2008: The Year in Review

There was a time when I sent out an annual holiday letter illustrated with photos taken throughout the year. This is sort of like that, only a slightly more high-tech version. (Most links go to past blog posts, Facebook photo albums, or other people's blogs.)
There have been many great years in my life, but 2008 will be hard to top! I married the man of my dreams, took fun vacations, established two freelance careers, reconnected with old friends and made some new ones, embraced life in the Twin Cities, made some home improvements, and celebrated the election of President Barack Obama. Below is a list of some of the year's highlights. I hope you had a wonderful 2008 as well and that you're having a fabulous 2009 so far. All the best to you and yours! ~ Julie

JANUARY
1 - Tomkin and I rang in the New Year by throwing our first party together.
11 - Tomkin proposed on bended knee at W.A. Frost. And I said yes!
25 - I went rock climbing for the first (and probably last) time.
27 - We attended a lovely engagement brunch thrown by Tomkin's friend Sofia.
29-31 - Amy came to town and stayed with us. (I still need to meet that new daughter of hers, Ripley, who was born on May 27th!)

FEBRUARY
1-5 - Tomkin and I went to Grand Forks to visit family and friends. Yes, in February. (Tomkin has sworn never to complain about the cold here again.)
5 - We voted for Obama in the MN caucus. (The lines to get in were around the block!)
6 - Saw "Peer Gynt" at the Guthrie and loved it. Other notable 2008 Guthrie shows included "Little House on the Prairie," "A Midsummer Night's Dream," "The Government Inspector," "Shadowlands," and "A View from the Bridge."
14 - Celebrated our first Valentine's Day together at Forepaugh's.
16 - Went to a fabulous engagement party hosted by our neighbors A.C. and Luke.
18-19 - Took the first of three trips to Duluth to visit Jenny and Allison, who taught a semester of poetry at the university there.
23 - Had very cool engagement photos taken by our neighbor Lucas.
24 - I got to see (and Tomkin got to meet) my cousin Chris and his family, who were visiting from out of town.
29-March 1 - Took our second trip to Duluth.

MARCH
2 - Went to the Semple Mansion wedding fair. (We also attended a wedding show at Macy's in January.)
4 - Met with our caterer. Decided on pulled pork sandwiches, jo-jo potatoes, pasta salad, and watermelon for the wedding.
5 - Got the marriage license!
7 - Saw "A Prairie Home Companion" at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul and loved it. It's a really fun live show, especially when the jokes are regional.
23 - Went to Jill and Chris's house for Easter brunch.
25-26 - Had all new plumbing installed. (Our neighbor Tracy rocks!)
27 - Tomkin was interviewed for NPR about us trying to rent out our house for the Republican National Convention. (We never did rent the house, in case you were wondering.)
28 - We hosted a wedding at our house and celebrated Tomkin's birthday with dinner at W.A. Frost.

APRIL (aka Wedding Month!)
8 - Enjoyed a spa day at Spalon Montage, courtesy of my aunt Carol.
10 - A few friends came to town early. I had a girls' night out, and Tomkin had a guys' night out.
11 - We had lunch with friends, and that evening we had the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner (pizza!).
12 - Our wedding day! Mom and I went to a salon in the morning. We took pictures and then had a beautiful ceremony in our home. Then we had dinner, cake, and toasts and partied late into the night! (Richard put together this video. There are some fun professional shots/collages here.)
13 - We hosted a Sunday brunch and got to spend some relaxed time with family and friends.
14 - Tomkin, Scotty, and I took Scout and Chloe to the dog park.
15-18 - Honeymoon in Northfield!
25-26 - Rehearsal dinner and wedding of Jen and Mike (Tomkin officiated).

MAY
3 - Humane Society Dog Walk with Scout and Chloe.
4 - Dog Days at the St. Paul Saints game with Cassidy and Angie (and our dogs).
5 - The saddest day of the year for me: Scout died unexpectedly.
10-12 - Our third trip to Duluth.
12-13 - Tomkin and I stayed at the Nordic Inn, courtesy of Scotty and Jake.
19 - I joined Facebook. My productivity continues to decline.
20 - We scattered half of Scout's ashes at the dog park and buried the other half in our backyard. (See some of my favorite Scout photos here.) We were worried that Chloe would freak out after Scout died, but she's actually been doing really well.
23 - Kris and Dave's superfun wedding at Stella's Fish Cafe (Tomkin officiated).
24 - Tom and Nancy's 40th wedding anniversary. We took them to dinner at Ecopolitan to celebrate.
26 - Went to Canterbury Park--my first time at the racetrack! (We also went back in June.)

