The End of The Year as We Know It
Hey look! I broke another record for how long it’s been since I posted on my blog! I’d say my New’s Year’s Resolution will be to post more often but that’s not exactly true as I’m really just happy to be posting today. And I’m kind of sick of the idea of New Year’s Resolutions, so there’s that.
Anyway, here we are at nearing the end of yet another year. I don’t know about you but 2017 has felt like the longest four years of my life. A lot has happened, both good and bad, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t post a general recap. This is not only for my loyal blog readers who have been eagerly anticipating my return (read: my mom) but also to document this year before we get into a nuclear war with North Korea or Trump has such a tantrum that he just hits that red “Destroy the World” button by mistake and everything online (and offline, for that matter) is lost forever. So here we go.
A little over a year ago there was a stretch of less than a week that changed my world (and the world in general) forever. It began with the Cubs winning the World Series, which was crazy and momentous and exciting and unbelievable all rolled into one. That was a Wednesday night. Thursday Scott and I drove to Indiana and Friday we had our wedding rehearsal. Saturday we got freaking married! And everything was wonderful and happy and joyous and seemed right in the world. Then that following Tuesday, Donald Trump won a rigged election to become President of the United States and the happy emotions of the last few days shifted pretty damn quickly.
That was November. December was a blur of shock and disbelief as we went into and through the holidays. The beginning of 2017 saw Scott and I take our honeymoon to Thailand and I’m not going to lie, it was hard to come back to America knowing what we were walking into. Then the inauguration happened and crowd size sparked the first of many stupid lies. Then I rode almost thirty hours on a bus over a weekend to march with about a million other women in D.C. and ignited a movement.
Truth.
And that’s how this year began – a roller coaster of emotions and new realities that I may or not have been ready for, not that it mattered. The new year also brought a completely new challenge for my sister and I as we realized our father was suffering through early onset dementia and his living situation was no longer sustainable. I spent months researching and navigating the red tape of social security, Medicare, Medicaid, senior healthcare in general, assisted and independent living homes, the transfer of assets and any other bureaucratically bullshit that was thrown our way. I obtained all kinds of medical records and hired attorneys and my sister and I became Power of Attorney for our father while also taking over his finances and just about everything else. We moved him across the country over Easter weekend into his new home and then a few months later moved him to his final resting place (don’t worry, he’s not dead yet – just in a different apartment). So that’s been…interesting…especially since our history with our father isn’t exactly full of sunshine and rainbows. I then spent May moving my own damn apartment to a new place essentially next door and then June and July were full of coordinating my office move of about 1100 people into a brand new building. Oh yeah, then I sprained both my ankles at the beginning of July and was on crutches for a few weeks. That didn’t suck or anything.
Scott and I were able to take another small trip to Colorado in August and then in October I flew to Louisiana to help pack up my dad’s parent’s house as they were moving into an assisted living home too (just hundreds of miles away from dad…we should’ve thought about lumping them together to get a family discount but hindsight is 20/20). I also spent October interviewing for a promotion at my company while essentially working the new position and my old position at the same time. Then I was made an offer for what is essentially the job of my dreams! No pressure, right? I started that in November and haven’t really stopped since (because clearly every part of 2017 up until then was quiet and relaxing).
All of this has taken place with the Trump Presidency looming darkly in the background. This means that on top of everything else, my fellow citizens and I have had to worry about things like our healthcare being ripped away by politicians, our safety being threatened by wars with other countries we don’t support, our rights being squashed by those who are ignorant and fearful, our environment being damaged and climate change being ignored, our freedom of speech and internet being taken away and our democracy being threatened by our own damn President. I’ve been appalled, horrified and embarrassed by what’s been coming out of the White House more than I ever thought possible and so much has happened that I feel like I have PTSD from news alerts coming through on my phone. That said, I’m still calling my senators and writing emails and marching and fighting in the little ways I know how. Because as crazy as this year has been, I will nevertheless persist. Things like the current wave of outrage at sexual harassment in various industries and this week’s Democratic election results in Alabama are giving me hope. This year hasn’t been easy but we’re all still here and I feel like I’m more resilient than ever.
Hit me with your best shot, 2018. I’ve taken some self defense classes this year and I’m ready to hit back.
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