After four months, here's what I've accomplished:

Read 10 non-fiction books
Create a system for keeping track of my own medical records - Made a binder with a calendar and some other medical-related stuff in it, January, 24.
Take my cats to the vet
Go camping
Go fishing
Go surfing
Go snowboarding - Went snowboarding at Snowshoe, January 10-12.
Take a whole week off work
Don’t call my ex-boyfriend - FAILED - Called my ex-boyfriend, February 18. Befriended said ex-boyfriend again, April 19.
Find a good gynecologist - Found an awesome gynecologist, January 25.
Don’t complain as much when I’m sick
Go horseback riding
Get a raise - Got a raise, April 1.
Write more - Finally started writing my novel! Up to twelve pages, April 30.
Sell more stuff on eBay
Make $100 off my CafePress.com store
Finish gluing Swarovski crystals to my other brown flip-flop
Get a TiVo HD
Get a Nintendo Wii
Get Guitar Hero
Get Dance Dance Revolution
Hang out with The Big A - Hung out with The Big A in Richmond, February 1.
Frame my college degree
Volunteer for something
Make at least five new friends
Use my wetsuit
Finish painting my condo - Painted the trim and three doors in my hallway, March 9-10.
Put down wood floors in my condo
Look hot in a bathing suit this summer
Do something that scares me
Go to an orthodontist, even if it’s just for a free consultation
Go see some places I’ve never been before - Went to Snowshoe, January 10-13.
Go ice skating
Go roller skating
Go to at least one VT football game
Frame some of the photos I’ve taken and hang them up in my condo
Go see Katie & Adam's new house
Baby-sit for at least one my friends' kids
Visit Aunt Kim, Uncle Franky and my cousins in Pennsylvania
Get a Crock-Pot - Got a Crock-Pot, February 9.
Have a party - Had a Superbowl party, February 3.
Open a new savings account with CJ
Go to the gym a lot
Play my oboe
Buy Kerri dinner
Play the Rich Dad CASHFLOW 101 board game
Do something exciting on my birthday - Went to Cheeseburger in Paradise with a bunch of friends and then played Guitar Hero at Cabo Cafe with Amy, April 10.
Do 58 sit-ups in two minutes
Do 21 push-ups in two minutes
Run 1.5 miles in 14:15 - Ran 1.5 miles in 13:02, February 7.
End the year with a positive net worth
Continue writing in my LJ for another whole year
Make a new resolution every month:
January: Have an awesome time with my boyfriend on our trip to Snowshoe! - Had an awesome time at Snowshoe, January 10-13.
February: Don't complain as much and cry less than 10 times this month - FAILED - Complained less, but cried WAY more than 10 times.
March: Cry less than 10 times this month - FAILED
April: Plan a trip - FAILED
May: Go out on at least three dates with at least three different people

Tags: resolutions
This crazy trip has got me feelin': chill
And I'm singin' along to: One Particular Harbor - Jimmy Buffett

My friend Amy had an interesting response to some advice I gave her over the phone a few minutes ago. She said she was going to write Paxil a thank you note for making me so cool. I've been on Paxil for just about two months now, and I think she's right. I know it seems odd to broadcast over the Internet that I'm taking an antidepressant medication (I don't usually use the LJ for personal business), but I have a good reason. For several months, I was afraid to start taking Paxil because I read so many horror stories on the web about side effects and bad experiences that people have posted on countless websites and discussion boards. I never read anything positive - everything was just so negative!

A doctor suggested a prescription for Paxil to me back in October, but I refused to take it because I was panicked about all the bad things I'd read about it. By February, I was finally fed up with anxiety attacks and daily crying episodes and uncontrollable mood swings, and I made the decision to try it.

As most people know, I'm not a big pill-popper. I hate taking medication and try to avoid it whenever possible. Another reason I wanted to stay off Paxil is because I didn't want to commit to taking a pill every day indefinitely. But, you know what? Ever since I've started taking Paxil, I've taken less Advil, less Tylenol and less NyQuil than ever before. No more stress headaches. No more sleepless nights.

So, here it goes - I beat you to it, Amy - a few words of thanks to my new favorite pill.

Dear Paxil,
Thank you. Thank you so much for the past two months. Thank you for stopping my dead in my tracks on the downward spiral of depression I was surely sinking deeper and deeper into. Thank you for giving me the clarity to consciously choose my thoughts and control my emotions. Thank you for allowing me the ability to think rationally through every situation at a slow enough pace that I can understand everything that's going on in my head. Thank you for ridding me of constant anxiety about trivial things. Thank you for chasing away the out-of-control fsense of sadness, guilt and hopelessness I've been feeling for a long, long time. Thank you for giving my tear ducts a break and for ending the scary midnight panic attacks that were depriving me of much-needed sleep. Thank you for showing me how to enjoy concentrating on myself for a change and for the freedom to be myself without seeking so much validation from others. Thank you for proving to me that I am the strong, wise, independent person I always wanted to be. Thank you for allowing me to see all of the good things I've accomplished in my life and feel hopeful about the future. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to relax and experience a sense of contentment and comfort within myself I've never felt before. Thank you for blessing me with the motivation and focus to start writing the novel I've been dreaming about since fifth grade. Thank you for making my life more enjoyable, more fulfilling and more fun. Thank you for showing me that everything wasn't always my fault and that I can finally stop apologizing. Thank you so, so much.
Love,
Lisa

