Resolutions and such...

I am having a date with myself tonight. It has been a long week, and it is only Wednesday night. I have spent the last week or so celebrating the new year with all sorts of great people, and have continued to make good friends each and every day (my new year's resolution #5 to meet one new friend every day has actually been working out 100%, as long as I can successfully build up my new friends to use as needed). I have been enjoying new points of view and different opinions and theories on life, which is helping resolution #2, to be more balanced (yea, Oprah stole it from me...don't even pretend). I am having a hard time keeping up with resolution #1, to spend more time in my hot tub, but only because I put on these stipulations about this meaning 3 times a week, and it is Wednesday and I have only been in it once this week, so I am behind. I think, though, that really, I have used the hot tub more in the last week than I did between Ike and the end of 2008, so I am actually doing ok with the initial resolution.

Resolution #3 goes closely with #1, as it is to reduce stress and find the positive in each experience. i figure, even if I may not be enjoying something, if I can figure out what I am learning and how that is adding value to life (mine or otherwise), then something positive is happening. This works ok until i sit in long meetings, finding very little or no positive outcomes. Just a lot of meetings. Maybe the positive is a mental break from work? Maybe. But, I digress. Resolution #4, spend more time outside. I am working on this one. California had so much more to offer than Houston does, and this makes it harder to find the motivation. I can't just go run down the banks of the rivers in Sacramento, or hike around Yosemite or Malibu for the day. But, I am working on it. We are planning a beach camping trip (not quite Pismo or Carpenteria, but I bet the moon looks just as amazing...even during the eclipse!). I actually did some good hiking up by Austin in the fall, so it can be done! I still need to plan my trip to Big Bend in west Texas (any Houstonians want to make this trip happen?). I am working on it, I am... I am also working on my trips for this year. So far, I think I have: Florida in February for the launch, Vegas or Tahoe in March to prep for the beginning of the TAS season (yea, act of Congress for those days off, so maybe not), California in April for the big Dobson wedding, 2nd Annual girls cruise in either May or August, Alaska for fourth of July to visit Alex and Susanna, Greece in August with Cindy and Cara (yup, still making the commitment), and California in October for the big HS 10 year and the Diener wedding...whew! Good thing I make it my hobby to collect frequent flier tickets and hotel points, or this year would break me. Anyone want to join me on these trips, you just let me know. I am still trying to get the Houston group to trek back to California for a Yosemite trip or a beach weekend...maybe this is the year!

The resolutions continue, I think 2009 will be a great year. It has started with a bang, and I have a good feeling it is going to get even better. I am working most on balancing my life, professional and personal. I have actually really been enjoying my busy routine that has returned. It is lighter in the mornings now, which makes it slightly easier to get up for my 6am daily gym visits. Work is gearing back up to be busy, which means, if I am keeping this balance up, the rest of life better be able to keep up. And with all the travel, I might just be able to keep it level and balanced. Those of you who read, you at least get to follow me as I try...=)

The two year reflection

Ok, new year, time for some reflection. This year I am going to try to keep more up on this blog, and try to be more reflective, as well as keep you updated on my crazy Texas adventures.

I have been thinking about luck recently, and trying to decide if luck is something preconceived (like part of the bigger plan for each person), or if it is just simply luck. Two weeks off from work have left me with some nice time to reflect on my life since I arrived in Houston, and this is what I have come up with (bare with me, it is somewhat jumbled in my head, so I am not sure how it is going to come out in writing):

