boss me around for 2008 meme

This meme has been going around the ferret-verse and I like it. I've already listed my personal goals for 2008 and it would be need to hear what you guys think I should add. So:

Please comment with something you think I should do or try to do in 2008. Big or small, silly or earth-changing.

welcome home, now have a typhoon

My homecoming has certainly been dramatic. I hoped that I would make it over the SC mountains before the storm hit on Thurs. night, but I failed. Although I left the Fremont BART station in nothing more than drizzle, by the time I started up the "Caution 8 miles of winding roads" part of the 17, it was pouring and blustering. There I was in my little car, buffeted by the wind, with rain that outpaced my fastest windshield wiper setting.

The good news is that I didn't lose power until 8 a.m. Friday morning, so I got to come home and discover all the lovely prezzies that nisaa and joedecker left me. Thank you guys! There was a box of bath/spa goodness on my table, clean sheets on my bed, and so much Sweeeedish goodness in my fridge that I was overcome and had to have a waffle with gooseberry jam before bed.

Friday morning I woke up at 7 a.m. and had an amazing breakfast of lamb sausage courtesy of stevefava (who rocks my socks with lamby joy), slices of Vermont sharp cheddar and another toaster waffle with the real Vermont maple syrup that I imported from the east. A cholesterol bomb, but so worth it, and as it turns out, I needed the calories to get me through the day. (Also, I now have 3 bottles of real maple syrup in my fridge: the one I had from TJs, the one nisaa left in my fridge, and the one I just brought back with me. Yes I did have to open the one I brought back - Vermont syrup is the platonic ideal of syrup and all Canadian and New York versions are but shadow and reflection.)

It was good that the jet lag got me up early for breakfast, since no sooner had I nibbled my last bit of cheese than the power flickered 3 times and went out. It was about 8 a.m. I had an acupuncture appointment at 9:15 and headed out thinking to myself "Oh merchi, it will be fine. This is not Central Asia; certainly they will have the power back on when you return."

How wrong I was. The power was out ALL DAY, and my Sweeeeedish goodness was trapped in the fridge and unaccessible! Since I had just returned from a 3-week trip, I didn't have much in my cupboards, especially that didn't require cooking. My lunch consisted of a cliff bar, pretzels and some chocolate. The worse part about a power outage in an American apartment? Electric stove. The only tea I had all day was the cup I made before 8 a.m., and all the lovely boxes of ingredients in my cupboards were taunting me with the fact that campus housing is so completely electric.

The power outage provided a lovely excuse to go out for beers and dinner with my friend K, since the east side of town had power by Friday evening. After some searching, heading steadily east from our usual haunt, the SC Mountain Brew Co., we ended up at the Seabright Brewery with red ale, turkey burgers, and much animated conversation.

The power came back on around 5 a.m. this morning, and the collective BEEP of all my electronics woked me up, because of my jet lagged sense of time.

Since I spent yesterday alternately napping and reading by candle light, I have a lot of work to catch up on, but perhaps it was worth it, since I feel remarkably well rested.