2013

Craziest year ever. Not even sure what to write about it. 2014 looks to be more of the same.

So many things. K’s dad. I hope he has a better 2014 than 2013. Same with K and her mom and her sister, L. And me.

Too many things have been going on for so long, I can barely remember what is like to be able to think clearly. Tired of being so confused and tired all the time.

It is not all bad. There are breaks. Every now and again, K and I get a day, or part of a day, off. I get more breaks than K, but when she is not here, I tend to spend all my time working. This year, our definition of “a break” has changed. We were noting that having some time to scrape the ice off the car and shovel it out of the snow now feels like a break.

Work has been crazy for both of us. Pretty sure that my business will make more money than last year. Happens every year, but I still end up working very many hours for very little money. So little that it seems like madness to keep going year after year, but I am short on other options. It is very hard for me to work a “real job”.

I know my job is a real job. I know that I am good at what I do. I work very hard. My web development skills get better all the time. Having a screencast addiction helps.

But my business and organizational skills are almost non-existent. When you run a business, those skills are at least as important as being able to do your job. Maybe that is the difference between a hacker and an entrepreneur.

My gross income this year is about $5K over the 2013 poverty level. This is due to a combination of undercharging, not charging at all, and a near complete lack of project management skills.

At this point, after reading approximately a million articles about project management, business organization, and every other possible subject that may be of interest to freelancers and small business people, I am pretty sure that these are skills that I can not acquire. I need my ever elusive “Magic Business Partner” more than ever.

Some Highlights:

  • On 2/4/13, Karen and I got legally married, 13 years to the day after our first date!
  • In May, we had a great party with our families and friends at the Ottobar to celebrate our marriage. Special thanks to Chuck for making everything so awesome, to Colleen for making the best cake ever, and to everyone who came to join in the celebration, especially my parents who came all the way from Florida for the occasion.
  • Every time that Karen and I have gotten to spend time together relaxing and/or having fun. They are few and far between, but nothing is better.
  • Snow.
  • Another year with Nikkyo and Buster.
  • In July, I got a black belt after doing martial arts for 16.5 years.
  • K’s cousins came for a visit from Canada. Very nice to see them 🙂
  • Several social occasions with new and old friends. Special thanks to Kim, Tarun, Lisa, and Dave.
  • Co-working at Betamore for many months. Met some great people and got to go to the harbor almost every day when the weather was good.
  • Lease on my computer ended and started a new lease on a maxed 15″ Macbook Pro retina. It is awesome!
  • Learned Laravel. I have been learning Laravel for over a year. I will continue learning it, but I actually know what I am doing now.

Favorite Apps of the Year:

  • Once again, Komodo IDE tops the list.
  • iTerm2 – Terminal replacement for mac
  • QuizUp – Very fun mobile trivia app.
  • Bejeweled – Still an awesome distraction and mind-numbing tool.

Happy New Year everyone!

2 thoughts on “2013”

  1. Hi Lori. I love your new years blog. I wish your brilliance made you tons more money. You so deserve it. Also wishing you many many happy times and big bucks in 2014.
    love
    Mary Messer

    Reply

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