Am I the only one who was okay with this year?

There are just a few hours left in 2011 and, with some time left before I head to a party, I'm sitting here at the computer and reflecting on the year. It seems to me that the general sentiment among most of my friends is, "Good riddance to 2011, because it sucked."

In some ways, I suppose it did. The economy is no better than it was when we welcomed the year, and that, of course, brought its share of misery with it. We lost a few brilliant minds, too — Steve Jobs and Christopher Hitchens, for example. There's no denying that there were down spots in 2011. But aren't there elements of misfortune with every year?

For me, 2011 was a year for trying new things, and, in fact, I want that to continue in 2012.

January was a cheese-free month for me. It probably seemed silly to a lot of people, but going 30 days without something I really like (and, admittedly, consume too much of) was a challenge I posed to myself. My sister did it, too, and we both succeeded. I was thinking about doing it again in 2012, but instead, I'm considering an attempt to go vegan -- not vegetarian, but vegan -- for a week or two. It's going to be much tougher than giving up cheese, but I really want to give this a try.

I also joined a bowling league. Having not bowled regularly since I was a Boy Scout, I was a bit nervous. The commitment of showing up every Sunday night for almost half a year seemed daunting, too, so I joined as a sub instead of a full-time bowler. As it turned out, I bowled for all but three of the weeks in the entire season (and, even those three weeks, I didn't bowl only because I had plans or was away on trips). Although you won't see me on ESPN, I discovered I'm a fairly good bowler. But, more important than that, I really enjoyed myself and meeting so many people. For 2012, I've joined a team full time. My goal is to bring my average closer to 200. We'll see. Even if I don't hit this goal, getting out there every Sunday is exciting to me.

Over the summer, I was encouraged by a co-worker to try a spin class. Even though I have an elliptical trainer at home, and it actually does get used (instead of serving as a clothes rack), I felt like I needed to add an extra "push" — and boy, spinning certainly does that. I was relieved that, even in my first class, I kept up with everyone else. Spin is by no means easy, but the rush from it is tremendous. I wish my weekday schedule had room for spin, but for now, it'll have to remain a weekend thing. One thing is for sure: I feel like a healthier, stronger person because of these classes.

For several months out of the year, I served on a committee for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Admittedly, I thought another time commitment would be an issue, but it wasn't after all. Between donations I raised personally, plus putting on two benefit concerts, and convincing a number of businesses and corporations to do sponsorships or form walk teams for the Light the Night walks, I raised a lot of money -- way more than I ever thought I would.

Although not a year for international travel, I was lucky enough to go places that made 2011 more memorable. I visited friends and family in Raleigh, I visited the Columbia Valley wine region in Washington state (where I ate a tongue taco out of a woman's car trunk -- true story), and, in Seattle, I got up in front of a bar full of people and sang. Yes, I realize karaoke is hardly new, but for a former introvert, it's a big deal. In the fall, I spent nearly a week in Florida, reconnecting with old friends from high school (and even earlier). I came home from that trip even more thankful that I've been able to stay in touch with people who knew me in elementary school.

I saw Ladytron perform live, and I had a chance to meet Sandra Bernhard briefly in person. I got to see "Hair" and "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert on Broadway."

I cooked more. A professional chef, I'm not. But I've discovered I like trying things in the kitchen. I started making infused vodkas and flavored syrups, all from scratch. 

So, I dunno about all this "don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out, 2011" attitude. Really, 2011 wasn't a bad year for me. If anything, I might miss it a little. But, if I'm lucky, I won't miss it because I'm going to do my best to have even more fun in 2012. Life hands everyone enough difficulties. When that's not happening, I want my life to be as amazing as possible. 

What will Steven cut out next?

Last January, I went a whole month without cheese.

Today, I started thinking about doing it again, but taking it up a notch: In addition to going cheeseless, I'm considering doing a month of meatlessness. At the very least, I'd give up red meat and poultry.

The cheese is a definite. I'm gonna keep thinking about the rest ...

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Mac

I'd been working for a large magazine publisher when I was told we would be moving to "desktop publishing." It was the wave of the future, and it made economical sense, I was told. And I was livid.

