(See also 2007 in Questions, 2006 in Questions, 2005 in Questions, and 2004 in Questions.)

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?

Trust more deeply than ever before. I know, it’s vague, but it’s all I can come up with. I really did just TRUST like crazy in 2008.

2. Did you keep your 2008 resolutions? Will you make more for 2009?

I don’t really do resolutions for each new year. I always have goals, and those change more frequently than annually, so… sure! That said, I am actually going to resolve to spend less time on The Facebook in 2009. That’ll be easy. I’m set to be working my arse off and there will be no time for the endless hours of Word Twist anymore.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

I don’t guess so! Hmm. But a whole bunch of friends are knocked up right now, so next year should be interesting. 😉

4. Did anyone close to you die?

Not super-close. Old friends. Old family.

5. What countries did you visit?

Once again, I didn’t even leave the STATE this year.

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?

A mortgage! We really caught the house-hunting bug in 2008. Seriously hardcore. We’re on the hunt for a home to buy in 2009 and just the “getting started” of it all (meeting with mortgage guys, meeting with CPAs, meeting with credit advisors, meeting with realtors, doing drive-by check-outs of the houses that meet our criteria, shopping online) has really fired me up for buying our first house in 2009. Ooh, and the timing couldn’t be better, as the economy goes! Some of the houses we’re looking at would actually cut our monthly rent in HALF. I’m so down with that.

7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory and why?

November 4th. Yeah, I was sick as a dog and spent most of the day in bed, but crawling out of bed to watch the Obama acceptance speech was a wonderful (albeit strained, due to my overall weakness) task. I thought I would cry even more than I did, but I think my sadness over Prop 8 passing in California tempered my glee.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Just getting through it! I know that sounds like a cop-out. I could say, “Losing 50 pounds.” I could say, “Keeping Keith from killing someone who wronged me.” I could say, “NOT having cancer.” I could say, “Creating amazing new relationships with some really phenomenal people.” I could say, “Starting up an ongoing actors’ workout/business of the business class.” I could say, “Churning out the book in 4.5 weeks.” I could say, “Loving Keith more and more each day.” I could say, “Reaching the five-year goal for the showcase within just two years.” I could say, “Earning associate producer credits on two films I cast.” I could say, “Being quoted in E! Online.” I could say all of that and then some, but I think the biggest accomplishment of any year, really, is just enjoying the ride. Because isn’t that the one constant? It is a journey… and choosing to enjoy every bit of it is the real challenge. That happened for me this year.

9. What was your biggest failure?

The times when I didn’t enjoy the journey. When I questioned myself. When I doubted my instincts. When I lost my patience. Luckily, all of that stuff happened a teeny fraction of the time in 2008. So, as big failures go, that’s pretty dang good.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Yup. I had me a cancer scare! Had a biopsy and everything! It was terrifying and, thankfully, NOTHING. The tech who said she was “removing a significant number of abnormal-looking cells” was shocked to report, two weeks later, that there was no trace of cancer in those cells after all. Damn straight! Lovely Miss AnnaVo put me on the right track by reminding me that my health, my happiness, my life is totally within my control. I got on the Abraham audio file path and meditated my ass off. Vibed that cancer shit right OUT of my body. Damn straight!

11. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Well, I would say Obama until he asked that bigot to do his inauguration invocation. I’m pretty dang bummed about that and what a slap in the face it is to all of my gay friends and family. I would say Knowshon Moreno until he had a game or two in which he took a nap instead of continuing to play the most amazing UGA football I’ve seen since the Herschel Walker days. I guess my point is, I can come up with a bunch of people whose behavior merits celebration… and then they’re still human. And human beings fuck up sometimes. They make NOT great choices. They don’t think things all the way through. They behave with integrity 95% of the time and then take a nap or make a bad decision. I do it. We all do it. And we are all STILL deserving of celebration because it’s not any one thing that makes us good or spectacular people. It’s a life filled with MORE integrity-filled choices than non. It’s a life filled with MORE excellence than not.

12. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Amazingly, 2008 presented the opportunity for several high-end wannabes to cross my path, promise the moon, have me buy it, have me bust ass on their behalf, and leave me holding the proverbial bag — with my reputation in jeopardy — when they actually had exactly the wannabe-level-moon to hand over at delivery time. The good news is, I learned to trust and honor my instincts. I learned that everything is forgiven if the problem is communicated about before it becomes a problem. And I learned that we all define our own personal level of integrity differently. I prefer surrounding myself with people whose words match their actions.

13. Where did most of your money go?

Printing the 3rd edition of Self-Management for Actors, fo’ sho. Thank you, good people, for buying it! Much appreciated! 🙂

14. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Hacienda Hot Springs. No doubt. Even wanted to go back one more time this year, but ran out of moolah. Ah well… next year!

15. What song will always remind you of 2008?

Pink’s So What. Hilarious and so much fun for sing-along-ing!

16. Compared to this time last year, are you:

a) happier or sadder?

Actually happier, simply because I understand happiness better.

b) thinner or fatter?

Ooh, baby, thinner. Thank you, BistroMD and Wii Fit for shaving off 50 pounds and 6″ off my waist thus far. Keep on rockin’! It’s a process. I’m still in it/on it. Loving every day.

c) richer or poorer?

