Three cheers for the bus driver

I'm pleased to announce that it's kind of a big day over here at Lori MacBlogger, as my humble little blog today turned four years old!

Holy crap, can you believe it?

I can, I guess. After all, I've been writing all my life - four years of the last 32 is nothing. What I find hard to believe is how many things have changed since I started this blog, and yet, how much remains the same. Four years later, I still don't have a dishwasher, still drink wine from plastic cups, and still eat my microwavable mini-meals off paper plates. Four years later, I still don't really care. But I live clear across the country; have an entirely different lifestyle, job, and disposition; and have matured in more ways than I care to count - even if I still cook like a college student.

Every December, I kind of reflect back on what the blog has brought me, and also state what I hope to get out of it the following year. If blogging, year one, was all about connecting with family and friends back east, year two was more about connecting with new people, fellow bloggers. Year three catapulted those connections off the computer screen and into my real life, as my social circle grew to include my favorite LA bloggers. Last year, I said I wanted to parlay this into more legitimate writing opportunities - and I did! - though not as much or as often as I would have liked.

So my goal for 2009 is to have more published, perhaps contribute elsewhere, and improve my writing and creativity overall. To that end, I am looking into taking a professional writing class at UCLA, or elsewhere if anyone has any recommendations. Classes start in January and the entry deadline is next week, so if you have any advice, please make it quickly. Even if I don't do more professional writing, I would like to stretch my brain a bit and come up with more creative posts for this thing. Four years is a long time to talk without stopping to listen to your own voice.

While we're on the subject of goals, I will mention that I met my goal of running 30 miles in November. It turned out to be the perfect amount for me - a bit more than I had been running, but not more than I could handle. With that in mind, I'm aiming for 35 miles in December. That's basically 9 miles per week with a few days off for Christmas. I'm sure you all aren't that interested in my running - or my weight loss - goals, and I don't intend to make them my focus here; but writing them down and announcing them out loud makes me just accountable enough to achieve them.

The funny thing about this blog is that I feel like my life started right along with it. I'm not the same person I was four years ago, and I probably won't be the same person in another four years from now. But something very distinct shifted the year I moved here, and I feel like the blog has done a lot more than just come along for the ride. You could say it's driven the bus.

Thanks for reading, y'all. Here's to year five.