1. Start a family. Chris and I have been discussing when the right time would be for having a child, and as we are both getting older, we’ve decided that now is as good a time as any. We are exploring different options for us to make this happen, and as we make progress, we’ll be posting updates.

2. Successfully renew my work visa for the next couple of years. This will be a critical step for us to achieve goal number 1, as well as keeping me working at the best nonprofit agency in the US of A.

3. Participate in at least four (4) 5K runs. This in part is related to the first goal, and will help with our training. One of our goals is to include our Little Brother in one of these runs towards the latter part of the year.

4. Complete a half-marathon. Chris and I are going to try to complete the White Rock Half-Marathon later this year. We will be working towards building up our distance and stamina to make this a reality, and thankfully it is on the other side of summer, so there will be many opportunities to train.

5. Complete a 5K run in under 30 minutes. The best that I’ve ever done was just under 33 minutes, so with some focus and determination this should be a relatively easy goal to make.

6. Travel to at least one place that I’ve never been before outside of the United States. Right now there are discussions for a trip to the Mexican Riviera which would fulfill this goal, but should this not happen, there will be another trip that we will need to take.

7. Successfully meet the goals for my new role on the Youth First Texas board. This will include the fundraising component, but it also relates to working with the board to overcome some of the issues that the organization is facing right now.

8. Continue to improve general health. While the running (exercise) will definitely help with this, I do need to put a goal about weight loss, or general health on my list. I would like to drop back to at least a 32″ waist before summer starts, and that will be something that I will attempt to do.

9. Travel to Australia to visit family, including family I did not get an opportunity to meet up with during our last visit in 2009. At this stage our thinking is to make the trip around Christmas this year, but that will depend a great deal on Qantas making it financially possible.

10. Maintain healthier relationships. This is something that may be more difficult to measure, but it’s one goal that I have to focus on more. We tend to get caught up in the world as it rushes by us each day, and it is becoming more important to me to spend time with my friends, along with making new friends.

Let’s see how we do with these, and I hope to be able to post updates on each status throughout the year. We’ll see.

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In March, Chris and I celebrated our tenth anniversary together. Both of us would agree that it has not been an easy ten-years, but it definitely has been worth it.

In May, Chris and I travelled to Australia with our best friends, Bobby and Ian. We made the trek to Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney and then finally Queensland (where my mother and sister). It was the first time that I’d been home in over nine years, and I was amazed at how much it had changed. I wished I had blogged more while I was over there, and while I have a load of notes from the trip, I didn’t end up putting these online.

We continue to do our camping trips with a normal mix of 8 people, and seven dogs. These trips continue to be the highlights of our years, and is a wonderful opportunity to hang out with friends and relaxing. Once again, we went to Beaver’s Bend twice (or near it), and found a new cabin that may be our preferred home when doing future trips. This year we combined the Easter and Halloween breaks for both trips.

October saw Chris and I, along with Bobby, Ian and Layton heading up to Washington D.C. for the National Equality March. It was an amazing experience, and one that I will remember for a very long time. The last time I was in Washington D.C. was in 1999, and I can say that the city has changed a huge amount in that time … for the better. The march itself was so much larger than anyone could have expected, and while there were a lot of speakers, each one offered something to inspire the crowd to go back to their towns and cities and work towards full equality for the GLBT community.

Throughout the year, Chris and I meet with our Little Brother, Trey. We have both been trying to keep our blog up to date with all the activities that we have done with him. We continue to have a great time with each other, and have managed to do some remarkable things during 2009. Rather than repeat them here, you are welcome to go over to our Two Bigs site and check things out. One of the nice surprises of the year was winning the Collin County Regional Bigs of the Year (the first gay couple to win this award from what I am told).

On a sadder note, the year was not all good news.

Over in my home, the worst bushfires in Australian history ravaged much of Victoria and other parts of the country. This was made more personal given the area that was most severely affected was very close to my hometown that I grew up in. While over in Australia, we got to see a lot of the damage (from a distance), and felt very sad for all the lives that were lost, along with all the animals that were killed or injured.