Hmm. Technically richer. That’s pretty cool.

17. What do you wish you’d done more of?

Is it weird if I say “exercise”? I mean, considering that there are more days this year that I worked out than did not? I guess it’s true that you do kind of get addicted to it. Not sure… I mean, if I had done it more, I might’ve been full-on obsessed and that’s never as healthy as maintaining balance. I mean, what I really love about my weight-loss “program” this year was that it really boiled down to: Make more good choices — and make them better — than you make bad choices (and keep those less-bad than the good choices are good). That’s the only thing that works over time. Because anything too rigid, and I rebel.

18. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Eat cheese!! Eesh! I became a mouse this year!

19. How will you be spending Christmas?

Snuggled up with my hubby in our fleece sheets. I really do hope I can convince him to stay in bed longer than he likes to. He’s an “up with the sun” kind of guy and I’m hoping I get a good few hours of quiet cuddling and snuggling for Christmas.

20. Did you fall in love in 2008?

Again, I fall in love every minute of every day. Keith remains very fortunate for this truth. As do I. 🙂

21. What was your favorite TV program?

Did I say The Big Bang Theory last year? It’s just so consistently funny. But probably The Shield this year. Damn. What an amazing run! Congrats to all involved at every level. Such a wonderful show.

22. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

I don’t hate. I’ve got no time for that nonsense.

23. What was the best book you read?

Hmm… probably Save the Cat by Blake Snyder. That was a gift from an awesome new filmmaker/badass actor friend of mine. Really good stuff. Haven’t finished it (my curse: I’ll start about ten books before finishing any one of them all the way), but will before the year ends.

24. What was your greatest musical discovery?

The Shazam app on Nancy the iPhone. Holy crap, never have I enjoyed discovering a whole BUNCH of new music with such efficiency before using this thing!

25. What did you want and get?

Health and fitness. Absolutely.

26. What did you want and not get?

Damn lotto! $207M… it was *so* ours! We seriously have good plans for that money!

27. What was your favorite film of this year?

Iron Man. No question. Saw it three times in the first week it was in theaters (yep, paying full-price all three times) and bought it the instant it became available on DVD. Yummy!

28. What did you do on your birthday? How old were you?

Technically, I started my birthday OUT with the Cricket Feet Showcase gang, since the closing night of the July showcase took place on the night before my birthday. We closed down some Burbank billiard hall and I didn’t pay for a drink all night. 🙂 It was fun and social and sweet. Really love those actors and that crew so much! I spent the rest of the “day” of my birth resting and recovering from the weeks of showcase production, catching up on emails, and kissing my sweet husband. I turned thirty-great! (That’s 38.)

29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

The financial security to not give a second thought to “where the money’s gonna come from.” One of the burdens of living a freelance lifestyle is that — when a gig you’ve been counting on goes away — you’ve gotta get a little creative about how the bills are gonna get paid. Luckily, getting creative also comes along with the freelance lifestyle. 🙂 So, we made it work. We always do. But to never have to even THINK about HOW anything is gonna be covered… that’d be “immeasurably more satisfying.”

30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?

Amazingly, I was a wee bit more fashionable in 2008! Losing weight meant I could go from “the big girl stores” to “the big sizes at the normal girl stores” and that meant cuter jeans and cuter cami tanks and cuter duster tops. Yes, still “jeans, cami tank, duster” every day, but they’re CUTER now. 🙂 Hee!

31. What kept you sane?

For the last part of the year, Puppy Cam! I know, it’s crazy, but those sweet little puppies playing and sleeping and eating and growing just really gave me a sense of peace, every time I tuned in. (And I tuned in a LOT.)

32. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Obama! Followed closely by Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart, of course. Seeing Taye Diggs in the flesh did nothing to lessen the lust I feel for that fine man, either. Um… what was the question?

33. What political issue stirred you the most?

Duh. The election. I tried not to say much out loud, but DAYUM, did I embrace the brand new day of the history that was made, this presidential election! Now, I’m of course saddened by the hypocrisy that is Prop 8 passing in California, but I am very encouraged by the fact that this unconstitutional bullcrap passes by a smaller margin each couple of years. We’ll see the end to this violation of civil rights within the next decade. Mark it.

34. Who did you miss?

My mom, as always. Also really missed cousin Faith who has now been in New York for a couple of years and that’s too long to go without seeing someone I used to have Gimlet Night with every few weeks. But we have a plan of attack for a 2009 visit! Woo hoo! Haven’t been to New York since ’04. Can’t wait!

35. Who was the best new person you met?

This one is always tough, but especially this year. I met so many awesome, amazing, creative, wonderful, smart people and to single any one of them out would be unfair to the rest of them. I know, it’s a cop-out, but I’m taking it. I met many “best new people” this year.

36. What valuable life lesson did you learn in 2008?

Just BE.

37. What song lyrics sum up your year?

I once had a grip on everything
It feels better to let go

I’m not over
I’m not over you just yet
Cannot hide it
You’re not that easy to forget
I’m not over

Was it all a joke, never had control
I’m not better on my own

Can’t explain this thing, or what I mean
I’m trying to let go

I’m not over
I’m not over you just yet
Cannot hide it
You’re not that easy to forget
I’m not over