Day One

Happy New Year everybody. Goodbye to 2016. At first blush I would venture it was a crappy year, but upon reflection I venture it was a year like most others -- filled with good and bad. I was blind, now I can see. Not just a hymn, but real life for me in 2016. While I was not blind in the "everything is black" sense, I was what is classified as legally blind (just barely). My corrected vision after cornea transplants is 20/25 in one eye and 20/30 in the other. In June it was 20/300. With glasses. I would say that is a good thing.

The Cubs won a World Series. 'Nuff said.

Both my wife and I are healthy, wealthy, and wise. We are healthy anyway. One out of three ain't bad. All of our kids are healthy and so is the grandkid. Both of my parents had a tough year health-wise. But they are doing relatively well.

I tried really hard in 2016 to be a whole lot less negative. While I was not always as successful around here (one has to vent somewhere), I think I did pretty well keeping the bad attitude out of my daily life.

I have areas where I need to improve. I like my job, but I don't love it. Since I am reflecting here, I think I have viewed this job as a stopgap until something better comes along. I work hard, but I haven't embraced it fully. It is time to change things.  If I am bored with my work that is my problem.

2017 is upon us. There will be big changes ahead for all of us. Politics will piss me off. One personal crisis or another will bring challenges to life. There will be good and bad. In other words, it will be a year like any other. I started the new year just like I have the last 38, with a kiss from the woman I love. How can it be a bad year when it starts like that?