2012, a year in review

2012 was bittersweet in a number of respects.  In March I flew to Central Texas to see my best friend who I hadn't seen in 10.5 years, drove to Houston to see a childhood friend who I hadn't seen in probably 12 years and met up with an online couple I have known for almost 20 years but hadn't had an opportunity to meet yet.  On that trip to Texas I was supposed to see my college roommate but something unexpected came up on her end so that didn't happen.  Also in March I did find a local pen and ink shop in Atlanta where I  purchased my first non-school fountain pen and bottle of ink and I even attended my first Military Ball.

April was the Atlanta Fountain pen show where I was fortunate to attend my first show (but it won't be my last) but also where I met some wonderful people and even purchased 4 more pens and a bottle of ink, returned home and ordered a 5th pen and a bottle of ink.  My collection started off this year with 1 modern and 4 calligraphy pens and 1 bottle of ink now stands at 2 vintage,  8 modern, 1 modern flex, 4 calligraphy pens and 5 bottles of ink (with another vintage pen on its way).

May/June went by in a blur and saw not only the end of a 14 year relationship but almost my moving to another state.  The blur continued on through the summer and well into mid October where I went to my first Comic-Con.  During the summer I did manage to acquire 4 reasonably inexpensive Chinese fountain pens and another bottle of ink (reviews to come in the new year).

November was busy towards the end with not only a trip to Disneyland with my college roommate and her son the weekend before Thanksgiving but also an unexpected trip to San Antonio for the weekend of Thanksgiving to attend my first Magic The Gathering (MTG) Grand Prix event.

By the time December rolled around I was excited for a neighbour from Germany to move into town as it had been 4 year or so since I had last seen her and her family.  Unlike the past years, this Christmas and my birthday were quiet and leisurely which was a much welcomed and needed change.

The challenge for this year was to read 100 fiction books however I only managed to read 90 of them (George R R Martin's books 1 and 2 of A Game of Thrones series took longer to read than anticipated).  We shall attempt this challenge again next year with probably the same stipulations.

This was the first year that I not only made resolutions but wrote them down.  I am a firm believer than if you want something to change or do something differently, then why wait.  This was the year to de-clutter my life and in some respects I achieved this and in other respects I didn't.  Any achievement were the un-anticipated sort but nevertheless it needed to happen.

From earlier this year this is the list:

• Clear out my inbox (currently 2931 mails)
• read at least 6 classics this year
• read not more than one book from the library a month in addition to the book club reads*
• read more of the books I own
• Make and send out Chinese New Year cards
• Make and send out birthday cards

* - unless I've read all of the ones I own, which is less than likely given the list.

There are other things I'm working on this year which aren't really resolutions but just in general:

• Back-up and delete files off the laptop
• unless it's a special occasion, no more than 2 hours of TV a night, not to extend past 9pm

The ones with the strike-through were accomplished without much of an issue. Sadly the others didn't fair so well.

Considering the ups and down the changes and challenges of this year, I think I did rather well.  While it didn't end up how I anticipated it would, it certainly means that 2013 will start off with a much better foundation.  Now that I've reached the end of the year I can say I've met some wonderful people, got a better idea of who my true friends are and had some experiences I will treasure forever.  Here's hoping that 2013 will be just as good.

Birthday month

My birthday is this month and a few weeks ago I received a card from Vera Bradley, not only wishing me happy birthday but also giving me $20 off towards a purchase of $20 or more during this month.

After having spent way more money this month than I have been comfortable with it was with great anxiety that I started to browse their site.  It has been more than a year since I bought anything from them and I noticed that some of the designs I was looking for have either been renamed or discontinued in favour of similar but different lines.  After spending several hours there I finally decided what to buy and how to use it.

This will be my new pen holder for my various fountain pens and inks that I always seem to want to carry with me but have yet to as it seems a shame to carry them in a ziplock bag.

Thanks Vera Bradley!

Movie Review - Jack Reacher

Jack Reacher is not only the title of this movie but the name of the main character from Lee Child's novels.  At the start of the movie you learn that it is based off One Shot which interestingly is not the first book in the series but book nine.

There has been some speculation whether Tom Cruise should play Jack Reacher as those who are familiar with the character know that Mr. Cruise's stats are nowhere close to the fictional character (Reacher is noted to be 6'5", between 210 and 250 lbs, ice blue eyes with blonde hair).  There are two things that one should note, firstly I am not  Tom Cruise fan and while I usually read the books before watching the movies/seeing the television series I haven't read this book/series before.

From everything I've read about Jack Reacher, it seems that Cruise did a good job capturing the essence of the character.  Surprisingly there were some very funny parts in the movie, thankfully they go hand in hand with Reacher's character as Cruise doesn't seem to have a natural affinity for comedic timing.  Due to the size difference between the character and the actor, it was fairly well handled in the first "action" scene.

The movie was easy to follow which was surprising as I find most movie adaptations a little on the awkward side.  However, I reserve further judgement until after I've read the book.  All in all, I do not think Cruise did a terrible job and I found myself quite surprised that I saw the movie.

Final verdict: Wait until it comes out on DVD to watch it.

I must do better

While I cannot believe that it's been April since I last posted, it doesn't surprise me.

A load of things have happened since then which has derailed any posting I may have done.

I must do better.  I will endeavour to do better once Christmas is over.  While I'm not a firm believer in starting things in the New Year as part of a resolution, I am hoping to get some FP "loot" for Christmas and my birthday plus I'm hoping to re-start my ink drop come Jan 1.