Highlights of this Year

Things I Enjoyed This Year:

1. The writing of Eve Babitz; I find her writing to be very refreshing and transportive. You really feel like you’re right there in L.A. with her.
2. English Muffins with Irish butter and whipped cream cheese with chives, a real treat, something I look forward to in the morning.
3. Proper sleep hygiene. It’s leagues above what I was doing before (see: blacking out drunk after two bottles of red wine nightly, waking up with “wine mouth”, doing things I regret, hangovers).
4. Italian coffee, I love two, big black cups of it in the morning and reading before the morning meeting.
5. My new apartment, quite cozy.
6. Midday showers: hedonistic and cleanly.
7. Thrift stores. Prior to this I’d only ever been to P’s, but South Florida is teeming with them. During my time here, I’ve managed to get a faux fur bomber jacket and two very fine wallets.
8. Atlantic Avenue, a riveting place. As many bars and clubs as there are, there’s also places for teetotaling health nuts in recovery.
9. The breakfast sandwiches at the rehab clinic I used to enjoy every morning alongside my copy of Postcards from the Edge by Carrie Fisher. Fond memories. The sunrise after a dark night, if you will.
10. Saturday Morning Yoga with The Guru, also a fond memory of the rehab clinic.
11. The cosmetics section at the Walmart in Boynton Beach. Slim pickings, but quite good if you know what you’re looking for.
12. My reading list this year. Considering I began the year in crisis mode and trauma, I somehow managed to heal and read quite well while at it.
13. The literature of Anne Rice and Stephen King this past autumn.
14. Revisiting Mike Flanagan’s filmography with a sober mindset.
15. My nightly AA meeting. I like the people there and I love their Big Book Studies.
16. The friends I made at rehab.
17. All the Floridian women I’ve met who asked me if I’ve had work done and are always gobsmacked when I tell them “no, I have not”, it’s quite spectacular feeling fantastic in my own skin and body.
18. The filmography of Robert Altman. I finally saw 3 Women and Nashville this year, I love that man so.
19. Classical music breaks.
20. Nightly meditation.
21. Revisiting the work of Joan Didion.
22. Volunteer work.
23. My new blow-dryer (and having a blow-dryer again after not having one all year).
24. Guacamole and chips whenever I want.
25. Trips to Dunkin’ and Walmart.
26. The coffee cake and Cortado from Subculture in Delray Beach.
27. Taking care of myself again.
28. Fries with lunch.
29. Long walks.
30. CBT work.
31. Lipliner and vintage Revlon lipstick shades.
32. Not selling myself short.
33. Realizing I truly deserve good things.