Year in Review 2024
Dec. 20th, 2024 11:41 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
teylaminhI started this in early December, at the now-traditional point of the month where I realise that Christmas is approaching like a runaway train. Posting it today so I don’t inevitably log off on 23rd December and forget all about it until January.
1. What did you do in 2024 that you'd never done before?
Climbed all the way to the top of the tallest hill in Malvern (up to the Beacon), despite almost giving up after the first half-hour because the first bit of the trail was so steep. It's probably the most exercise either Paul or I have done since the first lockdown when we were walking everywhere, so it was definitely an achievement!
Also: started to learn finance-y stuff in my job, not necessarily through choice, though it turns out it mostly involves updating spreadsheets.
2. Did you keep your New Years' resolutions, and will you make more for next this year?
I didn't make any and didn't manage to do most of the things I wanted this year (particularly in regards to the house/garden) because I spent so many months sporadically fighting off anxiety over one thing or another. So I guess I’ll just roll them over to 2025: get the office/spare room sorted, get the piano moved (we may actually get around to this one of these years) and clear out the overgrown flower beds.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No births or deaths this year, unless you include the impending death of democracy in the USA...
5. What countries did you visit?
Just Bulgaria, as usual. A quieter trip than normal as we only had two days out by virtue of David falling down the steps in the house and hurting his knee, which delayed one of the trips until we were heading back home again.
However, we did visit a winery for a lovely meal, and bought a bottle of undersea aged wine while we were there (it's literally buried at the bottom of the Black Sea as part of the aging process – either that or they stick all the barnacles on it by hand to make you think it was under the sea).
We also went to the ruins of an ancient city and had a look around the museum, but didn't see much of the grounds because there were flies everywhere and we all got fed up of swatting them out of the way - so probably a trip for earlier in the year or later in the autumn I suspect, when there are less bitey things trying to eat us.
Both of these trips resulted in a driving adventure because Bulgarian road signs are… not helpful. The first time we all somehow managed to miss a bridge that we’d driven over, and the second time the sign for the place itself was so faded we couldn’t read it – Googlemaps to the rescue, luckily.
6. What would you like to have in 2025 that you lacked in 2024?
At this point, some sense of job security in terms of staying where I am rather than being moved around arbitrarily on the whims of senior management.
7. What date from 2024 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
4th July when we finally ousted the bloody Tories, though Labour are not exactly covering themselves in glory at present. We also went to see Hamilton the same night; the irony did not occur to me when I booked the tickets and I absolutely did not intend it to coincide with a General Election!
5th November for (a) US election result and (b) the conversation with my line manager that led to a week of anxiety before the decision changed again.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Unfortunately the thing I put for this question in 2022 still applies, to a lesser degree:
”Not going off on long-term sick with stress and/or anxiety thanks to all of the absolute bullshit I've been dealing with at work since March. ISTG it has just been relentless this year.”
In terms of work, however, I have achieved some things I'm proud of in my new team and I've been slowly picking up some new Excel skills as and when I need them, though the in-house training academy no longer offers an intermediate Excel course, because why would they?
9. What was your biggest failure?
Another year where I've done barely any writing, other than a few words for my Merrical fic and one of my GoT WIP's.
My choir attendance has also been absolutely horrendous this year, partly due to the fact that our service day has been mostly on a Tuesday (the same day as rehearsal), and when my steroid jab wore off I had literally no energy to go to rehearsal after work. I've had a few periods of illness impacting on my attendance and I can't even remember the last time I sang in a concert - I took leave of absence for the majority of the summer term and since September it's also been hit and miss. Very frustrating, and the GP also told me off for not going at my last steroid jab appointment!
