2008: Year In Review
2008 was quite some year; I visited Wembley Stadium for the first time for Play.com Live back in March, I attended my first Future Of… event back in October, I was also made redundant back in October and I took my first trip on a plane in November to see Sigur Rós in Paris. I guess you could say that 2008 was a year of firsts, so what does 2009 hold in store?
Conferences/exhibitions
I have already bought my ticket for Future of Web Design London 2009, taking place at the end of Apri/beginning of May, which I shall be attending with my good friend, Kean Richmond. Though I purchased my conference ticket before I knew the agenda, I had no doubt that the conference would feature the latest designers talking about the latest/next big thing. I am particularly interested in Meagan Fisher’s presentation “Designing Effective Mobile Interfaces” and Mark Boulton’s presentation, “Typography’s not on the web, it IS the web”.
Whilst that is all I had planned so far for 2009 in my diary Google Calendar with regards conferences and exhibitions, I am aiming to attend a Barcamp meet-up, and also a Refresh Teesside meet-up when they get underway in the new year.
Employment
Since I was made redundant back in October I have had several freelance websites and projects to work on whilst also trying to find more permanent employment. 2009 will be the year when I either decide to go fully freelance or seek employment on a contract/permanent basis. It is likely that my fate will be decided by the economic climate and if permanent positions are available, or whether contract/freelancers are preferred. Whatever I decide I will hopefully be in a more certain position than what I am currently in.
Travel
As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, my trip to Paris to see Sigur Rós was the first time I had cause to travel on a plane. I am not frightened of flying, on the contrary as I have found, I just never had cause to fly before. It is my intention to travel more in 2009. As I never really had a holiday as such in 2008 (Paris was an extended weekend) I hope to make the most of my passport and visit places I have always intended to go.
What was 2008 like for you and how does 2009 fair?
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