JUNE
3 - At the Xcel Energy Center, heard Barack Obama offically declare that he was the Democratic candidate for President of the United States.
14 - Tomkin and I celebrated one year together with dinner at the Melting Pot.
20-22 - Crashed the Carleton reunion, hung out with the class of '93, and Tomkin stole Schiller during the parade of classes.
30 - Had insulation blown into the attic.

JULY
4 - Went to my first-ever drive-in movie. The movie ("Hancock") sucked, but the experience was a blast.
11-13 - I finally made it to the Fertile Fair with Brenda! Meanwhile, Tomkin stayed home because our house was featured in the Lex-Ham Garden Walk.
27-29 - Tomkin and I enjoyed a mini-vacation in Northfield.

AUGUST
1-5 - Returned to Chicago, hit some of my favorite spots, and hung out with the Game Day Girls, Carrie D., Carrie Mc., Adolfo, Heidi, Josh, Connie and Joleen, Nicole, and some folks from Holy Covenant.
6 - Held my first premarital education class. A second career is born!
9-12 - Went to my 20-year high school reunion in East Grand Forks, Minnesota. Also got to spend some time with family.
21 - Attended the Minnesota State Fair and consumed an ungodly amount of calories.
23 - Tomkin and I hosted a murder-mystery party, complete with dinner and costumes.
26 - Went to the Acme Comedy Club to see live stand-up comedy (which Tomkin loves).
29-September 6 - Escaped the RNC by going to New York City. Got to stay with Jenny and Allison in Brooklyn (before their exodus to Portland, Oregon), see Gin's off-Broadway show (and go to the cast party in a Trump Tower), brave the rides on Coney Island, party at the West Indian parade, learn how to play Mexican train dominos, check out Chinatown, walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, go to the Top of the Rock, see a taping of the Colbert Report (and have dinner with Peter), hang out in Central Park, and see two Broadway shows.

SEPTEMBER
9 - Becca and Omar's fourth son, Leo, was born. We got to see him the next day. So cute!
10 - Had a new bathroom sink installed (and a new toilet). Trust me, this was life-changing!
19, 25 - Went to the Sugar party at the aloft Hotel and the Metro 100 party at the Chambers Hotel.

OCTOBER
1 - I attended the MMPA's magazine celebration. Throughout the year, I went to various publishing-related events hosted by the MMPA, MBPR, PEN, MIPA, and ASI. It's been a great way to meet other local publishing professionals (including freelancers) and connect with new clients.
4 - We hosted a small birthday celebration for me at the house. (The big 3-9!)
7 - On my actual birthday, Tomkin and I spent the afternoon at the Mill City Museum and got dinner at Barbette.
8 - I fell behind on blogging after the wedding. Amy encouraged me to post weekly until my 40th birthday, so I started doing that.
9 - Went to a fundraising party called Think Water at the Weisman Museum.
10 - Started an editorial blog to go along with my freelance editing website.
17 - Hosted one of many fabulous Rock Band nights.
30 - Tomkin and I volunteered for the Obama campaign at Packetland.
31 - On Halloween, we left out a bowl of candy, saw the movie "Happy-Go-Lucky," then went to a party at a neighbors' house.

NOVEMBER
1 - Tomkin and I attended a neighborhood chili party, then went to a Halloween party at Cassidy and Angie's, dressed as Sarah Palin and a skinned moose.
3 - The first monthly Profitlancers meeting of freelance editors, writers, and designers.
4 - Election day! Tomkin and I celebrated at the local DFL party.
6 - I attended the MMPA Excellence Awards, for which I had served as a judge.
8 - Saw an amazing performance by the Royal Winnipeg Ballet.
15-16 - Tomkin and I went to Fargo for my cousin Kristin's wedding. He got to meet a whole new batch of my relatives, and I enjoyed catching up with family members I hadn't seen in years.
20 - We hosted our first "Third Thursdays" cocktail party. Now on the third Thursday of each month, we feature a different cocktail, and people are welcome to come by, chat, relax, and have a drink or two.
27 - For the second year in a row, we hosted Thanksgiving at our home. Our families pitched in with the side dishes; we made the ham!
28 - Toured the Surly Brewery and had dinner with Becca, Omar, Christopher, and Pam.
29 - Went to the annual neighborhood talent show--this year with fire-breathers! (Seriously.)

