One word.

December 1 One Word.
Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?
(Author: Gwen Bell)

One Word. So many spring to mind. Chaos. Turmoil. Fail. Cancer. None of them really define the year by themselves. Rick died in the spring. Dad was diagnosed with Prostate cancer this fall. I've gained weight. My vision has worsened. The kidlets soccer team came in dead last. Got ripped off by another half-assed contractor. The vultures are back and the flash batteries are always dead. I failed miserably at NaNoWriMo. I read some really crappy novels...The Alchemist...but I also read some really good ones. I had my very first CT scan to diagnose an apparently undiagnosable pain in my head. It was very painful for quite awhile and finally went away after seeing three doctors and a dentist. Maybe it was stress induced. After a month of agony and seventeen ibuprofen a day I sought relief from professionals. Cha-ching.
Positives? Sure. We had a really nice vacation in Banner Elk, NC. Got the ultimate room. Upstairs, downstairs, balconies with views. Super nice. I love the area. It's absolutely beautiful. That was our second trip there. The hiking, the trails, the fantastic scenery never get old. I think I want to move there. Yes, it is that beautiful. The garden did very well this year. Before the bugs and the extreme heat. The potatoes didn't amount to anything and the cucumbers dried up once the heat kicked in. No amount of watering was going to save them. We got a dog in January. Dirty Hairy Callahan. Awesome mutt. She's noisy and playful and so disheveled all the time. She has taught Blondie how to play which I never thought I'd see. So cute. She's also taught Blondie that veggies taste good. The dog will eat anything. We got her from the Richmond Animal League. I saw her picture online and had to get her. Tuco is still hanging in there. He looks like he died months ago but is still tottering around, hacking and coughing and scratching.
So, yeah, the year has been chaotic. I guess that's the word I'm going to choose. It may not be the best, most succinct word, but it'll work.
What word would I like to use next year at this time to encapsulate 2011? I don't know. It has to be one that conveys creativity, success, friendship, fun, happiness, love, contentment, the realization of dreams, and promise. What's another word for synonym?
How about motivated? That seems to encompass most of the above. Next year I'll finish NaNoWriMo. Next year I'll have an even better garden. Next year I'll go out more and make new friends. I'll get involved. I'll create. I'll finish something that I started! Maybe even finish the book. I'll connect with my daughter. I'll boldly go where no homemaker has gone before. The sky's the limit! Rah! Rah! Rah!
But first...I have to get through December. Day by day. Hour by hour. Word by word. I'll start by creating this habit of 750 words a day. They may not be the forehead slapping, eureka! I've got it words but if I can get into the habit of sitting down and actually typing out three pages a day then next year's nano should be a breeze...provided I have a plot. I've got eleven months to come up with something. An idea should be able to burrow into my brain within that time. And maybe I'll learn to turn off the inner critic, stuff her down in some dark quiet spot. Learn that first drafts don't have to be perfect or even make sense all the time. That the first draft's purpose is to get it down on paper so you can come back later during the rewrite and move things around, nail down some continuity, get from A to Z in a readable, lucid manner. I couldn't do it during the month of November but I should be able to do it over six months.
So, the plan is to finish the 750words.com December challenge and the reverb10.com challenge and create a good habit that will carry on through the next year. That will elevate my self esteem and propel me into the next year where the action word will be MOTIVATION. Next year at this time I'll be writing about the awesomeness that was 2011.