The year 2020 will go down as one of the most consequential years for this century. I thought 2016 was the it year with everything from Brexit, Trump, The Cubs, and so on, but nope, 2016 ain’t got nuttin on 2020.
For me personally it’s hard to say if 2020 will be the most consequential year. I should create a reminder to review this 5 years from now. But 2020 was setting up to be a consequential year for me. This was the year I was finally going to move out of Utah. That all got postponed when the world went to shits. There was a lot of FUD when this pandemic broke out in the US, so I decided to halt my plans indefinitely. Funny enough a Utahn, Rudy Gobert, was the one high profile athlete who got the virus, and started a ripple effect that brought the whole US economy to a halt.
I was going to be moving into a new job with a new company, and a new lifestyle. It was so weird when I had to pause that because I still ended up switching jobs during this time of uncertainty. My last day in the office was March 13th, 2020. When I went into work that day, I did not know that by the time I was driving home I would be notified the office was closing. I left my job on Friday, March 27th without saying a proper goodbye to my teammates and manager, and they were like family to me.
Once I was stuck at home, I knew I couldn’t just stay home and do nothing with all this extra time. Which is why 2020 was by far my most creative, productive, and active year by a wide margin. Instead of seeking the familiar and comfort, I embraced the unfamiliar and uncomfortable most of the time. I became better at everything I do and learned so much more. To the fact that I look back at where I was in 2019, and realized how little I know about everything, but I guess that’s the whole point of knowledge being a journey not a destination. About 90% of my diet is plant based whole foods. I drastically lowered the amount of television and movies I watched, and drastically increased the number of books I read in a year. I re-discovered my love for cycling. I volunteered and donated the most to charity.
It’s not all roses and peaches, it took me sometime to correct my habits. While I was working on correcting them I gamed a shit ton this year; luckily got it under control now. I wasted a ton of time re-watching TV episodes and movies I shouldn’t have. My dating life after May was non-existent. Didn’t go out as much as I did, which wasn’t a lot anyways, but still a vital support I provided to my community. Had lots of stressful and/or sad days, and even contracted COVID, however spoiler alert I beat the shit out of it. 😉
How do you stay mentally sane?
That was the question I kept asking everyone that I talked to throughout most of the year.
Everyone found that question to be interesting and answered in many different ways. For me the answer was simple, Utah. It’s crazy that Utah is a place I’ve been wanting to leave since I moved here, but haven’t managed to do so. And yet, what kept me sane in 2020 was Utah and everything in it. That includes my sister who’s been living here for sometime now, my friends, my dog, the scenic nature features we have throughout the state:
- The dog friendly hiking trails
- Cycling thru cities and canyons
- Backpacking in mountains and deserts
- Snowboarding in resorts
- The endless places to go drink a beer and watch a beautiful sunset
- Rock climbing in gyms
Will I still move out of Utah in 2021? I want to say 100% yes, but nothing is guaranteed. That should be the motto of the year, nothing is guaranteed. Look how we lost Kobe, how Trump lost the election, SLC had both an earthquake and hurricane like storm, how millions of lives were lost due to the pandemic, jobs gone forever, and the list goes on.
There was a lot of tragedy this year, but there was still lots of good that came from 2020. Lots of people will now have the flexibility to work from wherever. Universal Basic Income became a reality for Americans with the stimulus checks, and perhaps in 2021 it’ll be there again. How the majority of humanity came together to fight this new pandemic (I know they’re lots who are still ignorant about it, but I am a glass half full type of person).
What do I look forward to in 2021? Building upon all the positives gained, spending more time with loved ones, and continuing to work on reducing the negatives. Here’s to 2021!
TL;DR 2020 was weird, consequential, scary, and memorable. Hope you have a happy 2021!
Highlights
- Memorable Moment: backpacking in the Uintas, took a break and about 70 yards away saw a moose and it’s baby calf drink out of stream. No pictures, no phone, just me and the moment.
- Song of the year: Love Myself by Hailee Steinfeld
- Most Laughs: Tubing in the Boise River
- Worse moment: When I had COVID
- Happiest Day: The entire day when I interviewed for my new job; the interview itself wasn’t what made it the happiest, but everything that happened that day, and where it happened.