My roommate moved out this morning.  I have now been the only resident of Apartment 2024 for nearly 14 hours now and the thrilling novelty of it is still only just setting in.  However, there is part of me that is still not adjusted to this new reality.  Every time I hear the elevator bell ding, there’s a part of me that expects that someone will approach my door, insert a key and enter.  I tense up for a moment when that happens and then I remind myself that no one will be walking in (I don’t know why I tense up.  When it happened tonight, all I was doing was eating a bowl of soup while watching American Gladiators).

In other news, first-ever Fork You Live that we did on Saturday was something of a smashing success.  More people than I ever could have imagined showed up (some even driving from more than 2 hours away) and the food turned out really well.  The folks at Foster’s were pleased and it looks like we just may make it a regular thing.  Now I just need to think of more things to cook!

I’ve been remiss in mentioning this until now, so hopefully it’s not too late. If you are in the Philly area and are free tomorrow around 2 pm, head over to Foster’s Homewares (399 Market Street) and be in the studio audience for the first-ever Fork You Live. Half cooking class, half live episode, we’ll be in the back demonstration kitchen, whipping up three salads for your edification and tasting pleasure!

It seems hard to believe, but it’s now been nearly a week since I’ve posted here.  I can’t remember the last time I let this site go fallow for so long.  I’m back in Philly now, after nearly two weeks hanging out with the family in Portland.  It was a lovely trip, although by the time I left, I was ready to get back to my life in Philly.

However, during the flight back to Philly, I started to realize that I was heading back to a life that looked fairly different from the one I had left only a few weeks before.  I was done with school, my roommate was moving out (leaving me with an apartment that would be all mine for the first time since 2002) and I had a relationship to return to.  It was sort of jarring but also exciting at the same time.

I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want out of this next year.  I feel like I’m poised at the start of some really great opportunities and I want to make sure that I choose to do things that will make me most happy instead of leaping at things out of fear and uncertainty (which has often been my way of operating in the past).

So I’m declaring 2008 the year of happiness.  It is the year in which I really start to support myself as a writer and multimedia content producer (especially in the area of food).   It’s the year when I make time to exercise (I managed to do that in 2005 fairly well) and when I start working my way through the vast number of unread books in my apartment.  I’m not making these commitments to myself as resolutions, but instead promises to myself to create my life in my highest and most ambitious interests.

May your next year be as wonderful as I believe mine will be.