In March, Chris and I were shocked at the news that our good friend Duncan died. We learnt that he had a relapse with his cancer, and it was discovered too late. We both were in shock for a few days, and still miss his updates that we used to get from time to time. Fruitbat appears to be continuing to recover from this tragic loss, and thankfully Chris has been over to visit with him during the year (it seems I got this wrong).

The year had a busy ending, and both of us were kept really busy. It was great to unwind for a short time at Chris’s parents in East Texas to reboot. Our end of year New Years Eve Party was another success, and a great way to end the year.

I’m sure that I have forgotten many things that happened during the year, and that will reinforce my need to blog more often. I will blog more often. I will blog more often …

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I had seen, from a distance, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade and thought how fun it would be to watching this in the streets of New York, but then I realized it was quite cold up there and maybe it wasn’t a great idea after all. Standing in the cold, with thousands of others, craning my neck to get a glimpse of something (most somethings I would have no clue about). Instead, we watched it on television and I got to see the parade close, but not personal.

Over the last ten years, the way we celebrate Thanksgiving has changed. Since those early days, Chris’s parents have moved back to Texas, and we now spend each Thanksgiving at their home in East Texas. The ritual is normally the same. We arrive the night before (normally), and spend the evening catching up, watching the dogs go full-force around the property, and then snacking on some ham that was cooked earlier in the day. Thanksgiving Day is spent watching Chris’s mom prepare all the sides for the main meal, while his dad cooks the turkey. Then we eat and then we collapse.

This year is the first year that I’ve really thought about what Thanksgiving means to me. It doesn’t have a lot of the same meaning that many Americans have – though I would suggest that many Americans don’t celebrate the holiday with any idea of what the holiday is about, apart from a day off work, and the day before all the crazy sales start for the Christmas season.

For me, Thanksgiving has become about being with my family (Chris and the boys), and having some down time to relax, reboot and re-energize. I don’t share the same history of the holiday as Chris does, but I’ve come to realize that each holiday that we celebrate has become something that has been defined by the time that we spend together with family and friends.

So for those that celebrated the holiday, I hope it was a good time for you, and you had time to spend time with some of the ones that you love.

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As many of my friends email, facebook or twitter their birthday wishes to me, I got to thinking back (as one does from time to time) to the years that I have seen come and go in my past. I realized today that each year seems to be going by faster than the previous one, and the things that I hoped to do “when I was younger” either are no longer important, or I am getting to “that age” where these may not be an option to continue to pursue. Many of these “wish items” have been replaced with others, which have been achieved, and today I am in a better place than I was when I was younger (however many years that may have been).

I used to look at people who are my age (again when I was younger) and think that I’d never get to be that old. I also remember the first time that my mother made the announcement that “40 was the beginning of the best years of my life” (she has since made the same statement for 50, 60 and now 70). I wonder if that is what the “younger generation” think of me when I interact with them, even though I still think like a 20-something in many way.

I’m grateful that I have been able to be the person that I am today at the age of 41. I’ve definitely done a lot with my life, and I know there is a lot for me to continue to do. I’m also thankful for being able to spend my birthday with my best friend and partner, and of course our two pooches (neither of whom know what a birthday actually is).

So why the post? Not really sure, apart to say thank you to all my friends and family for your birthday wishes. Your friendship and love have made the last 41 years a joy, and I’m looking forward to at least another 41. Maybe I need to start that book before the life becomes a passing memory.

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The decision to make the move across the Pacific was a very tough one for me. I was leaving people behind that I loved, who were a major part of my life and a stable part of my social environment. I have missed many opportunities to celebrate in the joys that my friends have experienced and the sadness in the loss of dearly loved friends.* It was my decision, but it was a decision that I do not regret, as I have enjoyed the privilege of sharing my life with a man that contributes to my happiness everyday.

Today is about the love that I share with the man whom has been a significant part of my life for the last ten years, and the love that keeps me going every day.

So Happy Anniversary Chris, I hope you have enjoyed our life together as much as I have, and will continue on the journey with me for many years to come.

Side note: We chose today (March 5) as our “anniversary” date as this was the day that we officially started our lives together as a couple. Even though we had known each other for some time prior to this date, it seemed appropriate that we used this date as our date.

* Since arriving here, I have developed many wonderful friendships where I have experienced their joys and our collective sadness over the years.

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