Well, here we are, the final day of 2019, and what an absolutely craptastic year it turned out to be! I'm not so sure that I would necessarily classify 2019 as having been one of the worst years of my life, at least, not to the extent that 2004, 2006, or 2010 were, but it definitely ranks up there. 2019 was a year full of hardships and misfortunes, there was very, very little that happened in 2019 that was positive, but here's a rundown of what 2019 was like - for me, at least:
The Positive
* Steve D'Monster's 15th anniversary celebration went rather nicely.
* I got to meet another Muppet person, that Muppet person being Noel MacNeal - and even got smelled by Bear.
* Celebrating Sesame Street's 50th anniversary, and even being able to participate in the celebration in some small ways.
The Negative
* Climate Change. This has been the worst year for it yet: we had our earliest, and longest spring ever; our longest summer ever; and even the week of Christmas was ruined by it.
* The Trump Recession, which pretty much had a domino effect:
** Smaller paychecks, which resulted in. . . .
** Losing health insurance coverage for the second year in a row
** Having to go for extended periods of time of having to get groceries from food pantries
** Having to go for extended periods of time of having meals delivered
* A lifetime of smoking finally catching up to my dad, who's not only hooked up to oxygen now, but had to undergo surgery to unblock her carotid arteries
* My uncle having half of his nose surgically removed because of melanoma; he's still undergoing a series of reconstructive surgeries to build a new nose for him
* The loss of Caroll Spinney, which was something that was bound to happen sooner or later, but it was still saddening
After a year like this, I'm finding myself easily slipping back in cynical pessimist I used often be called out for being many years ago, and to be honest, I kind of don't even want to think about what 2020 might possibly be like . . . I already know there are a few things I'd like to accomplish in the upcoming year, but other than that, I just don't want to really try to look forward to anything. I just need to remind myself to live life one day at a time, and see how the year shapes up as it goes along.