I don’t quite know whether to classify 2011 a success, a failure or simply a mixed bag of troubling, joyous, painful and encouraging non-stop action. It was as tough, if not more so, than 2010 but I accomplished so much more and I do think that 2012 is posed for improvement, at least on the health front. Vague, right? A little recap of year 5 in Paris:

January-June

• Launched my cookie company, Lola’s Cookies!

• Started a new job

• Saw 2 articles published on Travel & Leisure (this one and this one) 

• Traveled to the South of France, Istanbul and New York 

• Became virtually immobile due to a flare-up of my meatball-sized herniated disk just before our trip to the U.S. 

• Got married again (kind of)

July-December

• Laid off from my new job. 

• Un-laid off from said new job after 5 days in some kind of sick high-stress inducing torture tactic 

• Began physiotherapy again 2x/week for my back, enlightened French therapist with anecdotes about America

• Laid off AGAIN from the same company. Sciatica began shortly after….

• Took headshots of Amy Thomas for the author photo in her forthcoming book “Paris, My Sweet”; quickly learned that one of them made the cut! 

• Made some amazing new friends and strengthened bonds with old friends 

• Started a new job (part-time) that is completely right for me 

• Had 2 anti-inflammatory spinal injections, neither proved successful. 

• Featured on National Geographic Traveler 

• Had photos published in Singapore’s Savour (The Good Life) Magazine and Metropolitan: Eurostar Magazine

• Received my 10 year French residency card (enfin!)

• Lola’s Cookies featured on Design*Sponge 

• Traveled to Shanghai and Beijing (where I am as you read this!)

You might notice a more positive than negative angle in this year in review but every success carried with it a current of agony. After seeing a number of alternative medicine specialists, I’m finally starting to heal but there remains a massive hill to climb (or limp up) to return to “normal”. Having my work featured has marked personal milestones and while I’m endlessly grateful, the greater part of my year was tainted (at least psychologically) by constant, numbing pain. We can’t have it all, right?
The reality is, I realized, that every year will be sprinkled with bits of poor fortune and I should stop expecting too much too soon – the year will play out naturally no matter how much I strategize or plan and I resolve to roll with the punches better in 2012. 
Wishing you all a spectacular New Year and hope that if you too had a bumpy year, that the road smooths itself out in 2012.