2012 In Review

I knew it would be a challenge to top my fantastic 2011. Although I did not always try, I can safely say that 2012 has been a good year, if not great at times. While some of the awesomeness of 2011 has faded this year (or up and left altogether), I have been fortunate throughout the year and made the most of many great opportunities.

This is my 2012 Year In Review.

Winter

Theoretically 2012 started off on a horrible note. Having a good, close friend in Aryn re-enter my life was one of the pillars that made 2011 so good. Less than two weeks into 2012, then, was when she delivered some less-than-exciting news that saw us split back apart as if we never knew one another. What made this worse? This all occurred while I was otherwise having a great time at CodeMash 2012. I took the news hard at first, but this was definitely a second chance coming to a hard, brutal close.

CodeMash was the launching point for my interest and career with responsive web design, a concept best displayed on my website (resize your browser to see how content changes to fit). I have spent all year making RWD a major focus of my web development career and plan keep improving my skills with it.

I finally took the plunge into photography in January with the purchase of a Canon T3i DSLR. I have been growing my collection of equipment, investing plenty of money in new gear, and practicing all kinds of photography in my free time. As you will learn soon, I plan to go places with this.

Spring

In early March I upgraded my old Linux web server to a Windows-based box with the purchase of several new computer parts. I took this opportunity to mix-and-match parts from my desktop machine, and after several key component upgrades, ended up with a powerful web server and a top-of-the-line desktop PC. I have generally aim for an "affordable" desktop PC, but this time I went all-out and have a PC that should last me for years as a top-end machine.

Another staple of 2011 came to a close in early April, when my weekly love affair with O-Deer dDner ended. After visiting the ice cream shop twice a week for a full year, I finally moved on - much to the benefit of my health. I still stop in for the occasional sundae, and I love the peeps that work there, but I have definitely been tempering my sweet tooth this year.

Early January saw me in concert at Frankies to see one of my favorite new bands, The Trews. Early May saw me at Frankies again to see... The Trews again. While the first concert was awesome, it was the May 11th show that blew everything out of the water for me. The Trews had become one of my de-facto favorite bands, and I enjoyed the show immensely. It was easily one of the best concerts of my life - they played every song I wanted to hear and the crowd was energetic.

One surprising event this past spring: an introduction to the new Hollywood Casino in Toledo. I have never gambled or considered myself a casino type of guy, but I ended up loving the casino after just one visit, and I make it a staple to visit every couple of weeks.

Summer

My summer started with one of my favorite events: the kickoff to my Summer of Biking. Between June and September, I did two to four bike rides per week around various locations in the Wood and Lucas County areas. My typical ride departed from my apartment, traveled through Side Cut Metropark, and ended at Fallen Timbers Mall. My longest (and most adventurous) ride: a full 36-mile round-trip from my apartment to Oak Openings Metropark via various bike trails.

I took a mini-vacation in the second week of July to attend the Build Responsively workshop in Columbus. A continuation of my responsive web design interests, this two-day workshop was a deep-dive into RWD and proved to be very enlightening. The Polaris area of northern Columbus was just as fascinating as the event itself, the area being a mecca of shopping malls, stores, and just about every major restaurant I can fathom.

Summer came to a close with the extremely-traditional Wood County Fair. The fair continued to shrink this year, with a couple of vendors missing (compared to last year). Despite the smaller size, I believe the fair was as busy as ever, although extremely stale. This is a county fair so steeped in tradition that I find it harder and harder to go every year. Still, I enjoyed plenty of greasy food and the company of good friends during the most comfortable week of the year.

Fall

The weather seemed to change right on cue this year: fall hit with a comfortable rush of cool air and light rain throughout September and October.

Luckily this change of weather impacted none of my favorite fall festivals. This year was dense, with the usual Fulton County Fair, Roche de Boeuf, and Apple Butter festivals interspersed with some unique events. I took a week off work to enjoy a much-needed vacation in the first week of September. I spent three days at Kalahari Resort and had an absolute blast.

 I wrapped up my Summer of Biking in early September, having logged over 800 miles in four months.

The Hollywood Casino in Toledo hosted several concerts: Fuel, Sixpence None The Richer, Sponge, and Candlebox. All four bands were solid. Fuel was great live in 2005 and even better with an acoustic set in 2012. Sponge was a surprise - an aging but great band with catchy songs. Candlebox absolutely blew me away with their set - loud, energetic, and well-played. Despite lots of great shows this year (including two Trews concerts), Candlebox was the best of the bunch.

I hit up the Toledo Zoo Brew for the second year in a row, did a couple of successful Reboot Weekends to clear my mind of unnecessary stress, and fell in love with Disney's latest animated film, "Wreck-It Ralph." Because of personnel changes at work, I stepped up to take on much more responsibility, and spent lots of time in and out of work studying up for a great 2013 for my professional career.

Overall, 2012 was a great year. If 2011 was a year of great change, 2012 was the year that I hit my new stride and ran with it. I expect 2013 will be another year of change, so stay tuned for a look ahead at the new year.

B3 out.