As I write this on December 31, it is Day 295 since the COVID-19 was officially declared a pandemic. To state the obvious, 2020 was a weird and depressing year. It was simultaneously unpredictable and obviously predictable. And it was very lonely. Fortunately for me, my family and I have been safe throughout this pandemic so far.
Both professional and personal travel plans have been largely eliminated for the year. I did fly to San Antonio in February, with a follow on trip to Toronto for the first time, and onward to NYC via LGA. I drove to Dayton (in lieu of flying) in June for a short work trip. But as a result of the lack of travel, I made significant progress on the house. Completing Phases 1 and 2 of the five-year house plan went largely unimpeded by COVID-19-related lockdowns and quarantining. Working remotely from home turned out to be much more feasible than I once thought, and I even prefer it, at least part time, for the long term. Home Depot remained open as an essential business, and it was the only place to go to get out of the house and "shop." However, delivery delays and the unavailability of supplies (even of those things unrelated to sanitization) was definitely noticeable. Often, I would end up making several trips to Home Depot, Lowes, or IKEA, occasionally to different ones on the same day to source much needed supplies or equipment. According to my account records, I've spent $9,580 at Home Depot in 2020.
In 2020, I set up my home office and guest bedroom, and had my first floor windows replaced. I started and completed the renovation of the two main level bathrooms on my own. I quit my job and joined a smaller company in October, just to find out in December that my new company was getting acquired by a larger one. In 2020, my 401k and IRA accounts are up 25.19% and 17.27%, respectively, which is unbelievable, and not in a good way.
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| Master Bathroom |
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| Hall Bathroom |
The plan for 2021 is a deck rebuild and kitchen and foyer renovation. I don't know if these will actually come to fruition given their project budgets, but we will see. The primary goal for 2021 is to unsubscribe or unfollow things that don't actually matter—news alerts, various phone notifications, etc. Maybe finally quit Instagram too.
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| 2020 Year in Pixels |
There was a notable increase in anxiety and anger this year, as compared to 2019. There were also significantly fewer "Good" days (45 vs 76), and just a single random "Amazing" day in 2020. As much as it is difficult to see how 2021 could turn out worse than 2020, I have a feeling we're not out of the woods yet, and the worst may yet be upon us. Stay safe.
I can't wait to hug people again.