New Year, New Apartment, New Belle

Wow, it's 2013 already. When did that happen?

2012 was crazy. Just like 2011. And 2010.

In 2012, I lived in New York for the first two months, then Toronto for four months, home in the South for three weeks, and finally in the Midwest for five months, with a whole week of that being in my new apartment.

I went from being a live-in au pair to doing social media and assorted IT stuff for a start-up company. Yeah, I'm still confused about that too.

The boyfriend and I went from very long-distance (an airplane) to long-distance (a six-hour drive) to medium-distance (driving two hours!).

My twin brother was diagnosed with a brain tumor that miraculously went away with surgery.

My car died. I became an emotional wreck. The boyfriend gave me a car for Christmas. I finally figured out humility. 

Both my twitter followers and blog readers grew by leaps and bounds. I expanded my blog posts a little bit. I don't always talk about only virginity. I write about books, and feminism, and family, and sex, and politics, and fun stuff like that. 

I even GULP participated in a giveaway.* You know, one of those shameless promotions to gain followers who sometimes keep following you, but often unfollow you when the giveaway is over? You know, one of those fun things where you can be generous to other people?

Awesome giveaway hosted by Bonnie!

I even survived the Apocalypse!

I live a crazy life. It's how I roll. I'm pretty sure 2013 will be just as up and down as my previous years. Some changes I can anticipate. Others will be unexpected challenges.

For my readers, you'll notice a few changes. I'm not going to focus as much on only blogging about sex/virginity. I did expand some this past year, but I feel more comfortable now writing like a real blogger, and not just some funny academic essayist. Of course, this is partly because I will be writing a column for HI! Magazine. A funny academic essayist column on virginity. So... there's that.

As much as I will strive to keep up my 3-7 posts a month range I've got going on, I can't make any promises. See, another change I'm (hopefully) making is getting a second part-time job for a little extra spending money... plus health insurance. This will eat into my writing time. 

That, and my only New Year's resolution is to read Les Misérables. En français. Also, my non-resolution, just regular goal of reading 53 books this year. I read 51 last year, with a goal of 52. Reading is important.

Edit: I totally forgot to mention one of the biggest changes. I didn't just move into a new apartment--I moved into my first apartment without a roommate. Turning it into my own little home will also be totally time-consuming.

All that said, big changes are in store for Belle and Beau** in 2013. Who knows, we might even experience coitus for the first time.***

Whatever happens, I'll be here, blogging away. This is, after all...

Confessions of a Virgin. 

*When the boyfriend donated to How to Lose Your Virginity, our prize packages included two cherry pendants. I gave one away. I briefly reached 51 blog followers by participating--I'm down to 48 now. But. I'm following one young woman who followed me and gave me crazy-awesome compliments on my blog. Genna's super-cool.
**If you're new here, that's me and the boyfriend.
***Kidding. Mostly. 

Dying a Virgin

According to the Mayan calendar, the Apocalypse is coming. Or something. It’s the end of the world as we know it, right?

If this were a movie, and if my boyfriend were a jerk, he would have already tried this timeless trope on me:

Do you want to die a virgin?

I understand why this works in movies. Sex is almost always the eventual goal of romantic entanglements; maintaining abstinence is rarely lauded as an accomplishment. Add in the extra drama of a life or death situation, and suddenly even the reluctant romantic lead feels enticed to do the deed.

But this isn’t a movie, and my boyfriend is not only totally awesome, but also a virgin like I am. 

Some critics might think we haven’t really “lived” because we’ve never had coitus, but I beg to differ. Call me crazy, but I think there is more to living life to the fullest than engaging in intercourse.

Vacationing in Nice on a regular basis (four times over two years) is WAY better than sex.

If the world really does end soon (it won’t), then what will I regret?

• Not having traveled more (even though I’ve traveled a lot for my age)
• Not having published a book (even though I’ve shared my writing with friends, family, and the Internet)
• Not having done more on my list of 101 Things in 1001 Days (but I’ve done quite a few!)
• Not having read more books (despite the vast number I have read)

The more I think about it, the more I realize I’m already living my life to the fullest. If the Apocalypse happens, will I regret dying a virgin?

Yes and no.

I will regret never having had the privilege of being a mother, which, you know, often comes about from having sex, but I could never regret staying true to myself and my beliefs.

Besides.

My life has been so awesome and so full of MOI that it’s impossible for me to live—or die—with any true regrets.

I might die a virgin, but most people will die having never lived near Paris. Bam!