DECEMBER
15 - Celebrated Christmas with the Colemans, including Jenny and Allison, who were in transit from NYC to Portland.
17-24 - Christmas in Texas (Tomkin flew out to join me on the 20th). While I was gone, Tomkin had new linoleum flooring installed in the kitchen.
25 - Christmas with Tom and Nancy.
28 - Christmas with the Greenes. (Yes, we had four Christmases this year!)
31 - Ended a fabulous year with a fabulous night; enjoyed the tasting menu at W.A. Frost with Kris and Dave.
Here's to a fabulous 2009!

A Whole New World

Last Saturday night, Tomkin and I drove out to Bloomington to have dinner with my uncle Rick, his wife Lois, and my cousin Danelle, who was in town for the weekend from Texas. We had such a fun night! We hung out, ate (they smoked a salmon out on the grill), and talked for hours. Before my cousin Kristin's wedding, I honestly don't remember the last time I had seen Rick (and that was the first time I met Lois). And I hadn't seen Danelle in almost ten years. It was great to reconnect with them all, and I was happy that Tomkin and Danelle finally got to meet.On Sunday, Tomkin spent most of the day working on our itinerary for Spain. We just found out that our program is now going to be held in the town of Salamanca, which sounds amazing. We mapped out a plan for our time in Madrid, with one activity planned for each day. Tomkin typed everything out and added maps, photos, and timetables. I can't believe that he actually enjoys creating travel itineraries even more than I do! (We truly are a match made in heaven.) We did go out into the snow and take a walk, which was nice. I watched a little TV and uploaded some photos to Facebook. Tomkin pretty much worked on the itinerary all day.
I worked on Monday morning, and Tomkin headed into the office. That afternoon, for the National Day of Service, we went to a local food/blood drive, where we dropped off some food and cash. I had planned to give blood, but my iron was a little too low. Fooey! Since we had a little extra time, we took Chloe for a walk. That evening I had my first digital photography class at the Amore coffee shop on Grand. It was pretty basic stuff, although I did learn a few new things about my camera. I'll probably skip the next class and then go back for the rest. When I got home, Tomkin and I watched the first episode of "Superstars of Dance." It's cool to see a show like that on network TV.
Tuesday was Inauguration Day. I was glued to the TV, watching history unfold. Both Tomkin and I kept choking up--it was hard to believe what we were seeing. Out with the old, in with the new! The whole face of the nation has changed, and I hope we're ushering in a new era of inclusion, unity, tolerance, and hope. Tomkin had to go meet at couple at W.A. Frost. He said when he got there, the waiters were all glued to the television, watching Obama give his inaugural address. After Joseph Lowery gave the benediction, Tomkin led the room in a rousing chorus of "Amens"! It was such a joyful day, and it really did feel like the mood of the country had changed. We're inspired, we're coming together, and we've got a smart, thoughtful, trustworty man steering this ship. It's nice to feel proud of our country again and to believe that we can be a force for good and a beacon of hope in the world. Yes we can! I did tear myself away from the TV long enough to go to Target, but then I was glued to the coverage again. It's been a long time since I've wanted to watch the news, but now I feel like I can't get enough! That evening, Tomkin and I went over to Kris and Dave's to celebrate our new president. Dave filled the table with a gorgeous array of meats and vegetables, and we put together delicious spring rolls. What a treat! We also toasted our country's new leader. I still love the sound of it: President Obama!
On Wednesday, Tomkin and I (and Chloe) went to his folks' house for lunch. We sat and chatted for a long time, shared thoughts about the inauguration, and Tomkin got his dad set up on Facebook. Back at home I did some work and watched more news coverage, then I led a premarital education class while Tomkin went to his weekly poker game. I talked to Mom and then watched more inauguration coverage. I just can't get enough!
Thursday morning the Oscar nominations came out. I typed up a chart, and Tomkin and I are going to try to use some kind of statistical analysis (based on expert predictions) to guess who will win. To be honest, I'm not super excited to see many of the nominated films--they seem so depressing and heavy. (I am looking forward to "Slumdog Millionaire," though!) I ran errands and did some work. Tomkin went into the office and worked on our taxes. Then we took Chloe for a walk. That evening we went to the Red Stag Supperclub for Metro magazine's Keeper Awards party. In an effort to keep talented local artists from fleeing to L.A. or NYC, Metro created the Keeper Awards. (Ironically, one of the artists has already left town.) The party was fun--we got to hang out with Dena, who works at Metro, and enjoy some yummy food and drinks. I've been feeling like such a homebody in this cold weather--it was good to get out.
On Friday we worked and then took Chloe for a short walk over to Jim and Roxanne's, where she got to romp in their backyard with Watson. It was so cold out, we just went straight home afterward. That evening, Peter and Mandy came over. We had planned to play Rock Band, but we ended up just sitting and talking for four hours!
Saturday was a busy day. I had a premarital education class in the morning, and then the woman who's going to dog/housesit for us while we're in Spain came by to see the house and meet Chloe. (She's a friend of a friend, and we'd never met her in person before.) After she left, I talked to my friend Carrie for an hour-and-a-half, catching up on her life in Chicago. (And trying to woo her here for a visit!) I spent a little time catching up on reading blog posts from the week. I subscribe to 20 or 30 blogs (some by friends, some that are newsy), and I had more than 300 posts to read; for most I just read the headlines and moved on. (Though with friends' blogs I always read the full posts!) My new favorite blog is The Black Snob--political and pop culture coverage that is smart, funny, and insightful. Last night Tomkin and I went to Jim and Roxanne's annual Chinese New Year party. (This year we rang in The Year of the Ox.) They had lots of delicious food (including Jim's Awesome Soup--and that's no lie!), and we enjoyed talking to their other friends. You may (or may not) have noticed in recent photos that Tomkin and I were wearing big black plastic watches. They were for a sleep study for Roxanne (who's a neuropsychology professor at St. Thomas). She gave us our results last night. Turns out we both sleep fairly consistently, and I sleep about an hour less per night than Tomkin does. I guess with college students, the charts are crazy, but for us they were pretty good. After we got home, we curled up with Chloe and watched another episode of "Superstars of Dance." Some really amazing and impressive performances from all over the world!Today has been a nice, lazy Sabbath. Tomkin and I both spent hours on Facebook (really, how does it suck so much time away?). I thought it was too cold to go for a walk, so we worked out to "Project Runway" instead. Now Tomkin is reading, and I'm going to watch the Screen Actors Guild Awards. (I love this time of year with all the awards shows!)
Have a great week, stay warm, and thanks for reading my blog!

