Right now… Honeysuckle & Bulgarian rose perfume, pink sequinned Betsey Johnson dresses, dreams & hopes for the new year, the bright colours of India, black ink pens & small Moleskine notebooks, French classes & writing groups, chocolate iced coffee, black wrapping paper & silver stick-on letters, stringing clear fairy lights all over the house, peppermint striped phalaenopsis orchids, writing love letters to my friends, Godiva chocolates in the pocket of my faux fur coat, post office boxes & oversized cups of coffee.
Christmas was wonderful; thank you for asking. I hope yours was too. The Dish bought me dresses & a watch, all from Betsey Johnson. I bought him motorcycle parts & some Pendleton shirts. We ate turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, string bean casserole, cranberry sauce & amazing gravy — pretty much identical to our Thanksgiving feast. Delish. Today I helped a friend go shopping at Alexander McQueen; afterwards we sat in a diner, sipping milkshakes & discussing our plans for world domination in 2010.
2009: the year that was.
Walking around Hollywood; Jazzi, Nubby & I with James St. James; Jake in Austin; technicolour swimming pools with Chloe; fabulous apartments; Christopher & Adam in Los Angeles; sunset rooftops with Nubby; Las Vegas with Barbie; après-runway weirdness; Hank Williams; Tompkins Square Park with Lydia; laughing with Chloe; The Dish & Tim Burton & Johnny Depp moments; fashion darling; with Rachel & Molly; Christmas dolly.
Compulsory review:
1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?
Gained the right to live in America. !!!!!!!!!! So good.
2. Did you keep your New Year’s Resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
My resolutions were more like mottos. They were:
more magic all the time
dream big
live the fairytale
take action
light the way
be a visionary
raw power
stay gold
& I think I did pretty much all of them other than the raw power bit. Which I am coming back to, again. When I am distracted or busy with other things, usually my positive eating & exercise habits are the first things to go. Now that I am more settled, it’s all coming back.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Nooooooope.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Noooooooooooope. But I will say that I feel like the world lost some real, true magic when Michael Jackson died.
5. What countries did you visit?
Just New Zealand, the United States & Canada. But I went to a few places. Los Angeles (multiple times), San Francisco, Austin, New York (multiple times), Toronto, Auckland (multiple times), Wellington (multiple times), Las Vegas, New Jersey & Connecticut.
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
A tropical vacation. PLEASE. Bring it on. I’m all over it.
7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
My brain doesn’t really work like that. I remember my first date with The Dish very vividly: he showed up at midnight on his motorcycle & we stayed up talking until sunrise. I remember running around Los Angeles with Jazzi & getting into trouble in Austin with Molly & Jake. It was a good year, ladies & gentlemen.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I’m happy with my professional progress. & I’m really blissed out about meeting a man who makes me so happy. Especially because I wasn’t looking for it, which makes it even more wonderful.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not so much failure, but the start of the year had its share of dumb boy drama.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I got a cold while I was in New Zealand. A few days on the magical potion & I was 100% again!
11. What was the best thing someone bought you?
I bought myself a MacBook Pro for Christmas :D
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Lots of people. The Dish. Jess. Helen. Jennie. Chloe. Jazzi. Molly. Etc.!
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
No one really.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Plane tickets, as always!
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Um, everything! I am always excited about SOMETHING!
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
Last.fm says my top songs of the year were:
1 Atmosphere – Hockey Hair
2 Drake – Sooner Than Later
3 The Hold Steady – First Night
4 Atmosphere – Party For the Fight to Write
5 Soul Position – Keep It Hot For Daddy
6 Brother Ali – Pedigree
7 David Dallas – Indulge Me
8 Atmosphere – C’mon
9 Rob Roy – Rollercoaster baby
9 Atmosphere – Feel Good Hit of the Summer 2
9 P.O.S. – Drumroll (We’re All Thirsty)
12 The Hold Steady – Magazines
12 Drake – Bria’s Interlude (f/Omarion)
12 Atmosphere – They Always Know
12 Living Legends – Watch Out!
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? The former.
b) fatter or skinner? The latter.
c) richer or poorer? The former. Word.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Making out!
19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Procrastinating…
20. How do you plan to spend Christmas?
I spent it with my little family in New York. Me, The Dish & Hank Williams in the East Village. Wouldn’t have had it any other way.
21. Did you fall in love in 2009?
Yes. Very much so. It was less a fall than a wonderful, ongoing, swirling, twirling, stumbling tumble.
22. How many one night stands?
None! :D
23. What was your favorite TV program?
Flight of the Conchords. Entourage. Greek. Ugh & I just started watching Say Yes To The Dress which I am kind of obsessed with, gross!
24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
No. I actually have less “hate” than this time last year. Bonus! I would like to think that the older I get, the more loving I become.
25. What was the best book you read?
God, I don’t remember. Maybe Women by Buk.?
26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
When P.O.S. put out Never Better my brain pretty much exploded. Best album of the YEAR mos’ def’.
27. What did you want and get?
About 98% of what I wanted.
28. What did you want and not get?
About 2% of what I wanted… But it wouldn’t have been good for me to get it anyway. Thanks universe!
29. What was your favorite film of this year?
I don’t remember, I don’t watch a lot of movies.
30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I was 26 (OLD) & I spent it with my family in New Zealand.
31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Better time management.
32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
Ladies who lunch on LSD.
33. What kept you sane?
Personal tenacity & belief in magic.
34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Oh get out.
35. What political issue stirred you the most?
Prop 8. So many of the videos made me cry.
36. Who do you miss?
All my friends in different cities, WHYYYYY do we have to be scattered across the earth like this?! (Answer: great travelling opportunities & so that we really appreciate the time we have together. Okay good, glad we solved that.)
37. Who was the best new person you met?
I met a lot of great people. I can’t even get into it. But it was a great year.
38. What was the best thing you ate?
I ate some really good nosh in Austin, & The Dish introduced me to a lot of amazing restaurants in NYC. His Thanksgiving turkey was pretty goddamn good, though.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009?
Life is really beautiful & wonderful. (Not so much a lesson as a summary.)
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
I don’t need other people’s words!