Renee posted a lovely format with which to review the past year which I thought was quite brilliant. So, rather than being horribly long-winded about everything that has happened over the past year, I’d like to borrow Renee’s idea for my own experiences from 2003:

Lows

– Even more bad luck with health – being diagnosed with scoliosis, tumors, and a painful problem with my brainstem and spinal column.

– Not being able to update The Daily Prophet as much as I’d like to, because of said medical problems.

– Being in a very unhealthy and incredibly painful relationship for about five months.

Highs

– Chasing a dream as far as possible: meeting Count Dracula at his home in Berlin. That dream may not have come true, but rather, it was supplanted by a better dream.

– Winning the C&W Childnet Award and the BBC Newsround Viewer’s Choice Award in London in April.

– Meeting several new good friends in very random, unexpected ways.

– Having my first-ever screenplay become a finalist in two international screenwriting competitions.

– The Lord Mayor of London told me he’d been reading my blog. As did two staff members from the American Embassy in London – apparently they were all quite hooked at the Embassy for a while.

Accomplishments

– I finally got a job! A real job! Go me!

– Getting accepted to the Courtauld Institute of Art, despite my lack of a traditional educational history. Not only that, it was an unconditional offer from the school – a rather rare occurance in the British University system.

– I incorporated my own non-profit organization – Prophet, Incorporated – through which I will expand and improve The Daily Prophet. I don’t want it to be the subject of any Lows in next year’s review.

Travel

– Las Vegas, Nevada (February – for my birthday)

– Las Vegas, Nevada (March – again, for that relationship I mentioned up there. Needless to say, I’m not going back to Vegas any time soon.)

– Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and inbetween in Scotland (April – to visit a friend, and go driving around with another friend)

– London, England (April – for the C&W Childnet Awards, at their expense.)

– Denver, Colorado (September – to visit my Uncle Bud and my good friend Julie, and to get my driver’s license.)

– Berlin, Germany (October – to try to convince Count Dracula to adopt me, and thus create a television program about my transformation into a Countess and a Princess. [And no, I did not make that up.])

– San Francisco, CA (October – to see my new niece, Samantha, and her parents, Tim and Monica.)

– Virginia Beach, VA (November – my brother wanted to go to a convention there, so I drove him. Then I ended up having a better time than he did.)

And there we go. I have a feeling I’m forgetting a few important things, but in that case I will of course come back and update the review. As for the here and now, I’m off to make a lovely handbag to go along with the outfit I have prepared for tonight’s New Years Eve party. The lovely gold gown has been finished, I picked up my platinum ring with newly mounted sapphire from the jeweler this afternoon, and I even have lovely new dancing slippers to wear. I’m all set, and thoroughly excited about it. 🙂 Happy New Year, everybody. Let’s hope 2004 just keeps on getting better and better.