We made it to 2015! And 2015 has been a DOOZY so far. And I don't often use the word DOOZY (mostly out of shame and embarrassment). But this post is to talk about my past year, 2014. It was a pretty big year for me: the first time I moved away from home officially, the first time I got a "grown up" job, the first time I traveled to Europe…it was both very hard and very fun (that's what she said OHHHHH)
Last year I rang in the new year dancing with sparklers in a snowy backyard in the mountains, quaffing glasses of champagne (and I mean glasses), dancing in an underground speakeasy, and then gloriously throwing up on myself for the first time ever. This year I was a bit classier and instead rang in 2015 in Puerta del Sol, getting sprayed with champagne and confetti and eating 12 grapes for the 12 months of the year.
January
painted a million things at Color Me Mine since it was super cheap
applied for tons of jobs
had tons of job interviews
visited Claire and Traci in California (after an interview in San Jose)
rode a mechanical bull
sold some things in my Etsy store!
February
traveled to Texas for the first time in my life
got my very first grown-up job as a bird and mammal trainer
tried to experience as much of Utah as I could before the move
packed up my life to move out to south Texas
drove a giant truck with a car towed behind it
March
moved into a house with a stripper and a desperately lonely 40 year old man
started my first big girl job
got rear-ended after my first day of work. MY FIRST DAY OF WORK
Growler was deemed incapable of keeping up with my high-speed lifestyle :(
began training and relationship building with tons of amazing animals
made tons of great new friends
went to the beach, went to trivia, got drunk, had parties, went to a Spazmatics concert…the usual
skin grew over the back of my cartilage piercing so I had to go to a piercing studio and beg them to pierce through the skin
April
explored new places
continued to learn the ropes at my new job
Opa came down to meet me in San Antonio so I could bid adieu to Growler and buy a new car
bought Spixie, the 2008 blue Kia Rio
started the tradition of "Wild Wednesdays", my shared day off with several people, where we went on adventures aka day drank the whole day
attended Orphan's Easter, a big event where all my friends from work had a big party and it was awesome
I made a ham for the first time
started the tradition of Sunday Fundays, originally created to watch Game of Thrones and drink
May
visited Dallas with Jess to see Bruce Springsteen and got to feed tigers!
started training my first behavior with Nacho, the Red-Legged Seriema, and Kogi, the Military Macaw
got into country music (it finally happened, after living in three states where people were obsessed with country music…)
went to drive-through bars
kept trying to keep up with having a social life and being dirt poor as I worked hard at a job I loved
June
Summer: Texas Style begans
started a polaroid project where I attempted to take a photo with my instax mini every day
had several bonfires on the beach
went line-dancing
found a "real" club to go dancing
broke my favorite lens, my "nifty fifty" :'(
July
experienced a baby Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle release
went dancing, drank a lot of peach vodka iced tea, went swimming, played in the ocean, went to the beach
got dehydrated at work a lot
moved into a new apartment with Elise! Two bed, two bath, YES! And Elise is one of the best roommates ever
Dad came to visit for a couple of days! I showed him the aquarium, we went to the beach, he bought me furniture, and we ate pizza and watched Thor (and also drank rum and cokes)
got really frustrated at work for certain reasons
August
my birthday month! I turned 24 and threw a big beach bonfire bash complete with copious amounts of alcohol, skinny dipping in the ocean at night amongst the bioluminescence, getting herded by a sheepdog, and crying (ugh)
went sailing for the first time!
the curator who hired me resigned to work elsewhere, so management changed and with this came a lot more freedom
there was a lot of change in attitudes, some tears, some bitterness, but ultimately a breath of fresh air
went to San Antonio for a day trip! Visited Seaworld, the Riverwalk, and an excellent old-school tavern
September
watched Laura release three beautiful barn owls back into their native habitat
became the lead trainer of Kogi, the Military Macaw I am in love with, and Cleo, the grumpiest Swainson's Hawk ever
went to a Miranda Lambert concert, my first country concert ever!
one of my friends threw an EPIC murder mystery party! It was old west themed and I went all out as a saloon girl. I even won Best Costume and got a gift card because of it. So proud, so proud
my car BROKE DOWN. My "brand new car" had an issue where something in the engine broke and it was a $900 fix. UGH
went to Legally Blonde: the Musical with all the ladies in my life and it was fantastic
celebrated Kogi's tenth birthday (or BIRD DAY)
learned how to shoot guns like a country girl. Blew shit up in the desert
October
MY FAVORITE MONTH!
threw a pumpkin carving party (of course) where Elise carved only her third pumpkin ever!
went to an epic Halloween party at Laura and Ryan's house where there were brain hemorrhage shots, dancing, glow beer pong, drinking games, line dances (where I won ability to wobble the longest), and failed to bob for apples because I was so busy doing everything else
unfortunately, at that amazing party my phone was stolen :(
Jess, my Wild Wednesdays partner, moved back home. It was hard to see her go, she was one of my best friends down here and my partner in crime in the Wildflight department. She is greatly missed, but I'm glad she's happy :)
was interviewed for the aquarium news program about Halloween enrichment since it's my favorite, got to be on Youtube!
went wine tasting in Rockport
November
got a new phone, a 4s, so I upgraded a little bit
I had to re-pierce my own cartilage piercing since it fell out one night and grew over within 12 hours
went for a quick trip to Utah to see Gabe and Mom (because she was there for a social work conference)
got to see some of my best friends
went exploring in the mountains
hung out with my family
had some weird, awkward moments…
went to Orphan's Thanksgiving, which helped me a lot since I had such a great family Thanksgiving last year
went to the Dia de los Muertos festival downtown
Laura got a new Great Dane puppy!
December
really struggled with depression and anxiety (it's still ongoing, unfortunately)
got our staff evaluations; mine was mostly positive :)
trained Kogi to knock down a sign for his routine
got a Christmas tree with Elise
drank hot schnapplate
flew to SPAIN for Christmas!
experienced Europe for the first time; went sightseeing, went birdwatching (what are European birds, idek), went wine tasting, took thousands of pictures, explored constantly, and barhopped as we ate our weight in tapas
got my nifty fifty lens replaced for Christmas thanks to the generosity of my amazing parents
got to see my family and my dogs again
went to work holiday parties for the first time
All in all, it was a year filled with growth, broken/stolen/lost items, heartbreak over broken/stolen/lost items, tears, sweat, blood, aggravation, and passion. It was a fiercely important and difficult year of my life. I am so grateful for my new friends here, the opportunities I've had, and for the adventures I will go on in the future. Despite my tenuous relationship with South Texas, I am here for the long haul (or at least a longer haul) and will have a damn good time despite the rough edges.
2015 has so far been pretty difficult emotionally: I lost my iPod on the plane ride back from Spain (which in itself was the worst), I got into a car accident, and now my car has been proclaimed totaled. I must buy a new one within ten months of just undergoing the same process. Needless to say, depression has run rampant.
But, as my mother wisely said, I must not write this year off already. It's only been two weeks into the new year. I have a lot to prove, a lot to learn, a lot to experience, and a lot of fun to have. I'm not done with you yet, 2015, and I am going to train the shit out of you.
Happy New Year
I did an overview of my last two years here and here
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