2016 brought its fair share of adventures, to say the least. as we close out the year i would like to take a minute and reflect on the roller coaster that was the last 12 months.

first, let’s see how i did with my goals for the year:

run 300 miles. i am pretty disappointed i wasn’t able to accomplish this one, but i am still proud that i ran 178.4 miles this year, the most i’ve run in a calendar year and more than triple what i ran in 2015. this was a great challenge to myself, and even though i came up short, i am confident i’ll get closer next year.

learn to cook one new dish a month. this was hit-or-miss the first half of the year, but i found my rhythm after i moved home in june. i made a few tasty dishes from chrissie teigen’s book cravings, and i finally signed up for blue apron, the meal subscription service that delivers ingredients and recipes to your doorstep. blue apron was a big hit with my family, and now sarah – my roommate – and i are trying out the two-person subscription to see if it will work for us, so i’m calling this one a win.

take a photography class. i think it might be time for me to just take this one off my list, because at this point it has been 5 years and i have still not crossed it off. i keep putting it off, which makes me think it’s time to focus my efforts on something else.

re-read the harry potter series. this was far and away my favorite goal for the year, and i finished my re-read in april. i loved revisiting my friends at hogwarts, and i am really hoping to make this a yearly or at least every other year endeavor. it was the best part of my spring.

go on food-specific adventures around bangalore. i did well in finding my favorite masala dosa, and i got a good start on finding my favorite south indian meal before i started traveling in april. i’m still bummed i wasn’t able to complete my street food challenge, but perhaps that can be saved for a future visit.

watch one documentary a month. well this one was a bit of a failure. i did really well for the first half of the year, but once i got back to the states this one went for a toss. i do still want to get into the habit of watching documentaries, so i might see about bringing this one back for 2017.

run another half marathon. the word “run” is a stretch, but i did complete this year’s st jude half marathon course. there was a lot of walking mixed in with the running, especially in the latter half of the course, but with steve by my side i made it across the finish line and am so proud to be able to cross this one off my list.

raise $1500 as a st jude hero. done! with amazing support from friends and family across the globe, i was able to raise $1800 for st jude, and i am so grateful for every dollar that was donated.

visit somewhere new in the us. i was lucky enough to visit two new places over the summer, the berkshires in june and knoxville in august. technically i spent about 18 hours in knoxville a few years ago, but i saw nothing of the city, so i am counting this summer’s visit as my first one. and while i was visiting maggie and lannon in new york over the summer, they very graciously invited me up to lan’s parents’ house in great barrington, massachusetts, to celebrate the 4th of july. both places were great, and i was glad to have the opportunity to explore more of my own backyard.

other highlights included:

a razorbacks victory at the liberty bowl.

two trips to bombay, one for work and one for pleasure.

a trip to pondicherry.

visits to malaysia and cambodia.

a reunion with little brother alex.

an excursion to the himalayan foothills with nithya.

a final farewell to bangalore.

a visit from bear and ben.

playing tourist in memphis.

starting a fabulous new job, moving into a beautiful new house, some fun new beginnings, and finally feeling like i’ve found my place.

looking ahead:

i am working on my goals for 2017 and hope to have them posted in the first week of january, but i am hopeful it will be a great year. for all its ups, 2016 had a lot of downs, both personally and professionally, and i am looking forward to leaving those behind me and focusing on the good.

happy holidays to you all, and a happy early 2017!

xx