Auld Lang Syne

The New Year is almost upon us, which means it's time for an end of the year meme. :)

Normally I'd take the first line from the first post of each month... but I had pretty much stopped blogging until the diagnosis brought me back to LJ. So, instead, I'm just going to post highlights from either LJ posts or Facebook statuses for each month.

January
FB - Jennifer vaguely remembers being painfree.
FB - Jennifer thinks things are pretty good right now. ^.^
February
FB - Jennifer never really liked Valentine's Day anyway.
FB - Jennifer thinks comfort food should be more comforting.
March
FB - Jennifer thinks chocolate fondue parties are the best!
FB - Jennifer's life has been taken over by High School Musical. God help me!
April
FB - Jennifer can't quite believe it.
FB - Jennifer owns a soft, fuzzy WMD named Sam.
May
LJ - Once again I prove that I am incapable of posting in my LJ unless I have bad news. It really is a talent, I think.
FB - Jennifer is wondering how many things have to go wrong with you before you're declared a natural disaster.
June
LJ - I have a surgery date! I will officially be checking in to the hospital at 7am on June 18th. The end is still a long way off, but the journey's begun.
FB - Jennifer keeps her friends close and her drugs closer (and is home, safe, sound and healthy :D)
July
LJ - After many weeks of very happy non-issues, I've come up against one hell of conundrum.
FB - Jennifer wishes people would stop making good books into bad movies
August
LJ - I decided to do it.
FB - Jennifer could give Natalie Portman a run for her money. :P
FB - Jennifer is a leaf on the wind. ^.^
September
LJ - Each and everyone one of us wear a million faces. Even those of us who strive to be honest and straightforward with the people in our lives... we play a game with masks.
FB - Jennifer is thinking she deserves one hell of a celebration party once this year is over.
October
LJ - Thursday was a treatment day and, once again, we have complications. Really, is anyone surprised?
FB - Jennifer has a case of the giggles.
November
LJ - It's November 1st, that wonderful and magical date when thousands upon thousands of individuals worldwide tap into their hidden reserves of creativity, determination and insanity in order to transform themselves into novelists.
FB - Jennifer is exhausted, caffeinated, and satisfied. It was a ridiculous and awesome Halloween. :D
FB - Jennifer feels broken and is wishing there was a manual for putting one's self back together.
December
LJ - It's been awhile since I updated. Honestly, I've just been too tired. I'm exhausted, both physically and mentally, and three weeks of unbroken work weeks seems just a bit overwhelming right now.
LJ - Friday was my last day of school and, with that realization, it's as if someone threw a switch in my mind from "life sucks" to "everything is grand!"
FB - Jennifer could almost forget the world, curled up with a good book in her lap and a warm kitty at her side.
FB - Jennifer feels like dancing

It's been a roller coaster of a year. I endured two breakups, the loss of an amazing friend (RIP Annika), cancer and chemo. I also went to Ireland, saw fireworks in Washington DC, reunited with friends from Australia, won NaNo, and got to celebrate some wonderful times with friends.

I have been depressed. I have been overjoyed. I've been so self-conscious I've wanted to never see a mirror again in my life... and I've slowly come to terms with the changes in my appearance. I've loved. I've lost. I've lived.

The most amazing thing about this year is that, in the end, it was just another year. It was monumental... and yet it's already over and done. The tradgedies and crises that I've faced have passed. Their echoes will be felt for a long time to come... but I've survived the worst of their impact.

It's time for a new year and a new beginning.

For auld lang syne, my dear, for auld lang syne. We'll take a cup o' kindness yet for auld lang syne.