my life in oh-nine.

i guess it's time for ye ole obligatory year recap. here we go.

january
there isn't much i remember about january, other than knowing that at that point, i made two major decisions: (1) i was not going to move away from nashville. (2) i was going to move out of my apartment. i also took on a hefty student loan payment for '09, and i feared it would result in me not having a life. not that i had much of one at the time. this was primary motivation for moving out of my apartment. i needed roommates to save money. i also needed roommates to save my soul. i was lonely.

february
i found a house to move into. february also began my obsession with local coffee shops. i mean, i had loved them for years, but at this point i became a frequent fido customer. i turned 26. i started to find community through a few friends at church. i resurrected this here blog. old faithful needed a new transmission. i saw ben folds live for the first time. i was introduced to the wonder that is andy davis. i became a tweetaholic.

march
the biggest event of march was moving into my current home. which.i.love. i went from a one-bedroom apartment in the almost-ghetto to an old 4-bedroom house with tons of character, nestled between my two favorite nashville neighborhoods. many of my favorite coffee shops, restaurants, and boutiques where i can't afford anything are within a one-mile radius.

april
let's see. i met some girls from australia who were in town for a few weeks. my favorite band came to nashville for a music festival. i went to wisconsin for the first time. joined a small group at my church, which was long overdue since i've been going there since i moved to nashville in '06. and i finally gained something i had been missing for awhile: a life. i was hardly ever home in april.

may
biggest and best may event: tulsa road trip. some friends and i loaded up the car and headed west to see our favorite band. they had a special event in an intimate setting where they recorded, live, some new songs that were later put onto an ep. the show was amazing, the songs were incredible, the jokes and memories from the road trip? priceless. now i feel like a master card commercial. moving on.

june
i met a few new friends in june, which have turned out to be some of my closest friends here in nashville. i volunteered with ellie's run. finally joined mocha club. saw andy davis again. celebrated two years at my job, which is just weird to think about. i hosted a walk to raise money to build water wells in africa. i discovered a new coffee shop - one that is only two blocks from my house and now quite as hipster-run as fido. frothy monkey. it's just so cute and adorable and everyone there is friendly. and let's face it. the location couldn't be any better.

july
july. july will be one of those months that i will never, ever forget. i finally decided to start making journals again. i got drenched on the 4th, and loved it. however, i feel as though the best details of july will have to remain a mystery to you blog readers. so you just have to trust me when i say it was a good month.

august
in august i celebrated my 3-year nashaversary. and my mom and i travled to orange county to visit our cousin. it was easily the most relaxing vacation i have ever had. usually my vacations are go-go-go. while i got to see quite a bit of orange county, la, and the surrounding areas, there was much time spent in the pool and hot tub, sipping mojitos. it was just what i needed.

september
september was another good month. i spent a lot of time making journals, which stirred up the creative and more introspective side of me, the part of me i had ignored for far too long. i had the opportunity to catch up with some old friends. i realized, for the 320948209438th time how incredible 2009 was turning out to be. i realized, for the 320948209438th time that i had finally found the community i had ached for in 2008. i embraced autumn and everything that it stands for.

october
october was my travel month. indianapolis. chicago. charlotte. myrtle beach. atlanta. why? because i love my favorite band, my friends, any excuse to travel, and i'm a little bit crazy.

november
i thought a lot in november. i thought about the whirlwind of 2009. about god's grace, and his promises. about hope. about myself, my story, god's story. about what the next chapter will be.

december
here we are. the past few years have had a trend, where each year is better than the one before. though every year i'm blown away by how that could even be possible. but there's something about 2010. i just have this feeling that something big will give birth in 2010. and that's what's been on my mind the most this month. i guess i just feel like a lot of the events from this year have lined up in a way to prepare me for what's to come. i guess we'll see.