This is me, chasing away the regular onset of “Bah humbug.”

Look. Your friend (or frenemy, whatever you refer to me as) Fayza here is an incredibly busy girl. Uh, really, I am, and she is, too. But because she nor I can never ever seem to say no to any project that appears even remotely shiny or sparkly from a distance, here we are. This is both her downfall, as well as mine. And by golly, she can’t say no to blogging. Like, ever. Again, that’s why we’re here today.

More specifically, when Gwen Bell tempted me with a writing/photography/brain dump project called The Best of 2009 Blog Challenge, hell, I took the bait and gulped it down with glee (and with a hefty sprinkling of Tony Chachere’s, of course). Besides, I have every reason in the world to reminisce on the tumult (did I say that? I meant joy!) that was 2009. After all, it was the final year of my twenties, and a lot of, well, things happened. You know, thing things. I may or may not share them all with you. I will probably be elusive with most of the details. You’ll just have to live ’til the end of December to find out.

Every day this month (okay, if I’m being perfectly honest, when I remember or properly allocate my time away from Facebook), I will write or post photos about something that I’d dub “the best” of the year that’s going, going, gone by. And you, in turn, will or won’t like it. I’m not really doing this for you, I suppose (sorry)(I’m not really sorry). But you are welcome to come along for the ride. I require that all riders buckle up and use the cup holders for open beverages, thank you.

Man, I just realized that I really didn’t take enough photos in 2009. I’m already starting my Best Of with a Worst Of moment. Pffft.

Without further ado, let’s begin at the beginning, shall we?

December 1. Trip. What was your best trip in 2009?

Okay, this is a sore spot. I never left the country in 2009, so, I’m salty about it. That American obligation dubbed “work” and, similarly, “ambition” really get in the way of vacation time methinks. But that doesn’t mean that I sat on my arse in Houston all year long. If that’d been the case, well, you might as well pronounce me dead. Clinically, not metaphorically.

All the photos aren’t quite uploaded yet (and maybe they never will be…?), but here’s a photo from the beginning of the weekend of my favorite trip of 2009:

Oh, the glorious outdoors.

December 2. Restaurant moment. Share the best restaurant experience you had this year. Who was there? What made it amazing?
What taste stands out in your mind?

I’m somewhat of a restaurant snob, but only because I once had this job that exposed me to the very best culinary delights that Houston has to offer. But the best restaurant experience I had in 2009 really didn’t have to do with the food at all. It had everything to do with the people, the occasion, and the fact that I had no idea it was coming.

Surprise!

Yes, it was an evening, all about me. I mean, who wouldn’t enjoy that? The rules don’t say that it had to be a completely altruistic event. So whatever. It was an incredible, best-of experience indeed.