I actually have no idea how I managed working full-time at an office whilst managing this chronic illness, but I suspect that actually I really wasn’t, and it was just that everything else in my life got sidelined. Enforced home-working due to Covid had a huge positive impact, but now I really feel the decline when my steroid injections wear off. I think part of the issue is that in my previous job I could “coast” to a degree during flare-ups, and because my bare minimum of effort is still twice as good as everyone else’s I was able to get away with it. Now I’ve changed jobs I feel like it takes more energy, as the days are not quite as samey and I actually have to think about stuff.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I had Covid in September. Still not sure where I picked it up but I suspect from the 30th birthday party for a former colleague (she started with us as an apprentice and I remember decorating her desk when she turned 21 - time is an illusion). I thought it was just a bad cold at first as I had a sore throat on the Wednesday, but by Friday I was pretty much delirious and needed the afternoon off. I was having really bizarre dreams and my sense of smell went wonky, at which point I realised it was probably Covid and did a test, which proved it conclusively (the test line appeared before the control line - good old insta'rona.)
I managed to work the week afterwards because I could work from home, though the Monday was definitely a struggle as I had epic brainfog and ended up napping instead of eating lunch. It was most definitely Not Fun. Covid is not over, kids.
Paul and I both then had an absolutely horrendous cold during November, where the resultant cough took literal weeks to shift and caused me to lose my voice. I had literally just got over that one when I picked up the same one again at the start of December, which caused me to miss Messiah. It was touch and go if I could even do my Christmas concert but I managed it somehow, TBH I think it was more bloody-minded determination than anything else.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
I finally treated myself to a new steam mop with my November back-pay; it's a Shark, same as my vaccuum, and it's AMAZING. I don't think my kitchen floor has ever been so clean!
We also had to buy a new dishwasher when the old one in the house broke (the landlady agreed we could buy it rather than her replacing it) - we were without it for about three weeks and that was long enough, thanks. How we coped without one for 10 years I will never know; it has been life-changing and that's not an exaggeration.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
I genuinely can't think of anyone this year - which is not to say there are not good people around, but there's nobody I would jump up and down about.
Actually no, that’s unfair. We have had three new starters in the team and they are all great in their own way, but one of them is full of good ideas and hopefully she will go far, if the Trust doesn’t manage to break her. In the CP world it has continued to be a revolving door when it comes to retaining staff, so we definitely got the good ones in IRO!
I feel really lucky to have the team that I do, TBH, they are all very experienced, lovely people and they do what they’re told without arguing.
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Business Support senior management (in particular the Head of Service) as usual. Also the HOS for CP still seems content for his service to sink, so I’m even more glad I escaped. The HOS for my service is a lot more amenable and happy for Business Support to do its own thing without his input; if I’d stayed in CP it would actually have driven me insane as their HOS wants a finger in all the pies, to the detriment of actually making any useful decisions.
Also, it goes without saying, Trump et al. The Tories as they were in their final death throes before the General Election, which apparently was still not transparent enough for a certain faction of society not to vote for them regardless. (National Service? Joining Russia and Belarus in leaving the ECHR? How about you fuck all the way off.)
Nigel Farage and all of his fascist dickheads in Reform (see above), particularly when it came to the #FarageRiots and all of his cronies coming out to stoke the fire (I am including Clarkson in this, the absolute bellend).
14. Where did most of your money go?
Cost of living crisis, innit. I have been slightly better off this year at least.
TBH most of my money has gone on Ubers to work because it's ridiculously hard to get to on public transport first thing in the morning (coming back again is slightly less irritating), despite being only a handful of stops out of the city centre, and since lockdown my patience for bus shenanigans is pretty much non-existent.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
The General Election because this is my life now I'm no longer apolitical - though perhaps excited is the wrong word, more relieved.
My new steam mop because I'm apparently excited by household appliances now.
16. What song will always remind you of 2024?
I don't think I've bought any new music this year so I can't think of a particular song, but after Hamilton we were both earworming “You’ll Be Back” on a constant loop so probably that one :P
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
(a) happier or sadder? It's been a very up and down year for my anxiety but overall I am much happier at work than I was last year.
(b) thinner or fatter? I think I've plateau'd at least but my weight fluctuates anyway as when my steroid jab wears off I'm perpetually hungry, and mostly too knackered to cook properly.
(c) richer or poorer? Very slightly richer but only because I went up a notch on the pay scale and we all had a salary uplift.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Reading - I didn't even manage to finish a whole book this year, even when I was on holiday.
Also writing - the will is there, the words are percolating, the motivation is non-existent.
9. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Probably gaming - it's one of my main hobbies but I should really make more time for stuff like embroidery instead. Gaming is such a massive timesink.
20. How will you spend Christmas?
I had my team lunch and Secret Santa on the 17th so that was nice – hopefully in the new year we can finally stabilise our service day and go out for lunch more often.
This Sunday we're doing the Luminate light walk at Botanical Gardens with family, then the traditional meal with friends on Christmas Eve. My uncle is coming over for lunch on the day (lamb this year).
I am working the 23rd, 27th and 30th December, and then I’m off from New Year’s Eve until 13th January because I needed an extra week off. The decision about my team move changed so quickly that I didn’t have time to process it in the first place, particularly because I was supporting IRO interviews for two days afterwards; I spent the Saturday afterwards just moping and watching TV and feeling sorry for myself, then a couple of days batting anxiety, and then the decision changed again. I feel emotionally battered so mostly I am just looking forward to the break TBH.
21. How will you spend New Year's Eve?
Going out to get whatever ingredients I need for Paul’s birthday dinner the day after, probably. Last year I made croissants for brunch and that took most of the day.
22-23. [REDACTED]
24. What was your favourite TV programme?
Taskmaster remains a firm favourite as well as Lego Masters Australia (I've tried the US version, can't get on with it).
This year I belatedly binged 13 Reasons Why on Netflix, and we both enjoyed (though that's probably the wrong word) Baby Reindeer.
Also EastEnders, which has been so bloody good lately at tackling difficult issues – I’ve been particularly impressed with their handling of Linda’s alcoholism, Nish’s manipulative abuser behaviour (and also Dean’s), Stacey’s run-in with Hugo, and Jean falling prey to scammers. I realise this means nothing to people who don’t watch it :P
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Unfortunately I have been reminded once again of the existence of Donald Trump, and every single media outlet keeps shoving Farage’s hideous frog-like visage in our faces every minute of the day. He was last seen shouting about the existence of semi-skimmed milk, because he’s a proper grown-up politician now and these are important issues that affect our lives.
26. What was the best book you read?
See above: didn't manage to finish a book this year.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
None – well, kind of Hamilton, I was aware of its existence but didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I actually did when Paul and I saw it live.
28. What did you want and get?
The Nightmare Before Christmas Lego set, which was a birthday present off Paul. I am still yet to build the 3rd model in the set, because work shenanigans broke my brain for a bit. I’ll finish it over Christmas.
29. What did you want and not get?
Well, I wanted a proper socialist government but that ship sailed with Corbyn, I fear. Labour are infinitely better than the Tories but they have a lot of hard work ahead of them and I'm not fully certain they can turn things around if they continue in the way they are currently, but it doesn't help that I'm still living on Twitter/X and haven't found an alternative, and it's turning into a horrendous right wing cesspit with absolutely no balance.
30. What was your favourite film of the year?
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice for sure! First film we have seen at a cinema for a very long time (not including classics at the Electric, which won't be a thing now it's closed again, fuck you developers). It was just a delight - so many throwbacks to the first film particularly with the Aesthetics, though the Monica Belluci character / subplot seemed a bit surplus to requirements. Generally I really enjoyed it, particularly because I love finding the little references that Tim throws in - and because he likes to cameo in his films these days and it's always a surprise when he suddenly pops up in the background.
Also Joker: Folie A Deux which we also saw at the cinema. It had mixed reviews but we both really enjoyed it.
We finally got around to watching Barbie and it was great fun.
On Halloween we rewatched both Ghost Stories (the film adaptation of the Andy Nyman stage play) and As Above, So Below and had forgotten how great the latter was.
Oh, and I watched M3GAN on Netflix, which was... underwhelming.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 43 and Paul cooked me a meal as we had only just got back off holiday and we were skint :P
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
This answer from 2022 is sadly perpetually relevant. ”My job just... not.”
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2023?
Now that I am not "public facing" in the same way at work, I have finally given up on my black trousers, t-shirt and black cardigan combo, which means I am mostly wearing jeans/trainers to work with various tops that Paul's mom bought for me (the ones that aren't fancy anyway).
