Okay 2011, get started!

by Jen Collins

So I realized that I made a list of resolutions for 2010, and that I even shared it here. Completely forgot about it!

1. Find another job to feed craft budget and for school/living/moving out of parental units' home
2. Finish up school and get my Associates degree -- only 24 more credits (community college proves it to be impossible to get it done in two years)
3. Post more on this silly blog (and comment more on mine + others)
4. Cook more for my family and convince them (especially mi padre) that vegetarian dishes ARE delicious
5. Work on my portfolio/resume
6. Work on my social anxieties/fears when talking to new people
7. Continue with etsy shop
8. Craft + sew more with friends (make dresses/skirts, first quilt, and new friends)
9. Donate 12" or more of my hair by the end of the summer season (so far I have 10"!)
10. Get Berkley to properly walk on a leash <-- very important!

Let's see what I've achieved:

I did get another job (Urban Outfitters) to feed my craft budget and for everyday life, though it could have helped to get this job sooner when I lived on my own in Ann Arbor for the summer. I did not receive my Associates Degree yet, but I'm just a few credits short away! I did indeed blog more, thanks to the 15 Day Challenge I can certainly tell you I blogged 15 times in a row! I did cook more vegetarian dishes, but it mostly ended up being for me. I'm still determined to get my dad to eat a little less meat! I have worked on my portfolio thanks to my inspiring photography classes I took this past semester. I'm a little less nervous when talking to people. I'm coming more and more out of my shell, plus I'm even making friends! I've sold more on etsy, and let's just say it's a lot more than I have ever expected considering how little time and effort I put into it. I have done some sewing & crafting with friends, but not as much as I'd like to. I didn't donate my hair by the end of the summer season like I planned, but I did get it cut. I got 22-23 inches cut off, which in my book is exponentially better than 12 inches. Last but not least, get Berkley to properly walk on a leash - FAIL. Sigh, but he has calmed down so much now that he's 4 years old.

I'm going to have to state that 2010 was not an easy year for me. I had a terrible break up with my best friend, and he moved to Seattle. I was very poor for the most part of the year with one part-time job. A lot of friends were out of my life. I had to turn in my favourite car to a scrap yard. I had a very lonely summer when I lived by myself in Ann Arbor, and had no mode of transportation outside of my bicycle and my feet. My best friend of a dog that I had for 15 years had to be put to sleep. Plus the fall semester proved to be overwhelming and stressful, especially combined with working two jobs.

But aside from all the bad, there were some good things. I did get to do quite a lot despite the fact that I was very poor, depressed most of the time, and lonely. I went to many concerts and saw many bands such as: Beach House, The Greenhornes, Dum Dum Girls, Stars, Those Darlins, Twin Sister, Mountain Man, Wild Nothing, and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes. I traveled on my own by plane (to Seattle!) and train (to Kalamazoo!). I turned 21 and I think that drinking (responsibly, of course) I'm more comfortable expressing myself verbally and less of a coward when having conversation. I started to become a little more comfortable and confident with myself with new people. I vended at four different craft fairs, which is so much more than I could have ever hoped for. I transferred to a new school and fell in love with photography all over again. I even gained a new family and confidence in myself as a photographer and artist. I even got a second job, and I think they'll even keep me after all this seasonal stuff! Last but not least, I FINALLY got my long hair cut off. I grew it from when it was super short to the long length to above my rear end. It took two years to get that length! I was highly nervous to get it cut off and it didn't even matter who would do the cutting. But now that hair is off my head a heavy load of responsibility came off along with it. I wish that I could see the wig that will be made with my hair.

I feel as if that even though it wasn't a good and happy year for me, I really did make some achievements and experience a tremendous amount of growth. There still are some obstacles to jump over, more to work on & learn from, and some new goals to achieve, but I know it will be alright considering how I handled 2010.

I hope that everyone else had a great 2010 and will have a better 2011. I think I'm going to start pondering on what my new resolutions will be. Are you making any for yourself?

xo Jenni Loo