Another average year

It's been a while again.  Christmas came and went fast this year.  I received some great gifts, which were very appreciated!  My son purchased the Hue starter kit for me, and I LOVE IT.  I can turn off and on lights and dim them from almost anywhere using my phone or watch.  My girlfriend's husband bought me an Amazon Echo, which will arrive near the end of September.

I also received a homebrew kit for making root beer.  I have made two batches, and they turned out OK.  It is simpler than I thought, but there is still plenty of work and waiting!  I have found a place to buy sarsaparilla root and sassafra bark.  Finding wintergreen flavoring was also very hard, but I succeeded.

After the holidays, I was trying to focus on getting life (health) back on track.  Not so much work life, as that is the only life I have had in a few years.  This has been challenging, but I did it for myself.  Life just happens.

I was pleased, as my average workweek in 2016 was just under 50 hours a week.  Now, the total hours worked is divided by 52.  So it includes holidays and vacations.  I also did not make my goal of 100 days off, which includes weekends.  My 2017 goal is to average closer to 45 hours per week (or less) and have over 100 days off.  Again, the total hours are divided by 52, which includes weekends and vacation time.  Things are just hectic!

As many know, I worry excessively.  I realize that is a problem; sometimes, you must accept and live with it.  Though it was a good year, it was a challenging holiday season.  In early December, my son had an accident and broke his knee.  Odd for sure, yet it was a strange accident.  The most gruesome, to me, was the fact that he did not tear the ACL, but the ACL just ripped a portion of the femur out and separated from the femur.   So, I had a chance to get away to help care for him, and when I returned, I started a small workout routine.  The first two weeks were looking good, then…

I soon had left foot pain that was worse than I ever recall any pain I had in my life.  I have not gone to the physician, but I tried to be diagnosed.  At first, I thought the pain was a Fifth Metatarsal Fracture, as I had that in the right foot a decade ago, but it really feels like personal tendonitis.  The pain runs outside the ankle just in front of the bone.  This makes sense, as it is an overuse injury.  In my case, I blame improper training or the rapid increases in training and poor shoes.  So now I limp like a 100-year-old man with no respect for that past and no appreciation for the future.  

I also have been adjusting to "the dog" ruling the house.  If I get up to go to the bathroom at night, I return, and he is sprawled on half the bed.  Then, moving the 50-plus-pound goofball takes work.  By the time I return to bed, I can't sleep.  Just tiring!

I also was able to get out for some photography.  My girlfriend purchased an excellent sled for her granddaughter, and we could head for the hill on an adorable but cold day.   Here are a few pictures.  Note the nice sled and then the cardboard for the adults.

In somber news, I had another friend commit (or they assume) suicide last month.  A father of two grown children who worked hard to make ends meet.  He was able to see his children get their undergrad degrees.  Everyone thought he was pleased.  Life seemed just fine for him.  He, like me, was buried in his job.  We had talked about his fear of losing everything.  He felt he was losing his children, who rarely contacted him due to their busy lives.

I hear his wife asked for a divorce, and I get that pushed him over the edge?  Not sure.  The funeral was last Friday, and it was a sad and confusing day.   Then today, I read of a 19-year-old Northwestern basketball player (female) who supposedly committed suicide.  I will never understand, yet I sometimes think I do understand.  That is almost like so many things in life.

Carry on, my friends!  Carry on!