Tuesday,
January 1, 2002
NEW YEAR'S DAY

Heya, folks. Well, another New Year's Eve is past, and another new year is here. 2001 wasn't anything like a lot of us expected (especially the Man from McKinney, who seems deeply, intensely and personally offended that not only did the actual year bear little if any resemblance to his favorite movie of all time, but that there didn't seem to be a whole lot of attention paid to the movie itself). God knows that at this time last year, I didn't think half the shit that went on this year would occur.

Which gives me an idea for an entry -- let's recap 2001 as seen through Melanie's eyes, shall we?

January 6 -- "I'm leavin' on a jet plane. . ." There I was, absolutely overjoyed to be coming back to the States and ready to start working at the Richardson office of TBS (after a nice one-day layover in Chicago with Stacy and Patrick). Little did I know how long THAT little interlude would last.

January 7 -- "Howdy, y'all." Yes, I'm in Texas -- hosanna, hosanna.

January 17 -- "Notes on Big D." Some observations from an expatriate Chicagoan, particularly about the locals and their driving.

January 20 -- "Hail to the Shrub, and all that jazz." In which I watch the inaugural parade from Sweden, due to my presence being requested at the American Embassy by a certain green card applicant. . .

February 14 -- "My Bonny Lies Over the Ocean." Transatlantic relationships at their best.

March 2 -- "I have a car." And it's red. And pretty. And goes like a bomb. Screw YOU, Vägverket!

March 12 -- "I knew it was too good to last." In which my manager at TBS announces that he's leaving. I should have known the jig was up right there and then.

March 16 -- "Tripping Billies." I'm a hopeless Davehead, yes I am.

April 2 -- "Filing my taxes naked." Hey, I can't be the only one. I also discovered the dangers of combining niacin with peanut butter sandwiches and hazelnut frappacinos -- the dreaded NIACIN FLUSH. . .

April 4 -- "GodDAMN, that was fast!" Sacre merde -- Lyndon has his green card. Certainly this must mean that he can come over and work here now.

April 26 -- "I am now a Lady of Leisure." That's much better than saying I was laid off. More genteel, somehow.

May 3 -- "Resumes away, Cap'n." In which I launch my work history upon the rapidly swelling seas of techdom and hope that someone, ANYONE, wants to hire me.

May 7 -- "In which I have a moment of unusual clarity." Oh, my God -- I wanted to jump a beloved childhood icon!

May 11 -- "Well, that was. . .educational." Interviewing sucks.

May 16 -- "Back in dear old overcast, rainy Stockholm. Whee." Well, it's not like I had a whole hell of a lot else to do in the States.

June 1 -- "Anime, schoolgirls and tapes, oh my!" A-Kon, and my first in-depth introduction to anime.

June 6 -- "Well, that was well and truly weird." More adventures in interviewing.

June 14 -- "On the Road Again." Time for a road trip to Chicago to see the family and wallow in self-pity.

July 4 -- "Happy birthday, America, whatever. . ." Which just goes to prove that if you whine on-line about being alone on a holiday, people are very likely to invite you over just to shut you up.

July 7 -- "Another year, another round of archives." The journal is two years old, and behaving just like it.

July 15 -- "Oh, to be ichiban shower girl tonight. . ." The Dave Matthews Band concert, held in an absolutely sweltering Texas Stadium. I actually felt more sorry for the guys on stage -- they were drenched.

July 18 -- "From bad to worse." Just when I think TBS can't screw us over any more. . .they do.

July 27 -- "OOOOOOOOOOOklahoma, where we wound up detouring through helllllll. . ." On my way to Conestoga, one foot at a time.

August 2 -- "When you can hear them bounce over the phone, you know you're in trouble." More adventures in interviewing, and I'm getting more cynical by the day.

August 8 -- "Well, bugger." Didn't get the job with a company that rhymes with Macromedia, because they hired someone with STRONGER WRITING SKILLS. As Tom Hise exclaimed, "Who did they hire, Connie Willis?"

August 13 -- "Well, 13 was SUPPOSED to be my lucky number." I'm starting to suspect that I'm unhireable -- becoming a madam is looking more and more appealing.

August 17 -- "I've Always Depended on the Kindess of Fandom." Kind and generous friends step in with some much-needed cash, allowing me to keep the utilities on.

August 24 -- "Oh. My. God." The angels have sung, the heavens have opened, the miracle has occurred. I'm employed again!!!

August 27 -- "Time to put the peasant bars back on the car." My first day at work, and some notes on Dallas freeways.

September 1 -- "A new look, and more con adventures." Thanks to the largesse of a friend, I'm in Philadelphia at Worldcon.

September 7 -- "Enter the Bodacious Brit." Another quarterly visit from the husband.

September 11 -- 9/11.

September 25 -- "The Brit is back in town." Lyndon's back from Pleasanton for a few more days. I also meet a comrade on the other side of the wall.

October 6 -- "What do they put in corn dogs? Crack?" Observations on the Texas State Fair.

October 14 -- "Hi-Tech Unmentionables, British Style." It's the Next Generation for bras, I tell you.

October 18 -- "Excuse me while I pull my nails out of the upholstery." I start carpooling with the Man from McKinney, and ask for prayers.

October 27 -- "Let the wild rumpus commence!" Halloween parties, Fletcher style.

November 1 -- "Aaaaaaaand we're OFF!" The start of the National Novel Writing Month.

November 13 -- "Bye-bye bachelorhood." The Bodacious Brit is back for good.

November 26 -- "San Francisco bound." When you wake up a half hour after you're supposed to be at the airport, there's only one thing to ask yourself -- "What Would Steve Do?" Drive like a lead-footed maniac, as it turns out.

December 8 -- "AAAAAIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!" Lyndon starts practicing for the driver's license test, with me in the passenger seat.

December 14 -- "Am I thinking of you, or am I just enjoying a Shatner moment? You decide." In which I climb to the cutting edge of journal-reading technology.

December 20 -- "Death Gets a License." "It's a mistake, Mellie, it's a mistake!"

December 22 -- "Hoo boy, we're in the money." I wanna be rich, oh yes I do.

Which pretty much brings us up to date. Admittedly, I didn't make any entries between Christmas and New Year's Eve, but that's because we really didn't do anything interesting apart from go see Lord of the Rings, and y'all should already know that it's a fabulous movie and you should go see it if you haven't already.

So that was my year, in a nutshell. Most annoying of all on a personal level is that I didn't make a single sale all year, which is embarrassing, considering that I wrote more this year than I think I have in any year previously. I'm hoping that 2002 is something of an improvement on that front -- hell, an improvement on any front would be a goodness.