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I’ve been traveling a lot the last few weeks. Even when I’ve been in town, it’s for events that are out of the ordinary. First, I went to the Triological Society (Trio) meeting at the Hotel Del. It was a nice opportunity to attend interesting talks and to participate as a panelist. Unfortunately, it was also an opportunity to get norovirus/norovirus-like illness as so many people were sick the last two days of the conference. I thought I was safe since I felt fine on Saturday but oh my gosh, Sunday was a much different story. I will spare you the details, but it’s funny that we were worried about Coronavirus and it was Norovirus that took us out.

The next weekend, I took an extra two days off and made a casual loop of the United States. First, I saw SMS in Palo Alto. We went to Watercourse Way, an onsen-style place in Palo Alto. The hot water felt great! On Sunday, I headed to Boston immediately after their huge blizzard! I landed without a problem but my parents were still in DC (we were supposed to meet). So, I hopped on the United app and booked myself a flight to see them- last one of the night!

I spent a day and a half in DC. We went to the National Gallery of Art since the East Building is closing soon for renovations. There is a nicely laid-out exhibit of contemporary art (~1900-on) in four vertically stacked galleries. Mom cooked a great dinner and overall, it was great to have some time with my parents. Plus, I got bonus sister time when Brady came over for about an hour on her way home. That’s always very special! I was so happy it worked out since she is super-busy with work and family.

The next day, I went up to Walter Reed and got a few errands done in a mostly efficient manner. Mom and Dad were worried whether I would make my flight but I had faith! On the way back, I was upgraded to Business class to IAH, where I had dinner in the Centurian Lounge. It was a luxurious experience!

November started with another weekend on call, so nothing too exciting to there. SMS and I had a lot more fun over Veteran’s Day Weekend. I had bought tickets to a Friday night show, so we make an East Bay date night out of it!

First, we went to Treasure Island (not the one of Pinocchio fame!). Instead, it is the location of the Pan Am terminal once used for the Clipper Sea Planes. For some reason, I thought the terminal was used for blimps and I didn’t know what a Clipper was. Inside, there were some informative posters and it was really a cool chapter in aviation history.

Although the exterior was beautiful, it didn’t look the most inviting. I had heard there was a cool mural inside so I decided to try a door, which pulled open easily. We walked inside and there was a security guard right there who paid no attention to us so we guessed that we were okay! The mural is pretty amazing and documents key Navy and Marine historical events. It starts with the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813 and ends with a futuristic space colony. I guess the last bit technically isn’t history but it seemed to fit with a grandiose timeline and attitude of future success!

After Treasure Island, we went to Trader Vic’s. According to the restaurant, Trader Vic himself is the inventor of the Mai Tai. It had been on our list to try and since we were in the area, off we went! It was pretty tasty. I usually avoid Mai Tais and have even been the designated driver at luaus because I don’t like them. But I admit, this one was pretty good.

After dinner, we went to the Paramount Theater for Pop-Up magazine, a live performance from several artists that bring a magazine to life. After having unbelievable luck with a parking spot despite the presence of a serious doubter (SMS!), we walked to the theater where there was a medium line to get in/through the COVID screeners. Entering the lobby was amazing- I hadn’t realized what a beautiful Art Deco building it was. The middle picture above is near the entrance and the picture to the right is from the circle that you see near the top of the middle picture. It is an incredible interior.

The show was pretty good. Several writers read pieces that were accompanied by a small band and graphics/slideshow/video support. There was also a Native American spirit dance by two guys profiled in the piece immediately preceding the dance. Overall, the show concept was really cool and I learned a few things during different segments. I don’t know if I’d go to every Pop-Up Magazine event that comes to town, but it was definitely a unique show format. For our first night out in a long time, it was definitely a lot of fun!

The next weekend marked the start of my extended Thanksgiving vacation. We went to the Stanford-Cal game to tailgate with new friends I had made through my Stanford Ignite experience. There were extra tickets, so we were invited to the game itself. It was a lot of fun.

We also went for a hike the day before leaving for DC, where we spent the Thanksgiving holiday (separate blog post!). The hike started from Deer Hollow farm. Afterward, we came upon the most Zen goat. A state of mind to aspire towards!

Here’s the rest of my photo dump/highlights from April. Still a little slow due to COVID restrictions (lifting, though!) so it’s not that great of a monthly post. Also, I’m writing this a few months late so, you know, details get lost.

Hooray, another year! I had a very nice birthday, especially since I got to spend it with SMS rather than a hospital ship targeted by runaway train locomotives! I took Thursday and Friday off, which made for a long weekend gift to myself.

