.
The year is ending. In a week. Also the world is ending, but unless you’re british it’s probably going to take longer than a week for that to happen.
Never mind the world-ending, this is a retrospect thread. The good kind. No bad stuff in this thread, it is an extra safe space.
What was the best things to happen in 2020? Personal, national, global – Whatever comes to mind. Share!
I’ve had a fair share of good things happen to me this year. I think it’s important to remind myself, ourselves, of the good shit during times that are as troubled as the general discourse indicates this year was.
Early on, I moved towns. And while it hasn’t been entirely without faults it has undeniably done me good. This new town, Gullspång, is very small. Around 2300 inhabitants. Very quiet. There’s not a lot of people passing through, except for during vacation weeks where the tourists pour in. Very dark (as in, no light pollution) and great for stargazing. Nice nature here, nice evening walks… I think it has done my mental health good service.
This year has also seen me reconnect with a lot of people I “lost” during my very troubled last year (2019), even though I live in the tourist-version of middle-of-nowhere. Me and Patric started hanging out again. Like a brother that one. And I got back in touch with my Stockholm friends and have since done several trips back and forth. Not only this reconnection but the relationship between me and Måns, dare I say my closest friend, has deepened. A lot.
I’ve seen him grow taller through hardships and take an unexpected route along the way – by leaving a long-time heroin abuse behind him with flying fucking colors (but not without minor, expected, cock-ups). We’ve both supported each other immensely throughout our respective troubles. I am extremely thankful to have him in my life, and I look forward to keep on keeping on along his side.
Then there’s this place and you guys. I got back in, perhaps not so unexpectedly and I am absolutely delighted to be here. I know I’m a bit intense and insensitive but I don’t pretend I’m not an asshole and I still feel strangely welcome here in spite of it. This place IS my home away from home. I love being here. I love comic books. But most of all I love you, you dysfunctional knowitall bastards. Living in front of the computer (as I do) is not the same without this place, without you.
And there’s a shit ton of minor things that are good too. I was gifted a new computer when my old one gave up and not only was that very kind but the new PC is great. I’m playing some awful games with some wonderful friends. Fun as hell. I got myself a job, and while it wasn’t a very good job and didn’t last it did prove to me that I’m not entirely hopeless. I can work if I need to or want to. That’s… Good to know. Cryptically spoken, there was some court room magic flown my way for which I am equally flabbergasted and thankful. Biden won (allegedly)…
And so on. There’s a week left, I’m sure I can squeeze out a few more good things from this year. And I look forward to reading yours.
And if no-one feels the need to share that’s cool – I’ll just turn this into the Explosion thread 2.0.
Booom!
What was the best things to happen in 2020?
Well… erm…
There was– no.
Hmm.
Can I get back to you on this?
if you want to share the bottom stuff
There are already countless websites catering to this need.
There are already countless websites catering to this need.
The Guardian, Pornhub, Reddit…
I’ve tried to focus on the positives this year, and to look on the bright side of some dark things. For instance, I had to shut down my office temporarily during the first surge of the virus in New York City; but the good news is, I applied for and received a PPP loan from the government, which allowed me to retain all my staff (although one employee resigned after her mother died from COVID and her stepfather became very sick). And the shutdown forced us all to learn how to work from home, which now gives us flexibility in being productive without being in the office. GOOD NEWS!
In April, while the coronavirus was raging, my sister-in-law was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer; but the good news is that, following surgery, chemotherapy, and two forms of radiation treatments, she is now cancer-free. GOOD NEWS!!
During the summer, my niece/godchild announced that she’s pregnant and due in March 2021 — the first great grandchild for my dad. A month later, my daughter revealed that she’s also pregnant and due in May. And last week our nephew got engaged to his girlfriend. So lot’s of things to look forward to in 2021. GOOD NEWS!!!
It hasn’t all been rosy, but the good stuff is there if you look for it.
Wishing all of us a safe and happy holiday season, and better times in 2021.
2020 was an extraordinarily good year for me, really. I got back into doing theatre plays and found a bunch of lovely people to do that with. I feel like I’ve had the best year yet with my kid, who has grown into a great teenage guy and is into all the right stuff and we have so much fun. And most importantly, Claudia’s pregnancy was difficult at some points, but in the end everything was fine and now I have a baby to take care of again, at the end of this year. I am as happy as I possibly can be, and looking back at 2020, it feels weird what a good year this was for me.
In a weird way I feel quite lucky this year too.
Yes, it’s been tough and uncertain in some ways and my family and friends sadly haven’t been left untouched by illness, both covid-related and otherwise.
But I have a job that I’ve managed to maintain (and in some ways get better at) throughout homeworking; I have a kind and loving family around me at home, and we all have our health; my kids’ school has been relatively unaffected in the autumn term; my hobbies and interests largely don’t rely on anything that has been put out of reach during lockdowns and social distancing; I’ve managed to avoid feeling too isolated thanks to a network of friends that I’m able to keep in touch with and blow off steam, both here and elsewhere; and I’m looking forward to a nice break at the end of the year that will hopefully let me refresh and reset.
Yes, I’ve had low moments and stressful times this year like everyone has, and I’ve felt adrift at times as I’ve had plans constantly upended as the year has gone on. But ultimately I look around and feel grateful for everything I have, lucky that I’ve avoided being hit too hard by 2020, and hopeful that things will only get better from here.
Professionally and personally, the move to working remotely, albeit with new tech that helps massively, has been very good for me.
Also feel more at ease in the role of manager and enjoy the development part of it, so far two of my team have taken up new roles and I know one of my current team will do that one day. I decided a while back that this is a positive point.
It’s been a strange year more widely, but my local area has been grown-up on covid for the most part.
**As this is the thread of goodness, you can just skip to the big “BUT” if you want to avoid the boring bit where I complain about stuff.**
This year started off stressfully – I sold my house in Somerset in February, and my girlfriend moved to Yorkshire at the beginning of March to start her new job, with the expectation that we’d only be apart for a few weeks until the sale was finalised and then we could move into our new place. But then the pandemic hit, which meant that not only did our sale grind to a halt (our agent was furloughed, our solicitor was trying to work from home with no clerical support, and then there were problems with our buyer, and their buyer… and their buyer, and of course even once the sale was coming to a close, there were very few removals firms still operating!) but also we couldn’t even travel to see each other at weekends.
And of course Rachael’s new job was even more stressful than it should have been because she works in a hospital – she leads a team providing psychological services in a local hospital, so although she’s not quite on the “front line,” she was having to support those who were, as well as patients themselves.
BUT…. we eventually moved into our new home after nearly 4 months apart, and we love it here. We’re lucky to live in a beautiful part of Yorkshire, and have been able to go for long walks in the country without seeing another soul, apart from the odd sheep.
And aside from a stressful move, I’ve been lucky to be largely unaffected by the pandemic. I work from home, so apart from a bit of a slowdown in business (which I’ve been able to weather with the furlough support) I’ve just carried on as normal. Obviously we haven’t been able to travel abroad at all this year, but if that’s the biggest sacrifice I’ve had to make then I’d say I’m pretty lucky.
The positive thing this year has been the help and sympathy I received from many corners. There are professionals in mental healthcare here who are completely overburdened by the events of this year and the suffering it brought but who still manage to do a great job caring for their patients.
