12.18.01 - 7:48 p.m.

The January issue of InStyle has an entire section on "New Year, New You" and includes little lists of things you can do to change or complement your life. I found these two to be rather interesting:

Download an MP3 file and play it.
Yes, thank you, I am part of the digital age.

Read the stock pages and understand the basics of the market.
Um, nope. Apart from our fake stock market scenario in high school, when I bought stock in the Limited, Converse and Kenneth Cole, can't say that I know much else about this. There's a reason I didn't take the econ RPA at Medill.

Find the North Star.
Can do.

Use chopsticks - correctly.
Halfway there.

Program your VCR to record your favorite shows.
All over this one.

Play poker - and bluff.
Apart from Prime Time Poker? Not so much.

Bake a killer dessert.
Oh baby, yes! And once I get my ramekins, I will be unstoppable.

Type without peeking.
Um, YES.

Drive a stick shift.
Not so much.

Sew on a button.
This I can do. It is one of my three sewing talents. (The others are the basting stitch and the whipstitch, perfected in my years of sorority duty.)

Hear your favorite musician play live.
That's been pretty much taken care of for all my favorite bands with the obvious exception of the Beatles. But R.E.M., Ben, Dave, etc. - got them covered.

Drive cross-country with a lover.
Dan? Someday? Please?

Identify, then conquer, your biggest fear.
I think my biggest fear is failure, and there was a whole article before this on how failure is good for you, so something's got to give.

Spend an entire week by yourself.
I think I've done this. In Chicago this summer, I'm sure I've done this.

Witness childbirth.
Wait, maybe that's my biggest fear.

Place a bet in Vegas or Monte Carlo.
I assume at some point I'll have enough money that I won't feel horrible being in a casino, and I assume I'll be visiting at least one of these places someday. I might be at the $5 table with Jon Favreau's mom from Swingers, but it'll happen.

Make amends with someone you feel you have wronged.
Well, Cyndi and I made up, and I forgave Court for his wrongs against me, but I don't think there's anyone I've committed a truly horrible crime against. Really. I think the fight with Cyndi was the worst.

Have your portrait painted - or your photo taken - by a pro.
I've painted my own, but I'm not a pro. And I don't think school pictures count.

So Cyndi and Graham are engaged, which is hardly surprising but still strange to finally happen after all these years. They've been dating since freshman year, which is like an eternity, and I feel like I've been there for so much of their relationship, but wow. It's just that Cyndi's actually getting married. I have to get some details - it seems so weird, she's Cyndi, after all. She likes kids even less than I do. And, I don't know, it seems like Cyndi always gets there before me. (Dan, please do not read anything into this. I'm happy with you, with us, I'm not implying anything. Really.) Throughout all my failed relationships, all through college, she was there being the girlfriend, getting lavaliered, having candlelights, all those things that seemed so important at the time. I really wonder what kind of ring he got her, since I'm sure it had to cost a fortune. Poor Grahamy. I wonder if he got it right on the first try.