2007

Resolutions

I almost entirely lived up to my 2006 resolution to be more interactive - although I've spoken to my family less than ever, I've commented a lot more online, and got more involved with various fandoms and beta reading. (Here I would like to apologise to likeadeuce for not getting your fic back to you. It was very cool, and I liked it very much, so it was a great relief to see that sionnain had come through for you) I'm certainly never going to be the most chatty person in the universe, but online interaction is becoming less terrifying - perhaps phone and in-person interaction will eventually follow!

I have just the one* resolution for 2007, and that's to read 50 new books. It may not sound like a lot, but I think my total would be closer to 20 this year, not counting comics, graphic novels or re-reads. For someone who used to happily read 10-15 books per week, plus another dozen or more for university, that's not many.

Early in 1998, I suddenly developed the severe fatigue that was an early sign of depression and the thyroid cancer that was eventually diagnosed and removed late in 1999. One of the symptoms was an inability to concentrate - words suddenly made no sense, I couldn't remember what had been on the previous page, let alone the last chapter. English was difficult, Japanese was impossible. I've got a lot better since then (thank you artificial thyroid hormones and SSRIs!), but the ability to read for hours on end has never returned, and reading is much more of an effort than it was before I was ill. This is very discouraging - every time I look down and realise I've only slogged through ten pages, the temptation is there just to give up and go read a comic or fanfic. Not that comics are necessarily easier to read, but they are much shorter and more episodic. Just looking around the living room I can see a dozen books I want to read, and there's so many more I would buy if I didn't think I'd just stash them guiltily on a shelf. Therefore, I'm going to read them.

*Please insert the usual resolution about being healthier and exercising more. I'm trying to make that a lifetime thing, not a "staying sedentary for the whole of January because it's too damn hot then feeling terrible and beating myself up about it well into autumn" thing. That has not proven productive in past years!

Reflections

2006 was an odd year, but enjoyable, apart from the imminent threat of Death By Fire, which still looms large for the next few months. World affairs made me bury my head in the flank of a cat, because we're all doomed. Doomed, I tell you! I had weeks where I'd check Google News to check no-one had let off a nuke, then refused to read the papers, online or otherwise. Tonsillitis in May was revolting, although at least I had the good sense to have it while the World Cup was on and could watch the Australians finally doing well, through my one-eyed feverish haze (the other eye had conjunctivitis). It took an irritatingly long time to recover, but I did it just in time to write for the June/July round of ficathons!

The year in fanfic was rather satisfying. Although almost everything I wrote was for a challenge, I've concluded that I just damn well like writing for challenges and spending the rest of the time reading and commenting, and beta reading for st_aurafina, from whom excellent fic spilled forth this year. It's terrific to be able to talk through what she's writing as well as what I might be, and poke various characters into conversation and admissions. Old fandoms such as X-Men, assorted other comics, Doctor Who (along with Torchwood, yay!) and Harry Potter remained satisfying, though I've well and truly fled into the realm of genfic in HP because the shipper flamewars are so annoying. New fandoms include Heroes - where I enjoy the meta, though I haven't found much of the fic satisfying - and Supernatural, which seems to mostly consist of remarkably friendly fangirls and incredibly cracked-out stories.

After losing Ajax, our dear little cat who never grew up, in December 2005, Baggins the Great Grey Fashion Cat came to live with us in January, to be a companion for Aeon, Ajax's caretaker and sister. Baggins grew so enormous that even his innocent kitten play was too much for Aeon, so we bought Baggins his own kitten, his half-brother Chewbacca. Chewie is well-named, as he is a phlegmatic, affectionate little creature, who likes nothing more than to chew on a finger, a book, some cardboard or anything else he can find. With his addition, Baggins stopped trying to play with Aeon when she didn't want to play, and everyone was happy. We now have one more cat than there are people in our house, and that makes us Official Crazy Cat Ladies. Hooray!

My last living grandparent, my dad's father, was still working as a pharmacist in April, then retired and passed away five months later, not long before his 90th birthday. This was not a surprise to anyone, but still very sad, especially for my dad and his sister. My parents are up in New South Wales at the moment, helping to clean out his house: not as big a job as it sounds, as my grandfather spent most of his life on the move, from Scotland to the Isle of Man, to Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), and all over Australia, and was a past master at keeping only what he really wanted.

So, with a bit of a health improvement, 2006 can pass smoothly into 2007. Things are stable, st_aurafina and I are generally doing well, though various anxieties that we both have (about entirely different matters) need a good hard kick in the pants. All will be well.