I have tried to get in the habit of putting on make-up for the Sunday pub quiz just because I own it and rarely wear it.
The thing I’m enjoying currently is crazy 60’s style print dresses, I have three now in a similar style with long balloon sleeves and above-the-knee length skirts with psychedelic patterns on, plus one that’s more like a very long shirt (I bought it thinking it was a blouse, it’s dress length on me). Also I must buy more dungarees off Cider at some point because they’re so comfy.
34. What kept you sane?
See above re: gaming - it's been my main form of stress relief / distraction. True crime documentaries on Netflix have been my comfort viewing, though I'm fairly certain that means I'm a sociopath.
35. Which celebrity / public figure did you fancy the most?
I don't think there's been anyone this year TBH.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
As ever, whilst in Bulgaria we were inundated with anti-Trump YouTube videos as my step-dad is obsessed with it all. The underhanded tactics / outright lies employed by the Trump team were honestly horrifying.
Obviously, the Tories doubled down on horrendous policies in the run-up to the election, to the point it felt like they were actively trying to lose. I said it above but I’ll say it again: National Service FFS. Sunak openly mocking trans people whilst the mother of a murdered trans teenager was sitting in Parliament. Pretty much anything Sunak did/said in those final few months, to be honest - it was astonishing and infuriating.
Then, looking at what Labour are doing now and thinking what we could have won with Corbyn. I am never not going to be bitter about that, and the sooner the right-wing press eats itself, the better.
37. Who did you miss?
I have missed my old team, though we have oddly met up more for meals out than we ever did when we worked together, and I've run into a few people at the office now and then. I definitely do not miss the job though.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
The three new starters in my team, they are all absolutely brilliant.
39. Did you meet anyone you only knew online?
Nobody this year.
40. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2024:
Whatever they tell you, it's what they're not telling you that's more important.
41. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
You know what, I’m going to let Lin-Manuel Miranda sum it up…
But for King George insert “the Government”.
I have been slightly better at updating DW this year, but my TLOU post(s) are way overdue! Hopefully season 2 will be dropping in 2025 so I’ll try and do post-episode recaps properly this time…
1. What did you do in 2024 that you'd never done before?
Climbed all the way to the top of the tallest hill in Malvern (up to the Beacon), despite almost giving up after the first half-hour because the first bit of the trail was so steep. It's probably the most exercise either Paul or I have done since the first lockdown when we were walking everywhere, so it was definitely an achievement!
Also: started to learn finance-y stuff in my job, not necessarily through choice, though it turns out it mostly involves updating spreadsheets.
2. Did you keep your New Years' resolutions, and will you make more for next this year?
I didn't make any and didn't manage to do most of the things I wanted this year (particularly in regards to the house/garden) because I spent so many months sporadically fighting off anxiety over one thing or another. So I guess I’ll just roll them over to 2025: get the office/spare room sorted, get the piano moved (we may actually get around to this one of these years) and clear out the overgrown flower beds.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No births or deaths this year, unless you include the impending death of democracy in the USA...
5. What countries did you visit?
Just Bulgaria, as usual. A quieter trip than normal as we only had two days out by virtue of David falling down the steps in the house and hurting his knee, which delayed one of the trips until we were heading back home again.
However, we did visit a winery for a lovely meal, and bought a bottle of undersea aged wine while we were there (it's literally buried at the bottom of the Black Sea as part of the aging process – either that or they stick all the barnacles on it by hand to make you think it was under the sea).
We also went to the ruins of an ancient city and had a look around the museum, but didn't see much of the grounds because there were flies everywhere and we all got fed up of swatting them out of the way - so probably a trip for earlier in the year or later in the autumn I suspect, when there are less bitey things trying to eat us.
Both of these trips resulted in a driving adventure because Bulgarian road signs are… not helpful. The first time we all somehow managed to miss a bridge that we’d driven over, and the second time the sign for the place itself was so faded we couldn’t read it – Googlemaps to the rescue, luckily.
6. What would you like to have in 2025 that you lacked in 2024?
At this point, some sense of job security in terms of staying where I am rather than being moved around arbitrarily on the whims of senior management.
