Tuesday, January 04, 2011

2010: DarNat in Review

Since we didn't send out Christmas cards or anything, how about DarNat highlights from the year that was 2010?

January
Well, we went to CES much to some people's dismay. I don't blame her for saying so after going but it was an experience. If you like gadgets, gambling, and going for deep fried oreos, CES is the place for you.

I also reviewed Mass Effect 2, a game I had been looking forward to since I finished the original. I got to play at CES but also I got to review it.

March
We celebrated on year of carlessness. Check out the post that details how we feel about it.

June
If you know anything about us, you know that we love video games. Because of The Review Crew, we headed to LA for E3, a video game conference.

Besides eating good and bad food, we spent four days immersed in video games. We saw so many cool things and picked up some decent swag like a Bethesda hoodie that is the envy of many a gamer we meet. We also got to attend two Microsoft parties that included free alcohol, food, and video games. It was as fun as it sounds.

July
We celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. I have to admit it's a little weird to be married for that long. Daorcey wrote a cute and touching post about it.

We also went to the Calgary Folk Fest like we do every year, but this time I went early for the Saturday tarp run. I lined up early enough that I brought a sleeping bag and slept in a lean-to with Tony. This city may love Stampede, but it's the folk fest for me. A beer, good tunes, friends you haven't seen in a while, and sun make for a much better time. Also, no need to wear a cowboy boots.

September/October
I'm putting these two months together because they basically blended together for us. For those two people who don't know, we volunteered for the Nenshi for Mayor campaign. The sharper folks will recall that Daorcey now works for Nenshi. So I think we did our job.

It was a lot of fun getting engaged and spreading the word about Naheed (the mayor and I are on a first name basis. I'm cool like that). I was a door knocker and I estimate conservatively that I knocked on 1,350 doors in 30 hours.

I don't think I can say a bad thing about anyone I met on the campaign. My time volunteering has been a highlight and I'm glad the mayor is turning out. Also, I made a lot of new friends which you don't really do as you leave school.

December
I joined the Alberta Party and I sit on the constituency association board. Yes, I've gone politics crazy.

But if I learned anything on the Nenshi campaign (other than eye contact is your friend), if you want change to happen you have to go out and do it yourself.

So those are the highlights of 2010. I'm not sure what other exciting things will happen. I know we are heading to E3 again and my high school friend is getting married in a castle in Scotland in May so that will be fun.