How do you measure a year?

There was a song that was popular with the music, dance, theater kids when I was in high school that went something like "five hundred twenty-five thousand, six hundred minutes, how do you measure, measure a year?"

I don't know the answer to that- a year is so much time. so very much can happen in the course of a year, and at the same time so little. Looking back to last December, I am so different and yet so much the same as I was then. But here are a few of the events that took place this year, some funny, some serious.

This first picture is a magazine page that someone put up on the wall of my cyto lab on campus before I ever got there. I left it up because it was kind of funny, but some days it almost made me cry. This picture alone, in some ways, summarizes the first half of the year nicely. However, that's not entirely fair to say, because it leaves out loads and loads of personal growth.



Although there were some rather rocky times this year, I was eventually able to find peace. Thanks, David.



Michael took this great picture of my beautiful almost-18-year-old cat. Isn't he cute? We like him.



Also, I spent some time with some Kenyan models. Wasn't it nice of them to let me pose with them? And how come they're all so photogenic?



This is one of my favorite artistic shots. I'm not sure how I got the camera to focus on the bubbles instead of the people, but I love the effect. Angi and my foster cousin and my Aunt Marie blew a lot of bubbles.



This picture may not look like much, but the three people pictured here actually make up a very powerful superhero set, generally known as the Triple Triumvirate of Three, or the Triumvirate for short. Stu never forgets anything, Heather is always right, and I know everything. Together, we are unstoppable.



Heather and Stu really wanted us to go on a double date, so I found a willing candidate and we used our superhero powers to produce delicious food on an Iron Chef evening. Aaron was a good sport.




Family reunion: here we take advantage of Matt's height and Doug's skill to launch a water balloon high into the stratosphere- Curtis' invention



Post-balloon launch. I'm not sure if Curtis is scrutinizing the skill of the launch or trying to see where the balloon went . . .



It is a little-known fact that I learn obscure languages in my spare time. I don't have a lot of time to spare for this, so I go for the intensive courses.




Earlier in the year, my family and I rediscovered a childhood favorite of ours: marbles! For one of our post-family dinner entertainments, we taped down marble circles in the front room and tested our skills.




Typical Dad pose. Doesn't get much more quintessential than this.



The only wedding I successfully attended this year was that of James and Jenny Kendall. James was my high school friend; Jenny was my roommate (if you're noticing a trend, you're right). Heather, on the left, was also our roommate, last year. We had a very united apartment, which I miss.



This may be one of my favorite photos from the year. The young violinist- in concert black with green sneakers. Angi, you are fabulous.



Angi borrowed my camera to take some pictures for her photography class. She got some really cute shots of our cousin David, but unfortunately, Misha and I were feeling rather silly. I'm quite proud of this one, actually.