7. What date from 2024 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
4th July when we finally ousted the bloody Tories, though Labour are not exactly covering themselves in glory at present. We also went to see Hamilton the same night; the irony did not occur to me when I booked the tickets and I absolutely did not intend it to coincide with a General Election!
5th November for (a) US election result and (b) the conversation with my line manager that led to a week of anxiety before the decision changed again.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Unfortunately the thing I put for this question in 2022 still applies, to a lesser degree:
”Not going off on long-term sick with stress and/or anxiety thanks to all of the absolute bullshit I've been dealing with at work since March. ISTG it has just been relentless this year.”
In terms of work, however, I have achieved some things I'm proud of in my new team and I've been slowly picking up some new Excel skills as and when I need them, though the in-house training academy no longer offers an intermediate Excel course, because why would they?
9. What was your biggest failure?
Another year where I've done barely any writing, other than a few words for my Merrical fic and one of my GoT WIP's.
My choir attendance has also been absolutely horrendous this year, partly due to the fact that our service day has been mostly on a Tuesday (the same day as rehearsal), and when my steroid jab wore off I had literally no energy to go to rehearsal after work. I've had a few periods of illness impacting on my attendance and I can't even remember the last time I sang in a concert - I took leave of absence for the majority of the summer term and since September it's also been hit and miss. Very frustrating, and the GP also told me off for not going at my last steroid jab appointment!
I actually have no idea how I managed working full-time at an office whilst managing this chronic illness, but I suspect that actually I really wasn’t, and it was just that everything else in my life got sidelined. Enforced home-working due to Covid had a huge positive impact, but now I really feel the decline when my steroid injections wear off. I think part of the issue is that in my previous job I could “coast” to a degree during flare-ups, and because my bare minimum of effort is still twice as good as everyone else’s I was able to get away with it. Now I’ve changed jobs I feel like it takes more energy, as the days are not quite as samey and I actually have to think about stuff.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I had Covid in September. Still not sure where I picked it up but I suspect from the 30th birthday party for a former colleague (she started with us as an apprentice and I remember decorating her desk when she turned 21 - time is an illusion). I thought it was just a bad cold at first as I had a sore throat on the Wednesday, but by Friday I was pretty much delirious and needed the afternoon off. I was having really bizarre dreams and my sense of smell went wonky, at which point I realised it was probably Covid and did a test, which proved it conclusively (the test line appeared before the control line - good old insta'rona.)
I managed to work the week afterwards because I could work from home, though the Monday was definitely a struggle as I had epic brainfog and ended up napping instead of eating lunch. It was most definitely Not Fun. Covid is not over, kids.
Paul and I both then had an absolutely horrendous cold during November, where the resultant cough took literal weeks to shift and caused me to lose my voice. I had literally just got over that one when I picked up the same one again at the start of December, which caused me to miss Messiah. It was touch and go if I could even do my Christmas concert but I managed it somehow, TBH I think it was more bloody-minded determination than anything else.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
I finally treated myself to a new steam mop with my November back-pay; it's a Shark, same as my vaccuum, and it's AMAZING. I don't think my kitchen floor has ever been so clean!
We also had to buy a new dishwasher when the old one in the house broke (the landlady agreed we could buy it rather than her replacing it) - we were without it for about three weeks and that was long enough, thanks. How we coped without one for 10 years I will never know; it has been life-changing and that's not an exaggeration.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
I genuinely can't think of anyone this year - which is not to say there are not good people around, but there's nobody I would jump up and down about.
Actually no, that’s unfair. We have had three new starters in the team and they are all great in their own way, but one of them is full of good ideas and hopefully she will go far, if the Trust doesn’t manage to break her. In the CP world it has continued to be a revolving door when it comes to retaining staff, so we definitely got the good ones in IRO!
I feel really lucky to have the team that I do, TBH, they are all very experienced, lovely people and they do what they’re told without arguing.
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Business Support senior management (in particular the Head of Service) as usual. Also the HOS for CP still seems content for his service to sink, so I’m even more glad I escaped. The HOS for my service is a lot more amenable and happy for Business Support to do its own thing without his input; if I’d stayed in CP it would actually have driven me insane as their HOS wants a finger in all the pies, to the detriment of actually making any useful decisions.
