i think you're a contra

i decided to have one topical post per month.

so, here is the first of twelve "album of the month" posts for 2010!

one of the biggest influences on my life has been music.

i often wish that my life was a musical. music for me has always been a way for me to express my emotions: certain songs spark vivid memories of my child and teenage years.

i go through the occasional like for popular music,

but i always circle back to my roots: indie rock.

naturally, my album of the month pick reflects this:

so for january i have chosen vampire weekend's contra.

i love this album, and simply can't get enough of it.

brilliant lyrics, complex rhythms, and sophisticated melodies.

perfection.

here comes a feeling you thought you'd forgotten

i've been so bad at blogging! i even had a week off of my internship, work & school the first week in january. jeez.

when the new year begins it's always a time for me to set new goals on things that i want to accomplish during the year. i also like to spend time reflecting on the significant events that happened in the previous year. it was really fun to sit down with my husband and talk through our goals for the year. some of them we share - which is really sweet. our first and major one is to actually take our trip to California this year. we started planning our trip last year, but weren't able to do it financially. 2010 is the year. our plan is to fly to LA, and then drive north through the vineyards & coastal towns to get to the Bay Area. we're working out all the details, but it's going to be a perfect mix of relaxation and the outdoors. lots of friends of ours have been there recently so we're compiling all of their "must sees"...ha.

i'm also still working on my fitness goals, and am stepping up my game to include organized runs. so my three for the year are to run the following: a 5k, a 10k, and a half-marathon. two of the three are already in my calendar for the year - let the training begin!

if anyone is reading this...what are your goals for the new year?