Like so many others I find a need to reflect on the past year when it comes to an end. Hoping, I suppose, that such reflection may give me both hope and direction for the coming year.
I started of 2012 having been released from the hospital 2 weeks earlier, still in pretty rough shape. I'd been diagnosed with new onset diabetes (not surprising given family history and the shape I was in). The surprise, though, was congestive heart failure. Again, the shape I was in, but I wasn't aware of any family history, so I wasn't being as watchful as I perhaps should have been.
My younger son was still living with me (he is 18 now), and I expected he would remain with me until he graduated high school in 2013. I was also caring for my Mom, who will be 81 in January, coping with her medical issues, providing transportation and some physical care, tracking her medications and such. She can't drive, needs a walker, has memory issues........ And on and on.
We had a vacation home at Mt. Snow in Vermont & spent most of our weekends there. The plan was to move there permanently once my son was out of high school.
Fast forward to the end of 2012 and I find many changes & a few constants.
Mom is still with us, and still puttering along at her own pace, often in her own little world. My younger son decided to move back to NC for his senior year, so my Mom & I decided it was time to make the move from CT to VT permanent. I am currently trying to get the CT house ready to sell in between all that is going on in VT, including a LOT of snow this past week (very GOOD thing). My older son (he's 22 now) graduated college in December and came back to the VT house so he can work at the mountain as a supervisor in ski school. He's been an instructor since he was 15. He brought his girlfriend with him, so now we've got quite a houseful once again. They will be here for at least the ski season, then who knows how much longer.
I've...
Like so many others I find a need to reflect on the past year when it comes to an end. Hoping, I suppose, that such reflection may give me both hope and direction for the coming year.
I started of 2012 having been released from the hospital 2 weeks earlier, still in pretty rough shape. I'd been diagnosed with new onset diabetes (not surprising given family history and the shape I was in). The surprise, though, was congestive heart failure. Again, the shape I was in, but I wasn't aware of any family history, so I wasn't being as watchful as I perhaps should have been.
My younger son was still living with me (he is 18 now), and I expected he would remain with me until he graduated high school in 2013. I was also caring for my Mom, who will be 81 in January, coping with her medical issues, providing transportation and some physical care, tracking her medications and such. She can't drive, needs a walker, has memory issues........ And on and on.
We had a vacation home at Mt. Snow in Vermont & spent most of our weekends there. The plan was to move there permanently once my son was out of high school.
Fast forward to the end of 2012 and I find many changes & a few constants.
Mom is still with us, and still puttering along at her own pace, often in her own little world. My younger son decided to move back to NC for his senior year, so my Mom & I decided it was time to make the move from CT to VT permanent. I am currently trying to get the CT house ready to sell in between all that is going on in VT, including a LOT of snow this past week (very GOOD thing). My older son (he's 22 now) graduated college in December and came back to the VT house so he can work at the mountain as a supervisor in ski school. He's been an instructor since he was 15. He brought his girlfriend with him, so now we've got quite a houseful once again. They will be here for at least the ski season, then who knows how much longer.
I've gotten my health back on pretty good track. Lost 75 pounds so far, have my blood pressure under control finally, and my blood sugar is great, too. For those who understand diabetes, my A1C is 5.0, which is excellent.
Doing lots of walking, will try to get back on the slopes once the horde leaves from the holiday week. Back to mountain biking once the weather improves and the trails dry out a bit. Right now the trails are too full of snowmobiles to be safe for slower pursuits, really.
Taken as a whole, I think the year has been a positive one. I am healthier, I am living where I want to live, my business is picking up once again (in spite of the economy). The one thing I still lack is that special lady to share this life with, the one who is creative enough & crazy enough to cope with today while building dreams for tomorrow.
As I look toward 2013 I am more hopeful than I have been in recent years. Perhaps I will discover that lady, or she will discover me. My business can finally grow again with more comfortable quarters in my new home. My Mom can continue on enjoying the peace and quiet here for as long as she is with us, and also enjoying the bustle and chaos of having the kids here. She is trying to get back into her painting, though I'm not sure it will ever happen. The house in CT will sell quickly, I hope, once I finish getting it in order. I can seek out a new tattoo artist in these parts to finally get some new ink going on.
Hope, I suppose, springs eternal for those who are willing to be optimistic, for those who are incurable romantics, for those who would forget past hurts and look to future loves.
I started of 2012 having been released from the hospital 2 weeks earlier, still in pretty rough shape. I'd been diagnosed with new onset diabetes (not surprising given family history and the shape I was in). The surprise, though, was congestive heart failure. Again, the shape I was in, but I wasn't aware of any family history, so I wasn't being as watchful as I perhaps should have been.
My younger son was still living with me (he is 18 now), and I expected he would remain with me until he graduated high school in 2013. I was also caring for my Mom, who will be 81 in January, coping with her medical issues, providing transportation and some physical care, tracking her medications and such. She can't drive, needs a walker, has memory issues........ And on and on.
We had a vacation home at Mt. Snow in Vermont & spent most of our weekends there. The plan was to move there permanently once my son was out of high school.
Fast forward to the end of 2012 and I find many changes & a few constants.
Mom is still with us, and still puttering along at her own pace, often in her own little world. My younger son decided to move back to NC for his senior year, so my Mom & I decided it was time to make the move from CT to VT permanent. I am currently trying to get the CT house ready to sell in between all that is going on in VT, including a LOT of snow this past week (very GOOD thing). My older son (he's 22 now) graduated college in December and came back to the VT house so he can work at the mountain as a supervisor in ski school. He's been an instructor since he was 15. He brought his girlfriend with him, so now we've got quite a houseful once again. They will be here for at least the ski season, then who knows how much longer.
I've...