2020 The Dumpster Fire Year

Wow 2020 was something else, and not in a good way. The pandemic and politics have changed our society in a lasting way, and not for the better. But this entry isn’t about the rest of the world, it’s about my little slice of it.  Let’s begin as always with reviewing the goals from the end of last year to see where we stand.

I set goals of continuing my running program and improving physically.  Well instead of continuing the running program I basically stopped it, forever.  Once gyms closed down from covid I started doing ad hoc workouts that included lots of push ups, body weight squats, and running the parking garage.  Two of those three activities lead to serious injury.  The thousands of push ups somehow screwed up my right shoulder to the point where I couldn’t lift my arm for two weeks, requiring a month of physical therapy to get it functional again.  Running the inclines and declines of the parking garage was a fun challenge but also resulted in injuring my “good knee” pretty severely which left me limping for two months.  After I healed up I swore off running and instead use Cindy’s Echelon bike for my intense cardio session.

Around the time I was limping I also started developing serious back issues which at times feel almost debilitating.  They persist to varying degrees today but I am just learning to live with it.  My fitness focus is more about retarding my overall decline.  I’m not about setting personal bests anymore, they hurt too much.  I still hit the gym five days a week and can crank out 15-20 pull ups depending on the day.

On the project front I hoped to get the chicken area elevated and enclosed with better fencing. I also mentioned the pool needing work at some point, the idea of enclosing the covered area of the lanai, and mentioned the windows will need attention down the road.

Well we did get the chicken and other areas of the property elevated.  In total I bet close to $5000 was spent on dirt, sod, and labor.  Elevating the chicken area sort of took care of the need for better fencing since the portions that were rusty from being submerged during the summer were now blocked by a foot of soil/sod.  I was happy with the end result of the work although I wasn’t happy with the guy that did it.  He was constantly promising and then missing work dates and never actually completed the job 100%.  The other potential projects remain with an ETA of TBD.  Enclosing the lanai is probably off the table as Cindy has sort of transformed that space into plant central.

I talked about a goal of increasing my secondary income sources from the 3D store and the YouTube channel.  I definitely hit that goal.  I haven’t run totals yet but I bet I am close to doubling sales this year compared to last on the store.  It’s a lot of work at times but it’s stuff I enjoy doing for the most part.  The YouTube channel has continued to grow.  I hit a major milestone just today, surpassing 10,000 subscribers.  I’m not sure if I can continue the same growth trajectory but I can certainly try. I also have continued to stick money away in a savings account for a rainy day in addition to my two retirement accounts. It’s nice to know you have some financial cushion. 2020 exposed just how many Americans live check to check with no back up plan.

I mentioned the idea of a road trip possibly in 2019.  Well we did travel to PA twice.  In January Cindy and I flew to PA for my step mom’s 60th birthday.  In June I drove the Tesla to PA for Todd’s 50th birthday party.  It was very interesting taking an electric vehicle over 2500 miles and not in a bad way.  Cindy and I both have expressed a desire to do one of our conventional road trips in the future, we both miss them.

I mentioned buying a new tractor and more 3D printers in 2020.  Yep both things happened.  I bought a high end Husqvarna tractor and at least three or four more printers last year (and many other things) Ok so let’s talk more about some details of 2020.

Like everyone, Covid 19 flipped reality on it’s head.  I was never a social butterfly but the way that covid lopped off the head of so many activities that we used to take for granted was a shock to my system.  The toilet paper hysteria, major sporting events cancelled by the hundreds, my work shutting it’s doors to the public for a month and a half, it was and still is just a bizarro world.  I never felt the levels of fear you saw some people exhibit but I also have no doubt about covid’s potential for damage, knowing several individuals that were hospitalized with serious complications from the virus.

The other horror we all were forced to endure was the presidential election and all of the toxicity it involved.  It exposed just how brainwashed a segment of America is as a result of Donald Trump.  I railed enough about it in various entries throughout the year I won’t go overboard now.  I am just thankful he will be kicked out of the White House soon and hopefully goes directly to the insane asylum or jail once state prosecutors are let loose from their current chains.

