2013

1. What did you do in 2013 that you’d never done before?

- Owned and hand-raised a farm animal of my very own :) 

- Bunch of new farm tasks, e.g. operating feed-out wagon, loader, baleage wrapper, mower, hay rake. Driving a tractor all over the neighbourhood towing implements about 8m long.

- Got up at 4am every Saturday and Sunday for 4 months, to milk 4 times as many cows as I'd ever milked before. Too many cows.

- Pretty much ran all the operations of a (different) dairy shed for a couple of months.
- Did a tiny bit of deer work.
- Shot at some animals and killed them.
- Ate crayfish.
- Knitted something from my own home-spun wool :D
- Oh, hangovers. Hangovers. My first, second and last. And yeah, drinking till I spewed. Nice.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for the next year?

- I again began the year with the intention of kicking the arse of my studies, and did so. I think I also intended to be more disciplined in not helping out my classmates when they didn't deserve it, but it was just too much fun to resist. Next year: keep farming.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

- Did Jim and Joy have theirs this year? And my boss's partner.

4. Did anyone close to you die?

- No humans.

5. What countries did you visit?

- Again didn't leave the South Island. Don't think I even swam in the sea. May not have even jumped.

6. What would you like to have in 2014 that you lacked in 2013?

- A permanent job in South Canterbury that I like a lot.
- More animals, especially a dog.

7. What dates from 2013 will remain etched in your memory, and why?

- Hm don't think so.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

- 'A' average for my agriculture studies I guess. But then that was probably the easy part of the year. Getting drunk was probably more of an achievement for me. I promised I would and I did.

9. What was your biggest failure of the year?

- That damn B- for one paper. Sticks out like a B- on my transcript. 

- Failed to stay thin after getting all trim over the summer.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

- Nothing significant.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

- Diploma in Farm Management.

12. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?

- My boss's partner, who appears to hate everybody, including me, and seems to have a talent for making any task profoundly unenjoyable for everyone.

13. Whose behaviour merited celebration?

- My awesome flatmates, for being top blokes.

14. Where did most of your money go?

 - Survival, study.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

- The people I love.
- No doubt heaps of agricultural information and ideas that came my way.

16. What song will always remind you of 2013?

- Blurred Lines. 

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:

a) happier or sadder?

- I think at this time last year I was worried about being good enough at my job, but was just about to get much happier. The former is about equally true of now; hopefully the latter is too.

b) fatter or thinner?

- Fatter. Started the year about the thinnest I've ever been, then got study-belly.

c) richer or poorer?

- Still got nothin’. Richer in knowledge.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

- Reading and discussing non-agricultural stuff. My philosophy muscles are getting out of shape. 

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

- Same as last year: fretting about whether or not I’m doing well in my job(s). Can’t seem to help it though.

- And, if it weren't for the fact that regrets are for suckers, I suppose I might regret the amount of time spent playing Candy Crush. But regrets are for suckers. And for people who do dumb shit I guess...

20. How did you spend Christmas?

- With Matt's family. It rained, we feasted, exchanged materials and played trivial pursuit. Pleasant.

21. Did you fall in love in 2013?

- I fall in love with the universe every year. Which is lucky, coz we're hitched.

22. What was your favourite TV programme?

- Country Calendar, and all the Tuesday night wildlife type shows.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

- I'm pretty close to hating the aforementioned boss's partner, I think. But then again, you know, I wish her well.

24. What was the best book you read?

- I barely read in 2013.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

-The Attic radio. They make me look forward to getting in the car.

26. What did you want and get?

- Oh, heaps much stuff.

- Two part time jobs to get me through my studies and increase my skills. 

- A wonderful flat with 5 farming lads from whom I learned heaps, and with whom I was on balance much happier than last year when I lived alone.

- Lots of good times with fun people. Again, big improvement on last year.

- Good marks.

- A radiantly happy sister and a new brother in law.

27. What did you want and not get?

- Straight 'A's

- Have been looking for my perfect job and haven't found it yet.

- Well, come on, there's heaps of stuff I would like. A farm. Ain't got it.

28. What was your favourite film of this year?

- Tree of Life

29. What did you do on your birthday and how old did you turn?

- Nothing I think. Probably studied for exams. Turned 29.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

- If I had skills and confidence to match my knowledge and 'potential'.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?

- Capitulated to Lincoln dress code, more or less.

32. What kept you sane?

- Animals.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

- Didn't meet any. Ok fine, Russell Brand.
- Oh, and.

Lana.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?

A few that have got me notably riled up have been:

- The apparent lack of understanding and effective discourse between town and country folks on issues on which they disagree. I would love to see this improved in some way, as it only makes things worse. Makes me quite angry when I hear either side of the argument make straw men out of the other side as an excuse to ignore their points of view.

- The content of the above disputes, e.g. the environmental impacts of modern farming.

- The economic structure of our society, and where it's all heading. E.g. that stuff Russell Brand's been going on about.

- The culture around sex, consent and alcohol amongst the generation with whom I've been spending most of my time this year.

- The crazy stuff Johnkey's been up to, and the importance (on the one hand) of being vigilant in a democracy about what your leaders are doing beneath the evasive/placatory talk, and the difficulty (on the other hand) of putting in enough time and effort to become adequately informed.

35. Who did you miss?

- Since uni finished I have missed my flatmates and classmates. And all the people I've been bad at keeping in touch with.

36. Who was the best new person you met?

- My flatmates probably. Well, I was dimly acquainted with them before this year.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013.

- Hangovers bad.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

- I dunno, it hasn't been a particularly lyrical or conceptually unified year.