Also, it goes without saying, Trump et al. The Tories as they were in their final death throes before the General Election, which apparently was still not transparent enough for a certain faction of society not to vote for them regardless. (National Service? Joining Russia and Belarus in leaving the ECHR? How about you fuck all the way off.)
Nigel Farage and all of his fascist dickheads in Reform (see above), particularly when it came to the #FarageRiots and all of his cronies coming out to stoke the fire (I am including Clarkson in this, the absolute bellend).
14. Where did most of your money go?
Cost of living crisis, innit. I have been slightly better off this year at least.
TBH most of my money has gone on Ubers to work because it's ridiculously hard to get to on public transport first thing in the morning (coming back again is slightly less irritating), despite being only a handful of stops out of the city centre, and since lockdown my patience for bus shenanigans is pretty much non-existent.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
The General Election because this is my life now I'm no longer apolitical - though perhaps excited is the wrong word, more relieved.
My new steam mop because I'm apparently excited by household appliances now.
16. What song will always remind you of 2024?
I don't think I've bought any new music this year so I can't think of a particular song, but after Hamilton we were both earworming “You’ll Be Back” on a constant loop so probably that one :P
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
(a) happier or sadder? It's been a very up and down year for my anxiety but overall I am much happier at work than I was last year.
(b) thinner or fatter? I think I've plateau'd at least but my weight fluctuates anyway as when my steroid jab wears off I'm perpetually hungry, and mostly too knackered to cook properly.
(c) richer or poorer? Very slightly richer but only because I went up a notch on the pay scale and we all had a salary uplift.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Reading - I didn't even manage to finish a whole book this year, even when I was on holiday.
Also writing - the will is there, the words are percolating, the motivation is non-existent.
9. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Probably gaming - it's one of my main hobbies but I should really make more time for stuff like embroidery instead. Gaming is such a massive timesink.
20. How will you spend Christmas?
I had my team lunch and Secret Santa on the 17th so that was nice – hopefully in the new year we can finally stabilise our service day and go out for lunch more often.
This Sunday we're doing the Luminate light walk at Botanical Gardens with family, then the traditional meal with friends on Christmas Eve. My uncle is coming over for lunch on the day (lamb this year).
I am working the 23rd, 27th and 30th December, and then I’m off from New Year’s Eve until 13th January because I needed an extra week off. The decision about my team move changed so quickly that I didn’t have time to process it in the first place, particularly because I was supporting IRO interviews for two days afterwards; I spent the Saturday afterwards just moping and watching TV and feeling sorry for myself, then a couple of days batting anxiety, and then the decision changed again. I feel emotionally battered so mostly I am just looking forward to the break TBH.
21. How will you spend New Year's Eve?
Going out to get whatever ingredients I need for Paul’s birthday dinner the day after, probably. Last year I made croissants for brunch and that took most of the day.
22-23. [REDACTED]
24. What was your favourite TV programme?
Taskmaster remains a firm favourite as well as Lego Masters Australia (I've tried the US version, can't get on with it).
This year I belatedly binged 13 Reasons Why on Netflix, and we both enjoyed (though that's probably the wrong word) Baby Reindeer.
Also EastEnders, which has been so bloody good lately at tackling difficult issues – I’ve been particularly impressed with their handling of Linda’s alcoholism, Nish’s manipulative abuser behaviour (and also Dean’s), Stacey’s run-in with Hugo, and Jean falling prey to scammers. I realise this means nothing to people who don’t watch it :P
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Unfortunately I have been reminded once again of the existence of Donald Trump, and every single media outlet keeps shoving Farage’s hideous frog-like visage in our faces every minute of the day. He was last seen shouting about the existence of semi-skimmed milk, because he’s a proper grown-up politician now and these are important issues that affect our lives.
26. What was the best book you read?
See above: didn't manage to finish a book this year.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
None – well, kind of Hamilton, I was aware of its existence but didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I actually did when Paul and I saw it live.
