Or should we call it 2020, part 2? It was a weird year, for sure, but I haven’t done one of these in a while, so here goes…
I guess the biggest thing for me was being in a relationship for 6 months. It was the first one since my divorce, so that was something. It was definitely fun while it lasted–too bad it couldn’t have lasted longer. Dating at this age is the pits, so I’m not looking forward to doing that again. I’m back on a few online dating apps and I’ve already gone through the available lists of candidates, so let’s hope some new people sign up. Ugh.
On the pet front, early in the year, we lost Buster. He was a difficult dog, but full of personality. We still miss him. Later in the year, we got Tilly. Tilly is definitely something else. Haha. She’s practially a senior (6.5 years), but due to her prior living arrangements, she isn’t housetrained (she’ll go outside if you let her out, but won’t tell you she has to go out, so there’s the occasional accident). Also, she likes to chew stuff up. That makes two dogs and two cats, though Jake will be taking one of each when he moves out, so I’ll be back to normal pet levels at that point.
In entertainment news, despite the ongoing pandemic, 2021 actually had some (live) entertainment. I caught a little bit of Thunder in the Valley, but not as much as I would have liked. There was also the Flood City Music Festival and a really great blues show (featuring Joe Louis Walker) in late fall at the Oilhouse. Speaking of music, I got turned on to Beth Hart early in the year and haven’t stopped listening since.
Jake and I went to see two stand-up comedy shows–Jim Gaffigan and Sebastian Maniscalco. Both were hysterically funny.
I read a bunch of books, fiction and otherwise. My favorite had to be Joyland by Stephen King. He’s just so good. Always. The Daily Stoic was my favorite non-fiction read.
I watched a bunch of movies, too. My favorites were Free Guy, A Quiet Place Part II, and Don’t Look Up.
As far as TV goes, the best thing I watched was Homeland. In fact, it’s one of the best things I’ve ever watched.
Jake and I also went on a relaxing cabin vacation again this year.
I continued to make progress with the house. The biggest project was wrapping up the library. Finally. As far as cosmetic things go, I painted the front door and installed a new handle/doorknob and a smart deadbolt. Also, I paid someone to refinish my bathtub. Outside, I paid someone to remove Jake’s playhouse from the back yard. I also took out my strawberry bed because the wood was rotting. So there are two less things to mow around in the back yard now! I spent a lot of time at the office (pretty much every Sunday morning). We had the basement drywalled last spring and I took on the painting duties, which I finished up in December.
Oh, and I volunteered 85 hours at the Humane Society! This year’s goal: 100. I probably could have hit that last year, but the dog area was closed for over a month due to a kennel cough outbreak.
I can’t say I’m looking forward to 2020, part 3, but we’ll see what the year brings.