Well, we made it out of 2020 and into a new year. In itself, that was cause for celebration. But the turn of the year doesn’t mean we have gotten out of the woods. We have a ways to go first.
Upside / Downside
- Pandemic hospitalizations are dropping in the US but it still threatens via new variants that spread it more easily.
- We have an historically effective vaccine but production and distribution have been slow, uneven, and complex.
- A new administration is creating order out of chaos but still has a lot of work to do.
- We can see the light at the end of tunnel and even when life might return to normal but we probably won’t get close until June or September.
- A snowy winter in the Northeast has recharged aquifers and reservoirs but it’s still a snowy winter.
- The pandemic has forced us to create or acknowledge new ways of communicating, working, worshiping, and even singing but we really, really miss being together.
See what I mean? I feel like we’re teetering on a seesaw, up one minute and down the next. One hopes the arcs will lessen over time.
Good for Writing Discipline
The combination of a pandemic shutting down things to do / places to go and cold, snowy weather proved conducive writing. I have spent a lot more time at my computer writing and editing.
I am rewriting and editing the final draft of a completed science fiction novel and writing the first draft of a brand-new Young Adult novel. If I can’t do things in the world I live in, I can always go and play in another world. I also sent off another short story but won’t hear on acceptance until June.
I also write my twice-weekly blog posts, of course, along with publishing Suze’s regular Monday post. Regardless of what happens out there, she and I always have something to say.
Roundup of January 2021 Posts
Here is the roundup of January 2021 posts for your review so you can catch up on anything you missed. If you like a post, feel free to share it with your friends on email, Facebook and/or Twitter. We welcome all non-trollish readers; The more, the merrier.
Boston and History
- Lincoln Wharf: From Steamships to Condos – Aline
- The Richardson Block: A Phoenix from the Ashes — Aline
Entertainment
- Pandemic Watchlist: Version 7 — Aline
Friends and Family
- An Unexpected Friendship — Susanne
Health and Safety
- Anatomy of a Cult – Susanne
- The In-Home Dinners Lost to Covid-19 — Aline
Lifestyle and Culture
- Forgiveness Requires Accountability — Aline
- 2021: A Better Year Ahead — Susanne
- New Year’s Resolutions – Susanne
Writing and Language
- “Frostfire” and a Charity Anthology — Aline
- Newsflash: Words Have Meaning — Aline
Six More Weeks to Go
With January 2021 behind us, we head into the shortest month of the year and the six extra weeks of winter that Famous Groundhog Punxsutawney Phil has declared lie ahead of us. Somewhere in there I might be able to score some vaccine and will probably find out that our April Viking River Cruise has been cancelled—again. Up and down. Up and down.