2010 Was Just This Year, You Know

I had vaguely meant to do a year-in-review post yesterday, like every other blogger running on the Gregorian calendar, but SteelyKid blew that plan to bits by refusing to take her nap until 2pm. It’s also kind of difficult to say much of anything coherent about 2010. It was a good year in a lot of ways– How to Teach Physics to Your Dog officially came out in 2009, but most of the stuff about it was in 2010, and I sold a second talking-to-the-dog book over the summer– but there were also parts of it that sucked– pretty much anything to do with politics prior to December, for example.

If I had to give a one-word summary of 2010, it would be “busy.” I spent a lot of time traveling, and even when I was home, I spent a lot of time being pulled in three directions at once. The closest thing to a New Year’s Resolution that I have is a vague intention to be better about keeping my various committments in balance. I’ve been vaguely saying that for a while now, though, so it’s not exactly linked to the calendar page flipping.

Anyway, I expect 2011 to be pretty similar to 2010. I’m already committed to five out-of-town trips (two conferences, two colloquium invitations, and a committee meeting) through June, so there’s going to be a lot of running around. And I’ve got a book to finish writing somewhere in there.

And, of course, there’s SteelyKid, who could eat the whole year by herself. Watching her develop could easily be a full-time job, as she gets more talkative, curious, and engaged every day.

We need to work on her fashion sense, though.

Anyway, Happy New Year to you and yours. May 2011 be your best year yet.