My sister and her family came to visit pre-covid which was nice.  We had not had any longer term guest for awhile.  We had a lot of fun with the kids.  It was nice for them to get a chance to interact with me face to face instead of just knowing me as the uncle that sends them things at Christmas and their birthdays. For a decent period of time we also had Deb coming over on weekends to hang out during the deepest parts of the lock down.  It was nice to have non-virtual interactions with another human being.

It was not a good year for pets either.  We lost four more chickens this year, Ginger, Katie, Dot, and Georgie. We lost one to disease, two from perch falls and one from a coyote attack where it jumped the four foot fence, grabbed poor Georgie and was out in 10 seconds or less.  The coyote attack resulted in me spending $1000 on fence extensions that added another four feet to the height of the fence.  So far it seems to have worked as we have not lost any more hens to predators.  We are down to only 5 birds at this point.  We tossed around the idea of getting more but the chickens and their required care have been one of the big reasons we have abandoned road trips the last several years.

The loss of my dad’s two dogs, Maggie and Clara was terribly sad.  My dad’s existence for the last decade and a half was all about the dogs.  To have them both pass away months apart is a tragedy for both my dad and step mom.  Even though I only saw Maggie and Clara on a limited basis every time I saw them it was like we never were apart.  I loved them too. Shug’s had one of his dog’s die a few weeks ago and Sadie and Ferdie are both getting to elderly status which is hard to witness.

I continued my battle with rodents in 2020.  My refusal to use lethal traps/solutions has left me with live trapping and sonic deterrents as my only option.  I have probably trapped/released around 10 of the palm rats this year.  I also sealed the area under the coop where they like to hang out in a more substantial way to make it less convenient for them to come and go as they please.

My purchasing in 2020 was done at a historic pace.  Even though I am saving more money than I used to in the past I am also spending more than ever, without a doubt.  On the EUC front I bought three new wheels, two suspension models and the Sherman which is a high speed, ultra-long range wheel.  I did try to offset that expense by selling two of my other wheels as well.  I bought a Skydio 2 drone, a 360 camera, two new action cameras, a handful of 3D printers, a new high end PC and far more things that I can’t even begin to accurately recall.  I can claim a lot of it as a business expense since it is used as part of content creation but still, it adds up to a huge amount of money.

I already mentioned the ground elevation project, Cindy, with a minor assist from me transformed two of our landscaped areas, the pond and the orchard.  The old pond liner was disintegrating so we ripped it all out and put a new one in.  After that Cindy took over trimming back the overgrown palms and filling the space with rocks and plants.  In the orchard the transformation was even more dramatic.  She turned it into a peaceful and beautiful rock garden.  My major contribution to that project was building the overhead structure that provides some shade and convenient places to hang plants and swings.

This was the first year I relented and paid someone to do the majority of the tree trimming, my most hated chore of every year.  After getting a quote that seemed reasonable I watched a crew of full time trimmers knock out the job in a few hours.  I had them also trim the two oak trees which have never been professionally tended to.  They looked much better as a result.  The older I get the more I expect to be doing these cost/benefit decisions when it comes to jobs that require a  large toll on my body.

My biggest and most expensive project from 2019, the solar array didn’t quite live up to expectations.  It was specced to supposedly supply enough power to offset a typical year of electrical consumption based on our prior usage.  Well as we sit a couple days from the end of the year we are about 5000 kwh in the hole comparing what we made versus what we consumed.  I thought the long hot days of summer with the sun directly overhead would provide tons of power.  The reality was my summer production was actually quite poor because of the near daily thunderstorm activity and cloud cover.  I’m still glad I went with solar and there are things we could change to consume less electricity if I want to come closer to a break even scenario.  I am still trying to get the system paid off within 10 years so I can get some real value out of it.

