2012 Year Review

Yes yes yes. We're a week into 2013 already, who can even remember 2012? But I've started and so I'll finish.

I got an attack of the rages on 31st December 2012 after one too many Facebook statuses (statusi) saying something along the lines of, "Well, 2012 wasn't good to me, let's hope 2013 is better".

This made me want to hurt people very muchly, not just because I'm generally a rageful person, but because I wanted to shake them by the ears screaming "Of course 2012 wasn't great - NO year is great all the way through you bloody knobhead."

I actually feel I have permission more than most to say that 2012 was a crappy year. It started off with me being made redundant, moved on to me being unemployed for three months before swiftly ending up with a horrific job that I was bullied in. And then ended the year having to move out of my flat with the boyfriend for a new job.

But you know what? Loads of really good stuff happened in 2012 as well. It's easy to sit there and remember all the crappy stuff but forget about all the motherfreaking amazing stuff that went on.

What was bad, was that when I went back through the year thinking of all the good things that happened I realised that I had hardly blogged about any of it. That made me sad because I have missed blogging and also made me realise I've done that  thing you do where you only blog when you feel crappy about something, which can't be a pleasant experience for anyone reading.

So I apologise, I do definitely have good intentions for blogging this year - I intend to blog the good, the bad and the ugly.

But for now let's talk about the awesome stuff that happened in 2012;

• I visited the Ribble Steam Railway - this was one of my favourite and my best. It ran along the trainlines outside our flat and for ages, whenever I was staying with The Person and would hear the whistle go I would beg for us to go one weekend. Finally, in Jan/Feb he obliged and we went up and down the line. It's not much but it made me a happy person.

• The Person and I went to see Florence + The Machine at the MEN Arena - I love this lady like a whole load a lot and when I just happened to see tickets for sale I grabbed them. I don't even understand why it wasn't sold out because she's awesome.

• I took a trip to Manchester Pride to see the street procession. Not to be confused with gay pride this is a festival all about how amezzing Manchester is. And it is amezzing. Many many many pictures were taken, but these guys were one of my favourites.

• I watched my swucklings be born and grow up. I have watched these guys from they were eggs people. I am also pleased to report that they are still going strong, I saw them a couple of weeks before I left Preston with their Mum and Dad - although I'm not going to lie they weren't all there. I like to think I just didn't see the others and not that they've come to an untimely end.

(And just in case you haven't read the above blog post - I know they're not called swucklings really.)

• I spent a weekend watching The Person take part in some Dragonboat racing as part of the UK Corporate Games which were held in Preston in 2012. Dragonboat racing is exciting and involves lots of shouting when you're a spectator. However, because The Person's team did so well, they went into the finals which meant a lot of hanging around all day.

• Living near the Docks in Preston meant we were close to all the action and The Riversway Festival is basically a little folk festival that happens each year. But the best thing about it is that it's obviously on the calendar for people who own houseboats and they all come and moor up and then decorate their houses with bunting.

Also I saw dogs wearing life jackets which might just be one of the highlights of 2012.

• I took a trip to Blackpool Pleasure Beach with The Person and his sister and cousin. Note to self, only go to theme parks with people who love scary rides and rollercoasters. The Person and his sister do not and I was left nearly foaming at the mouth. Sadly I didn't get to ride The Big One this time, but at least I did it last time, so I'll cling on to those memories.

• I was pretty fortunate in that my arrival in Preston coincided with the Preston Guild 2012 celebrations. This is a big event which only happens every 25 years so it really is once in a generation. There were events on all over the city for most of the year, but especially focused in the summer. One included the Blaze Arts Festival which took place in Avenham & Miller Parks. They even ran a Sit & Knit session which I was brave enough to go to by myself and try and learn to knit. Afterwards we hung our efforts from the tree nearby in yarn-bombing style.

See that scraggy blue thing? That's my first knitting!

• The Person and I had a special day out at Witton Country Park where we capered about the countryside and admired the trees and got scared by cows which I am almost definitely positive were going to stampede us. It is also home to the most amazing adventure playground I've ever seen. And yes we did go and play on it.

• We got our first pets as a couple - 2 brilliant (if slightly dull) goldfish called, Marcus & Andrew

Andrew & Marcus

• How could I forget? I bloody went and ran 10k this year!
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• I went to see Marina & The Diamonds in Preston which was all kinds of random but you know what she's actually pretty good even if I basically only knew 2 of her songs.

• I went to York Races for my brother's 40th which was well good. We got to go near the Parade Ring and see the horses being trotted round before they went out - my niece absolutely loved that bit. I loved the fact that I managed to back 2 winners, although my inability to bet anything other than the bare minimum meant that I didn't exactly rake it in.

• This was also the year that I became a Spartan by taking part in the Spartan Race. Don't mess with me people. Look at this face...

• I went to the Knitting & Stitching Show in Harrogate and got to hang out with the ever so cool Mr X Stitch and one of my most missed people from back in Hull, as well as see some of the incredible stitchy talent that's out there.

• I said goodbye to Hull. Which was very sad in itself and could be seen as a negative, but it was actually nice as I made an effort to go around all things that are my favourite parts of Hull and appreciate them just one last time. It was also touching to have people come out and say goodbye to me, everyone likes to feel loved and I did.

My Humber Bridge

• I had four visits whilst I lived in Preston from some of The Girls that I left behind in Hull. One of which was a surprise visit that I knew nothing about until they rang the door buzzer. Those visits were all immensely important to me as I didn't have the loveliest time in Preston - I made not really a single friend whilst I was there and I was thankful that I had my friends come to see me which made not having anyone (bar The Person of course) in Preston.

• We went to stay in a cottage for The Person's 30th birthday in the Lake District. This was all full of many outdoorsy activities which are not really my favourite thing, but there was also lots of drinking games which are more my favourite (not because I'm a raging alcoholic but because they are so so very funny) so it all balanced out. 

• Oh hai. I totally got to touch some big cats this year. This is me just casually stroking a tiger.

And I reckon that means that 2012 wasn't really a bad year if you think about it.

Touching big cats + other awesome things > shitty redundancy & unemployment