2020 – January

My vision is 20/20!

I started off the year with a trip to the coast. Since we have been in the PNW we have been fortunate enough to do this for more than one year. It is a tradition we all would like to keep doing. My parents have been along for the ride. We generally are visiting the coast and we say “Hey, let’s stay one night” then that turned into 2 nights, and that into 3 nights.

Traveling the coast we went to the beach multiple times. Saw sunsets that are amazing to take in and enjoyed our time with each other. We visited a lighthouse and since we didn’t have the park pass, Sky and my mom stayed down with Elijah and Willie just in case anyone came looking for permits for the car. That also means my dad, Arabella, and I hiked up to the Heceta Head Lighthouse. It is really beautiful. I must return and have everyone see it.

It may not look like much, but that hotel was pretty nice. It had a fireplace which comes in handy with the free wood they give you. It really helps warm the night on a cool winter night by the beach.

Eventually, we had to go back to reality (aka back to work).

Back at Work I sat down and saw that President Trump was going to be making an announcement. It is more news of this Covid virus they are talking about. Europe and other countries are really getting hit, but Trump assures everyone here that it is NOT going to reach here. If his leadership past is anything to go by, I think we better buckle up.

We purchased 2 twin beds that we are going to sleep on in our house until we get our stuff from my parent’s house. We also did this so the kids would have two new beds to sleep on. We also purchased a faux fireplace (since we didn’t have a fireplace in our main living room). All this time we still are paying for our rental (as we are cleaning up and making sure they don’t charge any sort of fees to us with how much of an expensive rental it is) We have gone all out in cleaning this place. See the cleaner on the carpet? Yeah, we shampooed the carpets and spent most of the day cleaning every square inch of the place. Ironic as when we took possession of the place we had to clean it ourselves (cobwebs, dirt, etc were rampant). When they see this place they should be super impressed.

Back at the house, we got our first snowstorm. Yes, I know it’s not much of a snowstorm for most, but ANY snow for this family is pretty much the best thing to happen. We took out the ginormous tree that was in the front yard. Why? Multiple reasons. You have virtually no front yard with that huge tree in the way, plus it was blocking a good majority of the light from coming into the house and you also had no view (because all you would see is mainly just the backside of the tree). We paid for someone to come out and take it out. You can see so much more of the house without the tree. I also like it because the area is prone to wind storms and trees going down is a normal occurrence. Imagine having that thing fall or tree branches break off. No thanks.

With the snowstorm comes waterfalls with snow. We are SUPER close to the gorge now, probably 20 minutes? One of the things we wanted to see but hadn’t yet was the falls covered with snow. That finally came true this month!

Pictures don’t do it justice.

Next up this month was an all-day work meeting that I attended downtown. I captured different photos of the team (Arlene, Linda, Bill) and another with Bill sleeping during the meeting. Our group is funny sometimes.

On Sunday, January 26th I was going about my day when I looked on Twitter and saw something about a helicopter crash in California. TMZ reported that Kobe Bryant, along with his daughter and others had died. At first, I didn’t believe it. I checked the TMZ website and it was staring at me in black and white. I called my parents, told them and they didn’t believe me. They thought that it was a hoax or something. A few minutes later ESPN notified me of the same, then ABC. It was official, Kobe, his daughter, and others had died.

I never was a fan of him as a basketball player. After his basketball career, however, I became a pretty big fan of him. It is normal to not like someone because they are good. Derek Jeter has faced this a lot throughout his career. Michael Jordan did too. It is normal because these people are the best at what they do, and unless they are on your team you obviously will root against them and hope they lose. If they lose it means that you beat the best. Simple as that. This loss really impacts our family considering how big into basketball we all (as a collective group) are. Rest in peace.

Finishing out the month: We got a new fridge and purchased a (used) stove to match. Then we finally got all of our times from my parents house (see the less than stellar looking truck). The movers left a LOT to be desired. In fact some of our items were lost/stolen or damaged. Sky had a promise ring from even before we were engaged that they took/lost as well. The insurance was a joke.

Lloyd Center stop on the MAX. This is where I get off every day for work. It probably takes me about 2 hours to commute from our house to work via public transit, but it saves me from having to pay $10/day in parking. That adds up really quickly. The MAX is $5 a day so at least my costs are cut in half. Finally, on the 31st I took one final picture of myself in the office. Nobody else was around. (Sitting farthest behind me would be Jack, next to him is Linda. Directly behind me sat Don and beside him is Arlene. Finally making up the front row was me and Bill who sat on the other side of the row.)

just Pray

note: this post was published on 09/07/22 but moved the publish date back to the end of January 2020 to keep chronological order.