case Invisalign treatment & so far I'm really happy with the results. I have about 46 weeks to go -- which seems like forever!
I'm not sure what 2013 is going to bring, but my approach will be similar to 2012:
1.) form some loose goals
2.) keep an open mind and heart
3.) enjoy the journey
Happy New Year!
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