I was exposed to the world of virtual reality in 2020, buying a Quest 2 headset which screws with your brain in a mostly magical way.  The ability to transform yourself into a different environment easily just by slipping on the Quest is pretty incredible.  I liked it so much I bought Katie one for Christmas as she loved playing with mine.  My other two mainstay games of Hearthstone and World of Warcraft still held a similar role for me as in recent years, something I enjoy doing but don’t get as much time to enjoy as I would like.

2020 was the year that DJ went from being a baby to a toddler, running around like a little whirlwind.  He has become my best buddy when he is in the house.  For whatever reason he always seems to pick me out of a crowd.  It’s a unique and special thing for me to have this bond with him that I never really experienced before in my life. By this time next year he should be a full fledged mini-person.  I love the little guy.

Like I said, there weren’t a lot of trips or social events on the docket this year due to our new covid-reality.  Even so Cindy and I made the best of what we had.  That is the good thing about our relationship, we don’t need exterior events to make our lives fun.  Sure I would love to be able to go on another cruise someday but we have fun just sitting on the couch every night watching a show while we eat dinner.  I appreciate the value of being with someone that appreciates your value.

Ok so I am sure I could go into far greater detail about 2020 but hey, it sort of sucked for the entire world so I don’t feel the need to dwell on it further.

So this is the part where I make up goals for the following year with no real knowledge of how viable they may be.

I don’t know how realistic travel plans will be this year.  Perhaps when mass vaccinations occur things can start to resemble normalcy.  I know I won’t be rushing out to get vaccinated early but if after some time has passed and no significant adverse reactions are reported I may consider getting shot.  I know in some situations it will be nearly a requirement to get it.  As I mentioned, I really enjoyed going on that last cruise but I would also love to pull off another western road trip, in the Tesla.

My physical goals right now focus on just feeling more or less normal which right now means getting the chronic back issues to subside.  I have no plans to run, just ride.  I’ll continue my weight training albeit in a scaled back manner at the county fitness center. At least the mystery fatigue I suffered from for a good portion of 2019 has relented. 2020 was also the year I said goodbye to Planet Fitness, the worst gym chain in the country.

I have not given much thought to major projects for the upcoming year.  Anything truly major would likely involve a contractor like window work or pool repairs.  The fence at some point will need some attention as some of the posts are getting suspect after 15 years or so in the ground.  The house could use new paint to better match the metal roof but again, I would pay someone to do that unfun task as well.  Most weekends I find myself with a pile of smaller tasks to complete, I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

I hope the 3D store continues to grow along with my content creation side businesses.  There is more and more competition out there so it takes work to not fall by the wayside.  Despite my track record of off the rails spending I plan to keep working on paying down debt at an accelerated pace while building on plumping up the  savings account.

I know this is ridiculous for me to say but I honestly don’t have any major purchases targeted for 2021.  I don’t need any more 3D printers or PEVs or computers or gaming systems or insert thing here.  If I bought any bigger item it would have to come with the trade off of selling or giving something similar away.  My Tesla continues to serve me flawlessly and will hopefully do so until I get my Cybertruck in a couple years, maybe, if it ever comes to be a real thing.

My personal hope is 2021 is the year when we can start actually looking forward to things again.  We won’t have to wake up every day getting angry at the latest thing Donald Trump said, did or tweeted.  We will have a president that doesn’t crave adulation and the spotlight.  It will be great to know that we will have people in charge that actually care about science, the environment, and cleaning up the shrapnel from the last four years.  If the covid vaccines truly do move us past the isolation/cancellation culture we have all become used to it will be a bright day for all of us, until the next pandemic rolls around.

I’m happy that despite all the misery the last year has contained I have a partner in life that loves and supports me the best she can.  Finding joy in simple things is a lost art for many.  I’m glad that we can come home and enjoy our little sphere of life, together.  Thank you Cindy.

Thanks for taking the time to read about my last 365 days.  In the big picture I am very lucky to have the good fortune that has been bestowed upon me, there are so many that have struggled terribly in 2020.  I wish the best for your family and friends and hope we can all look back on 2021 with much brighter memories as we all turned the corner, together.

This three day weekend I will be doing stuff, as always.