2021 was a better year than 2020. I think. Some things started to go back to normal. There was maybe a week in June where we could all take our masks off at the store. How weird did that feel? People, including us, began traveling again, and kids got back to a fairly normal* school routine (*see November). But 2021 was also the year when we accepted, or at least I did, that all plans are tentative. Without further ado, here’s my look back at what we managed to plan for this year:
In January, schools finally reopen for some in-person learning. It starts out at just two days a week, but two days is so much better than zero days. However, it is two days in person, one day of distance learning, and two days where students are on their own to finish whatever work the teacher gives them. It’s an improvement but it requires another adjustment in schedule and mindset.
In February, I buy an induction stove and save myself the hassle of blowing up my house, a near-certainty with the failing gas stove and oven. Also in February, our favorite little local ramen restaurant reopens after being closed for nearly a year, and I’m so happy that they didn’t go out of business that I nearly cry.
In March, Starbucks finally makes unsweetened tea the default, just in time for me to stop drinking caffeine altogether. Eliminating caffeine is one part of the elimination diet I embark upon in March. We also take an overnight trip to visit our friends and our favorite burger joint, In & Out. Whether it’s three hours in the car or three hours on a plane, it’s always worth it. We also take Sonja and her friend on a proper outing to see the Minecraft exhibit at MoPop in Seattle. It feels like such a victory to be doing things again, but there’s still some trepidation each time we make the decision to, let’s say, participate in society. A lot of that trepidation goes away in…
…April, when Shaun and I finally get our turn with the vaccine. I get mine just in time to resume our annual springtime visit to our favorite Bavarian-inspired mountain town, Leavenworth. On the last day of the month, our favorite little national theme park, Disneyland, reopens to guests after a 412 day closure. At this point, you have to be a California resident to get in, but this news also tells me that we are getting back to Disneyland before the year is out.
In May, I scramble to put together a June vacation to Disneyland after it reopens to the public at large. While I want to wait until August to go, in order to give us some room to plan, our schedules don’t allow for it. In hindsight, we did the right thing, because by August the Delta variant is roaming around, reinstating mask rules all over the place and generally being a buzzkill.
In June, Sonja finishes third grade, having returned to school four days week. Immediately afterwards, we return to the happiest place on Earth, Disneyland. The park is obviously open, but a lot of experiences are modified. However, we don’t mind the bits that are missing or altered too much. The park opening later and closing earlier means less time in the park but more time sleeping. Fast pass lines are not running but in exchange, the crowds aren’t too bad.
I have no record of what happens in July. It must’ve just gone missing.
In August, we take a road trip to a place called Enchanted Forest in Salem, Oregon. It is conveniently located next to In & Out Burger, which may or may not have been the bigger draw. Enchanted Forest is a homemade theme park and it has crossed my radar so many times in the past several years, I decide we should take Sonja before she outgrows it and it is too late. Once again, it may have been too early for Sonja, who was too scared to do the bigger rides. But this is not a ride-heavy theme park, so we enjoy our time checking out the other attractions, like the remote-controlled boats. Because we are only in Salem for one night and the park closes early, there’s plenty left for a next time. The scariest event for August is an unlucky 13-year anniversary dinner that induces in me a near-lethal migraine. I also have another birthday and feel all the wiser for it. Yes, let’s go with that.
In September, school resumes in-person learning five days a week, and everybody is happy about that. I start teaching some of my classes on campus again, requiring me to actually leave the house during the day. I am less happy about this than I think I will be. Shaun, who is no dummy, sees the effort I must now make to get to work and immediately accepts a new position at a company that employs only remote workers. Elsewhere in September, Sonja joins the other members of the household in the double-digit club. She is happier about this than the rest of us, and celebrates with a three-person sleepover that somehow morphs into a five-person sleepover, effectively ensuring future birthday parties will not be sleepovers.
In October, we finally get three of our windows, which have been gathering gunk between the panes for at least a year, replaced. After which, I buy new blinds for all the windows, since there’s only one set in the house that still works. I’m quite pleased with my measuring skills and the ease-of-use of the new blinds. Sometimes, it’s the little things that make the biggest differences. Also in October, Sonja dresses up as a Naruto ninja to go trick-or-treating with her two new BFFs. While I’m happy to report that Sonja no longer melts down when she gets candy she doesn’t like (i.e. everything that’s not M&Ms or Hershey bars), we are still left with a heap of Halloween candy that no one will eat.
In November, Shaun has a birthday and turns astonishingly old. I wash my sheets using the washer’s allergy cycle and am an immediate convert. We once again set our clocks back an hour and plunge into the darkness. Sonja’s bus route gets suspended due to lack of drivers, and now we are the school bus. The omicron variant starts roaming around, generally being a buzzkill. On the bright side, I celebrate my one-year anniversary of daily yoga practice by doing yoga.
In December, Sonja gets over-excited for Christmas but has a good time anyway. We get some snow and temperatures in the teens, both rarities for western Washington. And as always, I end the year scrambling to put together a year-in-review post. And in so doing, I find that 2021 wasn’t so bad. I mean, it wasn’t super fantastically great either. But as you can see, we did a few things, and a few things are better than no things. I hope that you, too, can take some time to reflect upon 2021 as we all prepare to make 2022 a better year. Yes, that’s a low bar, I know. But a low bar is better than no bar. Happy new year!
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