Every day is like a party.

As I woke up on January 1st of 2011, I was feeling very excited about life.

So my new bedroom is organized in such a way that the sun shines directly in my eyes between about 8 and 9:30 in the morning, and if I can sleep through it I'm fine - but if I accidentally wake up during that time I'm just screwed. So even though I didn't get to bed until about 4:30 AM the night after the New Year's Eve festivities... I was up early the next day. And every day.

But I didn't care! Because I am feeling so good! Maybe it's because it's the start of a brand new year but I am feeling incredibly bubbly and positive about everything right now.

This past week has been absolutely amazing. First I had a lovely Christmas with my family (most of our extended family lives too far away to spend the holidays together, but there is something really special about Christmas with just my parents and Nick). I got a lot of great things as gifts - pink fuzzy slippers, a gorgeous map of the Earth at night for my bedroom, a package for a spa day with my Mom, etc.

Then I came home and started planning for my birthday party. It's kind of hard to believe I am 23 already. But there was no better way to welcome in another year of my life than by going to the Harry Potter Exhibition with my closest friends. I got to sit in Hagrid's chair, throw a quaffle, and realized all the actors in the movies are way shorter than they seem (their clothes are all tiny!)

After the Exhibition we came back to my place and had one of the best birthday parties I've ever thrown. We played the most intricate game of Apples to Apples ever (with special new rules), Eia managed to convince my roommate Johnny and his band to give me a live performance in my living room, Justin orchestrated a pretty epic game of hide and seek (which, believe it or not, was both fun and successful even though we had about 15-20 people and only two rooms to hide in). The evening ended in a giant dance party to the tune of one of those crappy Hip Hop music television channels up in the 800's on Comcast On Demand.

I spent a few days being sick, but it wasn't so bad. My body was probably just telling me to slow the eff down, so I did. And I slept until 2 a couple days. Which was nice. And also something I never do.

My friend Forest had a party on Wednesday that he called his "Secret Event". He didn't tell anyone anything about it, just invited us all and left it at that, with the air of mystery. Which worked so well, because even though I was kind of sick, Justin and I were like "WE NEED TO KNOW WHAT IT IS." So we went. And it ended up being an incredibly fun holiday Mafia party, which Forest went to great lengths to make amazing for us. There were all sorts of new roles and rules and ended up including Aliens? It was a blast. The creativity and ingenuity of my friends continues to astound me.

Then there was New Year's Eve, and I think it was the best party of all the ones I went to this week. My friends Tara and Alexander have an apartment right downtown near the Space Needle and they threw a terrific little shindig for all of our friends, which I am so thankful for. I had such a blast with everyone there. Sometimes I feel so fortunate to have found friends that are so much like me, it's almost crazy. Especially after the last 4 years of feeling like all of my friends lived so far away all the time, and not really meeting anyone in college - these past 6 months of getting to know this new group of people here in Seattle has just been so wonderful. Especially since Eia and Ariana and even Tyler Nicholas (who was up visiting Ariana this week) all fit right into it too.

At the NYE party, we danced and ate and somehow started doing an impromptu photo shoot complete with lighting, a fan and a light reflector right in the middle of everything. We also found ourselves playing quite a bit of Dance Central (so fun). At midnight there was a lot of confetti and champagne and we all ran downstairs out onto the street to see the fireworks live, and it was so breathtaking and amazing and the perfect way to bring in the new year. I've only ever seen the Seattle fireworks on TV, so this experience was kind of magical for me. 2010 was such a great year for me in so many ways; I felt like I was exactly where I wanted to be as it came to a close. Surrounded by people I love.

I don't know if I mentioned this yet anywhere on my blog but at the Project 4 Awesome Liveshow earlier in December I got to meet FreddieW among all the YouTubers who were hanging out backstage with us. I found out that he's actually from Seattle originally and has been home for the holidays, so I've hung out with him quite a few times in the past week or so. He also brought his brother Jimmy to our New Year's Eve party, which was a sweet bonus because he turned out to be just as nice and fun as Freddie. I love making new YouTube friends, especially when they are near to home (even if it was just temporarily [everyone always has to go back to LA]).

THEN - I know, the fun never ends, then I went to this Yuletide feast with Ariana and Tyler. It was as crazy as it sounds: full renaissance garb, long tables with goblets, candle light, minstrels and jesters. All at this place called the Bors Hede in a small medieval village about an hour out of Seattle. Our plates were made of BREAD. We ate mostly with our hands. It was one of the most bizarre and amazing dining experiences of my entire life. I can't even really describe it more than that; you would have needed to be there.

Now the holidays are over and I'm trying to figure out what the next step is. Today is Monday, and there was no video that needed to be made for fiveawesomegirls. I, in fact, spent much of my day playing WoW and watching the Tale of Despereaux. I'm slightly hesitant to jump right back into the thick of things, because I am always, always so busy and it's been so nice to have some free time. Being lazy and spending time with Seattle friends are two things I rarely have time for, so I'm kind of just enjoying that right now. 2011 is already shaping up to be an insanely busy and travel-filled year, so the fact that January and February are still wide open feels slightly like a godsend. :)


What should I track this year?
Last year I tracked my google searches and Chipotle burritos, but I feel like a new year should warrant new blog devices. I'm going to think on it, but suggestions are welcome!