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2021 Was Ok

Hey there 2021, I didn't see you there! Let's each partake in our beverage of choice in a comfortable seating position and discuss the happenings of the last 365 days.

Using the agreed upon standard of beginning each non-ordered bullet point with a simple-past-tense-conjugated verb, I...

  • grew some long hair

  • moved into a wonderful 1979 house

  • bought a circular saw

  • built a three-legged table, a high chair, a mini-wardrobe, a kitchen cabinet unit, a banana holder, and more!

  • got a three year resident status "visa" (after 10 one-years in a row)

  • bought a "size 32" meat grinder; it's incredible

  • made and painted a "hina matsuri" doll set

  • set up my own DIY work space; the first in my life!

  • learned how to properly sharpen and set up a Japanese woodworking plane

  • befriended a "joubitaki" phoenicurus auroreus bird in my backyard, yet my crafty birdhouse remains empty

  • made custom decals for a teal push-bike to resemble a Yeti mountain bike

  • went to the beach too many times to count

  • made apricot liqueur with fruit from our tree

  • began a weekly art project called "@totorotuesday"

  • replaced my ancient repaired-too-many-times Vans slip-ons with rad new ones

  • learned how to use sketchup, figma and a few other software programs

  • started a seven-course Google UX Design certificate course (and completed 5 of them so far)

  • read the book "Equal Rites." Been a while since I read an entire fiction book. Fun!

  • cracked (again! 3rd time?) my molar and had emergency repair services done (thanks Watanabe Clinic!)

  • put a rad 42 degree sweep bar on my 29er

  • perfected curry-chili, easy lasagna, mapo tofu, and a few other recipes

  • found a perfect little stove-top two-cup espresso maker

  • found strength in friendships with Belgians, Spaniards, French-Canadians, Las Vegas-ians, Italians, and more!

  • got vaccines and a vaccine passport

  • drew Totoro on a pumpkin and made bumble bee wings for Halloween

  • learned to knit, knitted

  • had turkey and sushi shaped like a turkey for American thanksgiving

  • hosted an extra heart-warming Christmas dinner complete with celebratory ice-cream cake, home-made sugar cookies, boar stew and macaroni & cheese

  • hiked a mountain “washizusan” to bid farewell to the year - a six-family hike with 21 people and noodles at the top

  • started reading Yoshino’s “How do you live?” likely Ghibli’s next movies

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