Deep Freeze

My blogging schedule has gotten all out of whack! And it looks like our schedule is going to stay pretty crazy for the next couple of months, so I need to squeeze in some blogging whenever I can. Anyway, back to last Friday, the 9th....Tomkin had lunch with his friend Bill, and I did some editing work. After a short nap, we took Chloe and George to a nearby park and let them run off some steam. That evening we watched "Volver" (getting in the mindset of going to Spain!) and then started watching "Colonial House." Fascinating, although the people they picked were awfully whiny.

Tomkin napping with the dogs

I spent most of Saturday working on Brenda's birthday gift. I bought her a digital picture frame, and I went through scores of photo albums and scrapbooks, taking photos from our decades-long friendship. We met when we were about ten years old--our moms worked together at the Area Vocational Technical Institute. Then we were in ballet together for years, starting at the Nancy Pasley Ballet School and working our way into the North Dakota Ballet Company. We made crafts, ordered "free stuff," went to horse camp, collected stamps, adored Princess Diana, went hiking in the Rockies, celebrated my 30th birthday in Florida, went to London, and last year she was my maid of honor. It was quite a trip to look back at all our years together--we've had a lot of fun adventures (and a number of questionable style choices)! Tomkin and I worked out to "Project Runway" (it was too cold to take the dogs out), and that evening we met up with Carol and Steve for dinner at The Peninsula. We spent three hours talking, and the time just flew by! It was a really fun evening. When we got home, I was picking up dog toys and rawhides, and it must have sent the dogs into protective mode. They got into a fight, and George ended up biting Chloe under her eye. Right after it happened, they were both wagging their tales like it was no big deal. We've been putting some antibiotic ointment on the wound, and Chloe seems to be doing fine.
On Sunday the 11th, it was one year since Tomkin and I got engaged! So last year at this time, I was busy making phone calls and wedding plans. What an amazing year it's been! I spent a lazy day watching awards shows ('tis the season!) and uploading photos to Facebook. After working on Brenda's photo project, I decided to digitize the photos I had of Tomkin from college, my five-year-reunion, and Becca's wedding. Back when I took those photos, I certainly never thought I'd marry him! (But, wow, am I glad I did!!!)