28. What did you want and get?
The Nightmare Before Christmas Lego set, which was a birthday present off Paul. I am still yet to build the 3rd model in the set, because work shenanigans broke my brain for a bit. I’ll finish it over Christmas.
29. What did you want and not get?
Well, I wanted a proper socialist government but that ship sailed with Corbyn, I fear. Labour are infinitely better than the Tories but they have a lot of hard work ahead of them and I'm not fully certain they can turn things around if they continue in the way they are currently, but it doesn't help that I'm still living on Twitter/X and haven't found an alternative, and it's turning into a horrendous right wing cesspit with absolutely no balance.
30. What was your favourite film of the year?
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice for sure! First film we have seen at a cinema for a very long time (not including classics at the Electric, which won't be a thing now it's closed again, fuck you developers). It was just a delight - so many throwbacks to the first film particularly with the Aesthetics, though the Monica Belluci character / subplot seemed a bit surplus to requirements. Generally I really enjoyed it, particularly because I love finding the little references that Tim throws in - and because he likes to cameo in his films these days and it's always a surprise when he suddenly pops up in the background.
Also Joker: Folie A Deux which we also saw at the cinema. It had mixed reviews but we both really enjoyed it.
We finally got around to watching Barbie and it was great fun.
On Halloween we rewatched both Ghost Stories (the film adaptation of the Andy Nyman stage play) and As Above, So Below and had forgotten how great the latter was.
Oh, and I watched M3GAN on Netflix, which was... underwhelming.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 43 and Paul cooked me a meal as we had only just got back off holiday and we were skint :P
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
This answer from 2022 is sadly perpetually relevant. ”My job just... not.”
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2023?
Now that I am not "public facing" in the same way at work, I have finally given up on my black trousers, t-shirt and black cardigan combo, which means I am mostly wearing jeans/trainers to work with various tops that Paul's mom bought for me (the ones that aren't fancy anyway).
I have tried to get in the habit of putting on make-up for the Sunday pub quiz just because I own it and rarely wear it.
The thing I’m enjoying currently is crazy 60’s style print dresses, I have three now in a similar style with long balloon sleeves and above-the-knee length skirts with psychedelic patterns on, plus one that’s more like a very long shirt (I bought it thinking it was a blouse, it’s dress length on me). Also I must buy more dungarees off Cider at some point because they’re so comfy.
34. What kept you sane?
See above re: gaming - it's been my main form of stress relief / distraction. True crime documentaries on Netflix have been my comfort viewing, though I'm fairly certain that means I'm a sociopath.
35. Which celebrity / public figure did you fancy the most?
I don't think there's been anyone this year TBH.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
As ever, whilst in Bulgaria we were inundated with anti-Trump YouTube videos as my step-dad is obsessed with it all. The underhanded tactics / outright lies employed by the Trump team were honestly horrifying.
Obviously, the Tories doubled down on horrendous policies in the run-up to the election, to the point it felt like they were actively trying to lose. I said it above but I’ll say it again: National Service FFS. Sunak openly mocking trans people whilst the mother of a murdered trans teenager was sitting in Parliament. Pretty much anything Sunak did/said in those final few months, to be honest - it was astonishing and infuriating.
Then, looking at what Labour are doing now and thinking what we could have won with Corbyn. I am never not going to be bitter about that, and the sooner the right-wing press eats itself, the better.
37. Who did you miss?
I have missed my old team, though we have oddly met up more for meals out than we ever did when we worked together, and I've run into a few people at the office now and then. I definitely do not miss the job though.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
The three new starters in my team, they are all absolutely brilliant.
39. Did you meet anyone you only knew online?
Nobody this year.
40. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2024:
Whatever they tell you, it's what they're not telling you that's more important.
41. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
You know what, I’m going to let Lin-Manuel Miranda sum it up…
…Britain keeps shittin’ on us endlessly
Essentially, they tax us relentlessly
Then King George turns around, runs a spending spree
He ain’t ever gonna set his descendents free
So there will be a revolution in this century
But for King George insert “the Government”.
I have been slightly better at updating DW this year, but my TLOU post(s) are way overdue! Hopefully season 2 will be dropping in 2025 so I’ll try and do post-episode recaps properly this time…
