My 2012

Wow, it's been a while since I last updated this blog! March 2011 was the last posting... Let's see if I can pick it up again, starting by my year-in-review. And in order to write that, I have to start with what happened in 2011.

2011

The reason why I didn't write an end-of-year review last year, is because I didn't have the energy to do it. In January 2011 I woke up one morning and found out I couldn't move my left arm very much. It turned out to be a shoulder impingement, but wasn't diagnosed as such until much later on, when it was already too late... During the summer of 2011 it did seem to get a little bit better, but unfortunately the worst was yet to come. In November the pains had gotten so bad, that I couldn't sleep anymore and I was finally diagnosed with a severe case of "frozen shoulder". The lack of sleep meant that I couldn't cope with anything anymore and I had a bit of a break-down. And while 2011 turned out to be a year full of pain and misery, there was definitely also one very big positive side to it. On Christmas Day my then boyfriend proposed in a very original way, by giving me the book "If the Buddha would marry..." It was the highlight of my year!

Now on to 2012...

2012

Work

Still working for the same company, but in a different position. I'm now responsible for everything concerning e-learning in the Benelux. The company purchased a tool, Articulate, to develop its own e-learning modules, as well as an LMS (Cornerstone), to manage all e-learning courses. This fits in so well with my combined background of psychology, training and IT, that it's a perfect match. Plus I can use my creativity when creating e-learning modules. The company also introduced the new way of working, which means that I can work from home a couple of days a week and be flexible with when and where I work.

Love

Just as Roy's proposal was the highlight of 2011, our wedding on February 3rd was by far the highlight of 2012! We had a small wedding, with only our close relatives and a handful of friends. During the morning it started snowing, which made the day even more special (in spite of me being nervous about our guests being on time due to traffic jams caused by the snow). It was a truly special day! A few days later we left for Cuba, to spend our honeymoon there.

Health

The "frozen shoulder" took a long time to heal. It's really only now, almost 2 years since it started, that I can say it's almost completely gone. In my daily life I have no more problems, but I can't yet do everything I could before. According to my physio therapist, it will come back 100% in time!

House

Two years ago, we had just put our house up for sale. This year we took it off the market. The economic crisis has strongly affected the housing market. If we really wanted to sell, we would have to do so at a very big loss. So we decided to wait a while until the housing market is more settled and we've paid off a chunk of our mortgage, so we can (if needed) lower the asking price.

Cats

My two sweethearts, Tux & Roxy, are happy and healthy.

Dancing

Due to my "frozen shoulder" injury, we had to take a break from competition dancing. We started again just before the National Championship in May, but that was really a bit too soon. We've struggled a lot since then. It's hard to come back after not having been able to compete for 6 months. The other dancers have moved on and gotten better, and new, strong couples entered our competition class. Even though we trained hard and had great lessons from our trainers, we didn't seem to be able to progress in the competitions. Yes, our dancing definitely got better, but when you put so much time, energy and money (dancing is a VERY expensive sport), you want to see results as well. This resulted in a sort of "dance depression" at the end of the year. After thinking long and hard, we've decided to make a new start in our dancing, by putting 3 of our 4 trainers on hold, and adding one new one. We'll see what that will bring us in 2013! On that note, I want to wish all of you a Happy New Years Eve and a wonderful 2013. May the best of 2012 be the worst of 2013!