Tomkin as Buffalo Bill during a summer theater showTomkin on a return trip to Carleton in 1992

At my 5-year Carleton reunion, with Christopher, Virginia, Johanna, Tomkin, and Amy

We brought Chloe and George over to Roxanne and Jim's house to run around in their fenced-in backyard with Watson. Good to get them worn out! That evening we watched more of "Colonial House," and then I watched the Golden Globes. (I'm dying to see "Slumdog Millionaire"!)Monday I was busy responding to inquiries for both editing jobs and premarital counseling. It was a really snowy day, but I still made it to my Profitlancers group, as did two other women. Our topic of discussion was using Twitter for business. They've both started doing it; I'm planning to start soon. I was supposed to have my first digital photography class that night, but it got cancelled because of the nasty weather. Tomkin still had to meet with a couple. When he got home, we curled up and watched more "Colonial House." (Boy, do these shows make me thankful for the time and place in which I live!)

Chloe and George helping Tomkin with his workout

Tuesday morning, Kris stopped by to pick up George. She and Dave had gotten home from Jamaica the night before, just before the coldest weather of the year. I skipped an editors' event and Weight Watchers, but did go shopping at Target. Tomkin and I watched a couple episodes of "30 Rock" (in the middle of the day--naughty!) and did some cleaning. That evening I talked to Mom and then watched "American Idol." I'm so excited that it's back!

Our house may look cold from the outside, but it's warm and cozy inside!

Wednesday the 14th I went to a lecture hosted by the Minnesota Book Publishers Roundtable. The topic was "digital book technologies," including ebooks and print-on-demand books. It was fascinating to hear about how the publishing world is changing and adapting. I'll be curious to see if eReaders (like Kindle) take off as much as they're predicted to. I spent the afternoon editing, and Tomkin had lunch with his folks, then went into the office. That evening he joined me for the book-release party of Lilac, a novel I edited earlier this year. I had never actually met the author (Helm Matthews) before, so it was good to finally meet him face-to-face. After the party, we came home and finished watching "Colonial House." Of the PBS shows in this vein we've watched so far, this was my least favorite. Still entertaining (and educational--for instance, I hadn't realized that the colonists were really more focused on commerce than on religion) and definitely worth watching, but just not as fun as some of the other series.
Thursday I spent much of the day preparing for our Third Thursdays party. (This month we served champagne cocktails.) The air temperature was 20 below, and Tomkin's car wouldn't start. Thankfully, our kind and generous neighbor Shawn came over and gave him a jump. I did some work and ran a few errands. We got two boxes of birthday and Christmas gifts from Brenda with lots of cool stuff, including some beautiful pottery. (In fact, for that evening's party, all food was served in ceramics that Brenda made!) And Chloe LOVES the food cube Brenda sent her. Tomkin had to go to a wedding rehearsal. I finished getting ready for the party, and everything came together just in time--phew! I was expecting 5 or 6 guests, but we ended up having 11, and people had a really good time! Funny, though--most of the guests were neighbors, and everyone lived in St. Paul (didn't have to travel far through the brutally cold temps). One of our guests was a next-door neighbor who I had never met before. Around 9:00, my friends Marcus and Helena arrived. They were friends of mine in college, and I probably haven't seen them in 16 or 17 years! Marcus is the Artist-in-Residence of St. Paul, and Helena owns the Center for Happiness. I knew Marcus was coming to the party, but seeing Helena was a total surprise! We were both art history majors at Carleton and spent a semester studying in Amsterdam. Of course I had to get out a couple photo albums, so we could look back at ourselves 19 years ago. The whole evening was really fun--just what I needed in the midst of this bleak winter weather!


Yesterday (Friday) Tomkin and I exercised to "Project Runway" (we've really been missing our walks). He headed to the office, and I caught up on my work blog. I didn't actually leave the house at all yesterday.... Just after we'd finished cleaning up from our party the night before, we set out more food and got ready for an evening of Rock Band 2! Jill & Chris and Adam & Cheryl came over, and everyone really got into it! I think everyone, to some extent, dreams of being a rock star, and it's amazing how real that can seem, even if you're just playing plastic instruments in your friends' living room. We played for hours, and everyone took turns switching instruments and singing. Eventually the girls dropped out, but the guys just kept on playing. After more than three hours, we all laid the instruments to rest and just chatted and ate for a while. It's hard work being a rock star!
Today (Saturday the 17th) the temperature shot up to a balmy 20 degrees! After a relaxed morning around the house and a nice long conversation with my friend Heidi, Tomkin and I took Chloe for a long walk. It felt so good to get out again! Instead of buying coffee during our walks, we have now started bringing hot drinks along with us. Much more economical! Tomkin is now at a wedding, and this evening we're heading over to my uncle Rick's house--my cousin Danelle is in town from Texas, and I haven't seen her in eight years!
Wherever you are, I hope you are doing warm and staying well. As always, thanks for reading my blog!