"Pam, can you call my mom?"

The things we will do for free Voodoo Donuts.

I guess it's that time of year where we are supposed to look back and take stock before fixating our thoughts on the future (because no one is really that good at living in the now, are they?).
There were a lot of things I accomplished and experienced, and places that I visited this year and it's laid out in this blog over the past year, but if I had to narrow down the highlights - the things that really stick out in my mind and that I still talk about - it would have to be: going back to work; being a passenger in a hella fast Corvette at an autocross; and getting married.  An honorable mention goes to waiting with baited breath for "Fifty Shades of Grey" to come out so I can see if I'm in any of the shots.
Going back to work was difficult.  It remains difficult to this day.  Rather soon after returning I started using sick time which is what I do when I'm feeling overwhelmed and under appreciated.  The other day it took me two and half hours to get to work (which is ten miles away) due to an accident on one of the two bridges off the North Shore, which resulted in a massive clusterfuck.  As I sat in my car at the hour and a half mark, crawling down Georgia Street I thought to myself "huh: even though I am stuck in downtown Vancouver rush hour traffic and I'm going to be docked two hour's pay because I'm going to be late, I would still rather be doing this than be at work".  That's a bad sign.
That was the past.  Looking to the future I will continue to try and find a comparable job on the North Shore, and/or I will start meditating again.  I've already signed up for the local running clinic to keep my sanity.
Hanging out with my brother at the auto cross this summer was fun, like always, but I kicked it up a notch by knocking on a guy's window and being all "hey there, big boy" and he said "jump in".  Holy shit.  I didn't know cars could go so fast that you have a hard time literally keeping your head straight.  Hello g-force!  Whereas the first time I went with my brother I screamed out that sort of roller coaster type fear? This time I was just hanging on for dear life, not able to utter a sound.  I would totally do it again, and I also wish I had the money for a beater, standard Civic so I could ratbag the shit out of it at the track.
Getting married was fun.  Like, actually fun.  It was basically a vacation to Portland in perfect weather with a ten minute ceremony thrown in at Voodoo Donuts, replete with a guy in a Mexican wrestling mask and a pink gorilla.  Why everyone doesn't do this is beyond me.  Especially because you get to skip the line up and they give you free donuts.  A couple of hours before we were supposed to get married I was getting my very first ever mani-pedi and I struck up a conversation with a couple of girls there who wanted to know if Vancouver was worth visiting.  Then they asked what brought me to Portland and I said I was getting married and they asked when and I said "in about two hours" and they said "you gotta go, girl!".  It was funny.
As for "Fifty Shades" (cause I know you're at least going to rent it even if you say you're not): look for me as a traveler in the background in two airport scenes, and as someone eating at a cafe during the scene where the cyclist almost knocks the heroine over but she is saved by Mr. Grey.  It was a fun experience except for the fact that we were filming in December and we had to pretend it was summer somewhere.  I got very sick after the filming, but Jamie Dornan gave me a hot pocket (this is not a euphemism), so it was all worth it.
Presently, Michael is sick and it is not unlike the below commercial (except he doesn't weight 200lbs, of course).  We spent Christmas Eve with my brother and his family, and his partner's family and then the next day headed to Penticton to be with Michael's family which was nice because I met - for the second time in fourteen years - one of my nieces.  Gotta say it's weird to be called "Auntie" by some girls that are pushing thirty.
So New Year's resolutions for me are to: find another job; lose ten pounds; run a 1:40 half marathon in the spring for which I haven't even signed up yet; MORE AUTO CROSS; and be discovered by a Hollywood agent who recognizes the supreme talent behind harried traveler bit.  I know how to adeptly wield baggage, I tell you.
Best wishes to everyone for a happy and healthy 2015!