At the end of the year, I always take a moment to examine the ups and downs I experienced, both personally and professionally. What follows is my accounting of 2014:
* Produced hundreds of breaking news stories, including Boko Haram’s kidnapping of hundreds of schoolgirls, three aviation disappearances, numerous police killings and protests, the battle against ISIS, the Taliban attack on a school in Peshawar, the Veteran Affairs scandal, the Ebola epidemic, the conflict in Gaza, the dangerous California drought, the midterm elections, the cafe hostage-taking in Sydney, the vote for Scotland’s independence, the ALS ice bucket challenges, the Sochi Winter Olympics, the World Cup and the Philae’s successful landing on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
* Blogged for The Obituary Forum, The Blog of Death and Afterthoughts.
* Passed the 36,000th tweet mark on my personal Twitter account (@jadewalker)
* Penned 64 journal entries.
* Worked on my novel.
* Walked 1.2 million steps (more than 500 miles) and climbed more than 1,000 floors.
* Read 50 books and countless magazines.
* Watched more than 35 films.
* Took classes in terrorism, astrobiology, social media and forensic science.
* Updated The Written Word and The 10th Muse.
* Participated in the The Society of Professional Obituary Writers, New York City Writers Group, the South Florida Freelancers Group and the Journalism & Women Symposium.
* Went house-hunting in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine.
* Dyed my hair red.
* Traveled to New York City and Seattle.
* Tended a garden of basil, oregano, catnip, romaine lettuce, mint, thyme and flowers.
* Saw Bill Cosby, Hal Holbrook and Christopher Kimball in concert.
* Shot off a large cache of fireworks.
* Gave a talk to a writers group in Keene, NH.
* Tried a new drug to limit my migraines.
* Attempted several “firsts” (chased by zombies, letterboxing, vegetarian for a day, took virtual French and piano lessons and stood up for a cause I believed in).
* Celebrated my 5th wedding anniversary.
* Lost my eldest cat, Brat Child.
* Turned 41.
Goals for 2015
* Save up enough money for a down payment on a house and move.
* Work on my fiction.
* Write more obits.
* Read at least 50 books.
* Walk 15,000 steps in a single day (previous record is about 13,000)
* Experience fewer migraines.
* Win the lottery.
