On New Year’s Eve of 2015, I was alone in my apartment. I didn’t know what to do with myself. So I bought a bottle of white wine, sat down with the bottle and a wineglass, and thought about the past year.
In January of 2014, mere weeks after I had moved out of my parents’ home and left religion, I had said to a friend that 2014 was my “year of firsts.” So at the end of that year of firsts, on the eve of 2015, I decided to make a list of all those firsts. I started and continued at random, as thoughts occurred to me.
By the end of this list, I was full-on drunk and half-crying. I could have gone on and on, but when I got to the last item on the list, I… well, I decided I had more important things to do 😉
As my fourth year draws to a close, here’s that list. Some items are monumental firsts, some are tiny. Some are related to leaving religion, some are not related to that at all. Some are coded in a way only I could understand – which I have a tendency to do even when writing in my personal journal…
I had intended to make this a yearly tradition, but on the eve of 2016, I was frantically finishing a paper to submit way past the deadline and I had no time to celebrate of reflect in any way. And on the eve of 2017, I drank champagne with my roommates and we watched episode after episode of a ridiculous Japanese comedy show well into the morning.
So this didn’t become a tradition – but I’m really happy I have this 2014 list.
For better or worse, below is a snapshot of my 2014:
- first apartment
- first cry in shul
- first bus ride on shabbos
- first pants outside
- first roommate drama
- first meal pair for shabbos
- first modern dance show
- first Broadway musical
- first missed day of work
- first study abroad
- first college dorm
- first time in UK
- first shrimp
- first calamari
- first wine in a bar
- first Korean food
- first bought alcohol (not counting Cleveland)
- first bought pots and dishes
- first crying to a credit card rep
- first college class taught
- first conference grad paper
- first online to date
- first crush on someone I thought I had a chance with
- first male friend
- first full drunk
- first drunk text
- first hangover
- first TV marathon day
- first heartbreak
- first love – unrequited maybe
- first poetry reading
- first party
- first tattoo
- first bookshelf put together
- first phone bill
- first flashback
- first adolescent fight with parents
- first atheism
- first protest march
- first feminism argument
- first pub trivia
- first bacon
- first cheeseburger
- first McDonald’s
- first Wendy’s
- first office
- first academic blog
- first (and last!) Indiegogo
- first built bookshelf by myself
- first time in a cathedral
- first Catholic candle
- first admitting bisexual
- first gay bar
- first REAL self-respect and like
- first buffalo wings
- first joint birthday party
- first girlfriend fight
- first girl talk sleepover
- first Moleskine notebook
- first Victoria’s Secret
- first acceptance for publication
- first asking a guy out
- first Skype
- first Stonehenge
- first Christmas tree
- first red shoes
- first red lipstick
- first big ring
- first hair dye
- first Halloween
- first open-toe shoes
- first leggings
- first printed t-shirt
- first short sleeves
- first open neckline
- first jeans
- first short skirt
- first drinks with professors
- first angel ornament
- first grad school committee member
- first medieval castle
- first German dictionary
- first honest talk with Mommy and Tatty (but separately)
- first email exchange with Mommy
- first ER visit alone
- first belt
- first concert
- first violin
- first colorful socks
- first really hating someone
- first wineglasses purchase
- first coasters purchase
- first pedicure
- first brownie
- first Indiana Jones
- first used bookstore visit
- first full-day exam
- first sex dream
Lovely post! Would I be correct in saying 2014 was a year of growing for you? 🙂 Wishing you love and strength as you continue to grow. All best for the New Year!
Oh, love the “first poetry reading”. I’ll keep that in mind, and perhaps follow up on how is poetry reading now going. 😀 Take care…
Oh, most definitely, 2014 was a year of terrified growing 😉
I did a few poetry readings in 2014 and 2015, but stopped after that. I prefer not to actually read my poems aloud, it turns out. And since I have the luxury of writing poetry as a hobby rather than an attempt to be “a poet,” I can get away with that 😉