I'd been working on an Atex terminal for several years. It was ugly and very '70s. But it was the first machine I'd relied on for my editorial career.

Never mind that it was anything but WYSIWYG. Everything one wrote on Atex required commands in order to insert breaks or styling. One had to memorize codes for italics, bold, etc. Really, come to think of it ... Atex was like HTML. But at least HTML is easy to preview. Anything written in Atex had to be printed. And printed again. And again. Until it looked perfect. Then it was time to be pasted-up onto boards and then you were ready for publication (more or less -- I didn't work on the production side, so I know I'm leaving steps out).

The bottom line is, Atex sucked. But I knew it like a familiar lover. I knew how to get it to cooperate. I knew all the little tricks it took just to get it to do what I wanted. I knew Atex so well, I was able to teach it to newer members of the staff.

So, I was a curmudgeon about being forced to work on the Mac. And, oh god ... Quark? "What the hell is Quark? I don't know how to use this. It's so COMPLICATED. I hate this whole Mac thing!" (I know, it sounds so old-lady to be so resistant. I was only in my 20s. Agh!)

Resistance was futile, though. The Mac was there to stay. I became a Quark XPress expert because I had to.

Eventually I explored all the nuances of the Mac operating system. At that point, it was called System 7. (It was well before Apple began using OS in the product name.)

I think what made me start to appreciate the Mac OS was its relative ease compared with DOS, or even Windows 3.1, which I'd had on my Tandy PC at home. (I eventually referred to that Tandy as "the Trashy." It ran WordPerfect, which was not WYSIWYG either. Feh.)

Within two years of having that Atex terminal taken away from me, I understood what people loved so much about Apple. The cleanliness of an interface. The stability of the operating system. The better temperament. The ease with which one could create things on it.

Instead of forcing a user to jump through hoops just to figure out how it worked, the Mac let you focus on what you bought the computer to do in the first place. Never a mysterious blue screen, or an error message I couldn't figure out.

Macs are workhorses. Only recently did I replace my Mac G5 tower from 2003. And the fact is, it's still a useful machine. But, even maxed out on RAM, that G5 began to choke and stutter. I couldn't even sync my Google Calendar with iCal, because the machine wouldn't support a version of iCal new enough to allow that. (And if you're the kind of Mac geek who could switch out processors or whatever, just to make that old tower work with a current OS, my hat is off to you. I'm not that person, though.)

That G5 tower lasted me, even running Adobe Creative Suite and Final Cut Express, for eight and a half years. How many people are still using their PC from eight and a half years ago?

To me, the Mac makes sense. It also freed me from providing endless tech support by phone or in person to my mother or my sister ... because I convinced them both to ditch their PCs and get Macs. The Macs let them do what they need to do. They let me do what I need to do. It's beautiful.

So, rest in peace, Steve Jobs. You made Apple what it is today, Apple helped make my life easier.

Even though I didn't appreciate it at first.

Curb Your Candidacy

Jeff Garlin from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" is one short Keratin treatment away from being New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Or Chris Christie is one light perm away from being Jeff Garlin. I can't decide.

This film is such a guilty pleasure. I'm not a Tom Cruise fan whatsoever, but I just think "Risky Business" is awesome. Please don't think less of me.

Summer really has only three things going for it: seasonal fruits, the ease of being barefoot, and a slightly more tolerable morning rush hour.

The End Is Near

I'm talking about the end of cheese-free January.

Just five days left, and then I will have proven to myself that I can, in fact, go a month without consuming any cheese. Over time, it's gotten easier instead of harder, but I suppose that happens when one quits any sort of vice.

I know it sounds funny to refer to cheese as a vice, because I wouldn't dare to compare my giving up cheese with, say, someone kicking a meth habit. My giving up cheese for a month is as first-world a sacrifice as any. But imagine becoming so used to having cheese on a sandwich that you can't fathom having it without. That's what I'm talking about, kids.

My first day back on the cheese already has a plan: A co-worker suggested we go to Frank Pepe's for pizza.

Wouldn't it be funny if I lost my taste for it?

Who am I kidding? I didn't lose the taste for it. But I will be eating it more sparingly, and hopefully, long-term, my cholesterol levels and general health will thank me.