It also works as a nice reminder for me to finish up that last 10% of the various projects I’d like to launch.

Without further ado, here’s my year in review:

• Lost 30+ pounds
• Organized and hosted a successful meetup for T-ShirtForums.com
• Celebrated the 5 year anniversary of T-ShirtForums with our largest t-shirt design contest to date.
• Added a paid, premium version of Tweetaways.com and added a shortlist of companies using the service to the Tweetaways homepage.
• Helped my niece launch her fashion blog (hosting, blog setup, hired a designer to create a cool logo)
• Launched the DTG BATTLE ROYALE contest to find the best Direct to Garment printer in the world :)
• Celebrated over 6,400 fans on the “i hate clowns” Facebook page
• Bought a 1969 Cadillac DeVille Convertible (and promptly gave it its own website :)
• Pulled off a successful (surprise) family roadtrip to Disneyland
• Attended my first NFL/Raiders game thanks to my super duper wife!
• Saw B.oB perform live at Aria in Las Vegas
• Rode a mechanical bull for the first time (no pics for you!)
• Taught my daughters how to eat an ice cream cone without the ice cream falling off the top
• Surprised my wife with a hand painted (by yours truly) sunflower vase for our anniversary
• Tried the KFC Double Down sandwich (and lived to tell the tale)

Tell me about your #YearInReview. What stands out for you?

This is the backstory that inspired my post on twitter here. Although it was a material thing in this case, it seems to apply in other situations as well :)

There was this house one street over I used to pass every day when taking the girls to and from school. The house was pretty much like our house except that it had one thing that I loved about it: it had a cool balcony. I’ve always thought it would be neat to have a house with a balcony. Somehow, sitting on the balcony (or a nice covered front porch) seems like the most relaxing thing I could imagine. I actually went so far as to go to their house and ask them who built their balcony right after they had it put up.

We could see part of their backyard from our house and they had an above ground pool, a basketball hoop, and shiny lights around their balcony. I always thought it was just the coolest thing.

Well, a couple of weeks ago we saw that the house had gone into foreclosure and there was a (sad looking) real estate agent inside doing an open house. We walked through the place and it was tore up from the floor up. Doorknobs missing, stair railings missing, doors from closets missing.

The biggest kicker was the balcony that I coveted. I went upstairs to check it out and it was all crooked and not built securely. It actually slanted down, so it wasn’t even level.

It was just an interesting wake up call that I think about now whenever I pass the house to pick up my daughter from school and see the for sale sign out front.

It was sad to see but also good in a way.

Objects in the envy mirror are not as shiny as they appear :)