Tags: ruling at life
This crazy trip has got me feelin': content
And I'm singin' along to: Closer - Joshua Radin

Today is my one-year anniversary with my pet fish, Captain Sea Jay Lewis (he's a pirate). He was one of my birthday presents last year, and has become my favorite companion to talk to at work. Captain Sea Jay is a beautiful betta that lives in a bowl on my desk at work. He's pretty much the coolest fish on the planet.

The captain spends his days exploring the less-than-vast expanse of decorative rocks and plastic vegetation that make up his watery habitat. He's also very attentive to life on the other side of his glass-walled rotunda - he loves to play and chase my finger up and down and around and around his 2.5-liter bowl. He curiously comes to the surface to check out objects just out of his reach, and if something catches his interest enough (like food), he'll jump right out of the water like a breaching shark for a bite!

To celebrate my birthday (and our anniversary), my co-workers decorated my cubicle with shiny purple and green garland and Hawaiian leis. Captain Sea Jay and I feel like we’re at a luau! We’re going to listen to Radio Margaritaville all day long and have the best person/pet fish anniversary ever.

Tags: birthdays, captain sea jay lewis
This crazy trip has got me feelin': cheerful
And I'm singin' along to: Losing Lisa - Ben Folds

It's my last day of being 26 - my birthday is tomorrow. I'm sitting alone in A Latte Cafe in downtown Norfolk, working on what will hopefully be my first novel (nine pages so far!) and waiting for 8:00 to roll around, so I can head over to The NorVa to see Ben Folds with Michelle. A new friend of mine asked when my birthday was the other night while we were at dinner, and I told him I'd rather not say. He keeps texting me every night, "Happy Birthday? Maybe today?" because I wouldn't tell him the exact day - only that it was this week. Turning 27 as a single girl with two cats and half a condo seems a little traumatic. I think it's official. I'm getting old.

Tags: birthdays, books/music/movies/tv, concerts
This crazy trip has got me feelin': artistic
And I'm singin' along to: Better Together - Ben Folds

After three months, here's what I've accomplished:

Read 10 non-fiction books
Create a system for keeping track of my own medical records - Made a binder with a calendar and some other medical-related stuff in it, January, 24.
Take my cats to the vet
Go camping
Go fishing
Go surfing
Go snowboarding - Went snowboarding at Snowshoe, January 10-12.
Take a whole week off work
Don’t call my ex-boyfriend - FAILED - Called my ex-boyfriend, February 18.
Find a good gynecologist - Found an awesome gynecologist, January 25.
Don’t complain as much when I’m sick
Go horseback riding
Get a raise
Write more
Sell more stuff on eBay
Make $100 off my CafePress.com store
Finish gluing Swarovski crystals to my other brown flip-flop
Get a TiVo HD
Get a Nintendo Wii
Get Guitar Hero
Get Dance Dance Revolution
Hang out with The Big A - Hung out with The Big A in Richmond, February 1.
Frame my college degree
Volunteer for something
Make at least five new friends
Use my wetsuit
Finish painting my condo - Painted the trim and three doors in my hallway, March 9-10.
Put down wood floors in my condo
Look hot in a bathing suit this summer
Do something that scares me
Go to an orthodontist, even if it’s just for a free consultation
Go see some places I’ve never been before - Went to Snowshoe, January 10-13.
Go ice skating
Go roller skating
Go to at least one VT football game
Frame some of the photos I’ve taken and hang them up in my condo
Go see Katie & Adam's new house
Baby-sit for at least one my friends' kids
Visit Aunt Kim, Uncle Franky and my cousins in Pennsylvania
Get a Crock-Pot - Got a Crock-Pot, February 9.
Have a party - Had a Superbowl party, February 3.
Open a new savings account with CJ
Go to the gym a lot
Play my oboe
Buy Kerri dinner
Play the Rich Dad CASHFLOW 101 board game
Do something exciting on my birthday
Do 58 sit-ups in two minutes
Do 21 push-ups in two minutes
Run 1.5 miles in 14:15 - Ran 1.5 miles in 13:02, February 7.
End the year with a positive net worth
Continue writing in my LJ for another whole year
Make a new resolution every month:
January: Have an awesome time with my boyfriend on our trip to Snowshoe! - Had an awesome time at Snowshoe, January 10-13.
February: Don't complain as much and cry less than 10 times this month - FAILED - Complained less, but cried WAY more than 10 times.
March: Cry less than 10 times this month - FAILED
April: Plan a trip

Tags: resolutions
This crazy trip has got me feelin': listless
And I'm singin' along to: My Dick - Mickey Avalon