a long awaited goodbye to 2020

A lot of things could be said about last year, and most of them aren’t flattering.

However, that’s not what you’ll find in this annual round up. I’ve decided to focus on the good. Despite the year’s hardships that I’ve chosen not to name, I found myself incredibly lucky.

If you feel so inclined, take a look at these snapshots from the most insane year many of us have ever witnessed.

Most of us are relieved 2020 is behind us,

but there are a few things from the year
that I’d like to carry on into the rest of my life.

Social distancing and working toward something bigger than ourselves offered everyone a chance to re-evaluate priorities. A global pandemic, raging wildfires, and political unrest are a pretty startling wake up call–but to be trite and true–better late than never.

Life Lessons from 2020:

• You don’t need more stuff.
• Most of the things we worry about don’t matter.
• You need to call your parents (and your loved ones) more.
• We should all spend more time outside.
• And learn a little something in your free time.

By a stroke of luck, I safely visited 6 countries before quarantine:

1. Canada
2. India
3. Japan
4. Mexico
5. Singapore
6. Thailand

I’m so grateful that I was still able to explore new parts of the world. A wedding took me halfway across the world at the beginning of 2020, providing a glimpse of Asia.

Thanks to working remotely, I was able road trip.
Travel looked different. There was a lot more antibacterial and disinfectant wipes.
After COVID, I kept all of my exploration outdoors.
As a result, I logged more miles and put my parka to good use.

the 40+ cities I visited:

Agra, Albany, Austin, Avon, Bangkok, Bhubaneswar, Boston, Boulder, Brooklyn, Burlington, Cambridge, Cancun, Delhi, Duluth, Indianapolis, Jaipur, Lawrence, Longview, Los Angeles, Manhattan, Manor, Marble Falls, Minneapolis, Mystic, New Delhi, New Haven, Newport, Pflugerville, Phuket, Portland (ME), Portsmouth, Rehoboth, Vail, Washington DC, Salem, Santa Monica, Singapore, Sioux Falls, Schwertner, Stowe, Toronto, and Tulsa 

This was truly the year of alfresco dining (and drinking), no matter the temperature.
I learned to love it.

Here are 50+ of the breweries I frequented:

Alma Madder, Aeronaut Brewing Co., Amsterdam Brewhouse, Austin Street Brewery, Batch Craft Beer and Kolaches, Boulevard Brewing Co., Brewery Emperial, Casual Animal, Central District Brewing, City Barrel Brewing Co., Double Shift Brewing Co., Fernson Brewing Co., Fitger’s Brewhouse, Foam Brewers, Full Moon Brewworks, Gore Range Brewery, Harpoon Keg Yard, Hitachino Brewing Lab, Idletyme Brewing Co., Kansas City Bier Co., Lakes and Legends Brewing Co., Lawrence Beer Co., Lazarus Brewing Co., Let the Boy Die, Little Creatures Brewing, Mikeller DTLA, Ministry of Beer, Modist Brewing Co., Nimble Brewing, Notch Brewery, Ottotto Brewery, Oxbox Blending and Bottling, Portsmouth Brewery, Prairie Artisan Ales, Pryes Brewing, Red Dot Brewhouse, Rochester Brewing, Santa Monica Beer Works, Steam Whistle Brewing, Sun King Brewery, The Alchemist, The Craft Brasserie and Grille, The Danknewss Dojo, The Freehouse, Torn Label, Trapp Family Brewery, Trillium, Vision Quest, Westbound and Down, Wunder Garten, Woodgrain Brewing Co., and Zilker Brewing 

But, I also stayed home a lot and perfected my cooking skills.

And I made some art that really meant something to me.

2020 afforded me more time at home.

So I took a lot of MasterClasses.
Here are a few I’d recommend:

Alice Waters, Anna Wintor, Annie Leibovitz, Bob Iger, Bob Woodward, Chris Voss, Diana Von Furstenberg, Howard Schultz, James Suckling, Jane Goodall, Jeff Goodby and Rich Silverstein,
Jeff Koons, Judd Apatow, Kelly Wearstler, Malcolm Gladwell, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Paul Krugman, and Shonda Rhimes

I made an effort to stay active and keep moving, mainly in the form of extraordinarily long walks and Peloton rides.

This was the first year I’ve been to ZERO concerts, comedy shows, or art museums.

Yet, there was still so much beauty to be found.

I’m proud of what I was able to put my mind to last year.

• I learned a lot.
• I explored a lot.
• I re-examined my every day life, and made improvements.

Now that’s a list to be proud of.

Twenty-twenty was a lot less about shoes and the junk we accumulate.

I’m going to do my best to keep it that way.

Travel back in time to see my yearly reviews:
2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.