I left to go home on December 21. I arrived home that evening (and my 3 hours delay on my 3 hours flight), and promptly woke up the next morning with a sore throat. I spent the next 8 days on the couch with a nasty cold and cough. Actually, it took until New Year's Day to go away. Spending so much time at home on the couch was actually more of a blessing in disguise than I thought, and this is where the reflecting began. This time at home allowed me to spend more time with my family, and forced me to spend more downtime with my close friends. Whereas in the past I may have spent the vacation rushing around trying to see everyone, everywhere, this time, I was able to spend time just sitting and talking, and planning, and remembering. I have friends in California I have known for more than 20 years. Christmas time is one of the only times we actually get to see each other face to face (well, especially since I moved to Houston). This year, Cara came home from Switzerland. I haven't seen her since I was in Switzerland in February. We sat and chatted and solved the worlds problems. Joy and I laughed our way through an afternoon while Lucy play on her Elmo chair in her little t-shirt announcing her new brother or sister. I saw the rest of the girls over dinner when I left my house for the first time in 5 days. We can sit and talk anywhere, and we don't miss a beat. Many of us have moved away, gotten married, had children, seen many successes. But when we sit at that table with each other, it is like we are back in high school not too worried about the outside world. I love it. And I love that even if we only see each other once a year, we know how to pick up where we left off. And, man, can we laugh about some of the trouble we used to get into. Put six girls in a room and ask them about high school together. The stories are endless! I realized over this break how lucy I felt to have a place to come home to, to have healthy friends and family, and to have the endless love and support that I have in my life.

So, I am blessed with amazing family and friends in California. It was a huge decision to move to Houston, one that was never meant to be permanent. In my heart, I never thought I could leave this group of people. My support network was up and down the state, and leaving that for good was never part of the plan. After six months in Houston, this trip was still just a big adventure, which you all know I love. I was taking it all in, and still unsure about where I wanted it to go. I had made some friends, figured my way around town, and done some exploring of Texas (as is evident in older blog entries). I was happy. After nine months, things became more difficult. The job had to change. The question was, stay in Houston and continue the adventure, or move back to California, back to the safety net. Something in me wasn't ready to completely give up on this adventure. I am definitely glad I made that choice. My new job brought new challenges and new stresses, but also new friends and a new network of support. For the first time in my life, somewhere other than my parents' house seems like home. Someone told me once that Houston would feel like home only after I went back to California and missed it in Houston. I think I can safely safe Houston feels like home now. This doesn't mean that a part of me won't always be in California (it has to be, I still have a lot of stuff in my parents' garage), but I just feel like I fit here. It was never more evident than during Ike that I had found some amazing people. I have never experienced such an outpouring of love and support in my entire life. We joke about the evacuation and the week that followed, but doing that alone would not have worked. I would not have made it. Having people to laugh with and watch CNN 22 hours a day with made a world of difference. And then having friends come to help me fix the house and offer help in any way they could. I know communities come together in disasters, but I have never experienced something this intense before. The feeling is overwhelming. I much be lucky.

After almost two years, I look back and reflect, and know that I have been blessed with not only old friends but wonderful new friends. I consider myself lucky. I am not sure I have always believed in luck. For a long time I have thought that there is a plan for everyone, and if you work hard, your plan will contain successes and challenges to make you grow as a person. What this doesn't take into account are the people who come into your life along the way. I have to be lucky, because there is no way I worked hard enough to deserve this many great people in my life.

I feel so lucky to be able to sit in a house that I own and love, with one cat curled up on my feel and one on my shoulder purring in my ear (and biting me, but I will allow it, it is kinda cute). Even the cats, it is amazing how much an animal can mean in your life. These cats teach me more about life than I could ever believe. My two cats, they give me the most unconditional love I have ever experienced. Ever. They don't get mad if I miss a deadline (or even forget to feed them), they forgive and forget so quickly, it is not even funny. They enjoy the little things in life, like laying in the sun, exploring, and playing with anything that moves. And their personalities are so different, but so perfect together. I couldn't have chosen better companions to keep me company in the evenings and to teach me about life. And, in a stretch, to help me forget about the things I shouldn't be worried about. I have learned this week not to take these little guys for granted. I am so thankful they are healthy and happy. I can't say this enough.

So there you have it. I am lucky. There is no question about it. Family, friends and cats. That is all I can ask for, and I am so content with where this new year is going. I am going to take 2009 and learn as much as possible about myself, about my friends, and about the world. And to just continue to experience life as it is meant to be. Isn't that what is all about?

Let me know what you think, you know I love the comments...=) And here are some lovely pictures of some of the subjects I am writing about...