To celebrate, I hiked the Dear Springs trail to Suicide Rock…twice! On Thursday, I hiked with my friend Carrie and on Friday, SMS and I went. It was beautiful and worth doing, even though I was a little sore the third day. Idylwild is absolutely beautiful and it made for a great weekend getaway.

On Thursday, Carrie and I took a day trip out to Idylwild. We did the hike and grabbed lunch and a post-hike beer at the Idylwild Brewpub. The setting was awesome, but we didn’t linger too long because I had a small get-together to go to in San Diego. My friend/colleague Colleen was leaving for a new duty station, so the four lady ENTs got together to hang out and get some quality time in before she left.

On Friday, I celebrated by eating cake for breakfast. Mom and Dad had sent a cake from MilkBar, which is delicious. Nutritionally, I’m sure it’s so bad that it’s good but hey, birthday rules! I also was super hungry because of the tasty treat of a man who was on my birthday card from them. I say “them” but I’m pretty sure it was all Mom.

But before we left town, SMS and I stopped at Camp Pendleton where he got his first Pfizer vaccine! It was the best birthday present! I had been pretty nervous for him, especially in the interval between my vaccination and his. I wanted him to be equally protected but because of the difference in our jobs, we qualified for vaccinations at different time. It turns out he wasn’t quite as excited to get it since he was worried about mild side effects impacting our trip but everything worked out! He felt totally fine.

We had a great time on the hike. We had decided to stay overnight. SMS booked a room at The Grand Idylwild Lodge, which lived up to its name. There were beautiful outside eating areas, so we decided to order takeaway from town and eat at the hotel. We ordered Italian from FERRO and bought a bottle of wine from Middle Ridge Winery. We bought the Cinsaut, which is usually found in blends. It smelled so good and we really enjoyed it.

We at outside and enjoyed the sunset views of Suicide Rock, which we had hiked to the top of earlier in the day.

The next morning, we hung around for a bit before heading home. We stopped at the famous Dudley’s bakery. Then, we went to Grant James for a wine tasting, which was delightful! The patio is shaded, there was a slight breeze, the wine was delicious, and there was a pizza oven in the back with great pizza options.

And that was my birthday weekend! I had the best time on our mini-trip planned by SMS. Happy birthday to meeeeeeeee!

February was a little bit more of same old, same old. I was fully vaccinated, but our knowledge of what that meant was still incomplete. Could I still be a carrier monkey? Who knew? So, SMS and I stayed home, did our work, and had another quarentine-y month together.

We continued our native plant watch, visiting the Point Loma Native Plant garden. It’s looking a little more beautiful. More (little) flowers, somewhat fewer dead sticks. Progress!

Meanwhile, at the base of our apartment stairs, a gorgeous jasmine plant had a huge bloom. It smelled heavenly for a few weeks. We loved it. Photo of SMS totally not staged (it is).

February meme alert! I am not a cat! The panicky cat sideways glance is hilarious. I highly recommend checking out this video if you somehow missed the highlight of my February internet browsing.

SMS and I went to North County to check out some neighborhoods, since we were still deciding between San Diego and Bay Area living arrangements jobs. We like beautiful places but a lot of them have really big houses- way more than we’d like to take care of.

So, to balance our thoughts, we went up to the Bay Area for the weekend. SMS had been there for the week for work. I joined him Friday and we had a great time. We treated ourselves to two nights at the Stanford Park Hotel, which is beautiful. We had delicious pinot noir with our friends in Lafayette and overall, had an amazing weekend. A great way to end the month!

Well, January was pretty eventful for the US and I definitely followed current events in a much more timely way than my blog posting schedule suggests. I really like Heather Cox Richardson‘s near-daily posts from a historian’s perspective. She’s still writing about current events and I really appreciate her ability to inform the present from events in the past.

The birds continue to do well. Mom continues to send them seeds and treat sticks, so they’re well-fed. Their daily routine is about the same: sleep, eat, drink, chirp, fly. They are especially vocal during Mark’s conference calls. They don’t understand why he isn’t thrilled about this. So they chirp louder.

In other bird-related topics, I used my parakeet ornaments on the tree. They were from the RN I worked with in Portsmouth and I love them. But they were put away by early January so I was on top of the tree takedown for 2021. Speaking of takedowns (or downfalls?)…

Then, on inauguration day came my favorite meme of 2021: the Bernie meme! I know, it was old within a week but there were some pretty clever riffs. My favorite?

Finally, we had some spectacular sunsets. The picture below on the left is from our balcony while the picture on the right is from the City Lot just east of Balboa Park.

Finally, SMS looked pretty good in his Christmas sneakers. I don’t manage to surprise him very often but this gift was a good one!

In 2020, I read 67 books. 21 were non-fiction, 46 were fiction. Oooo, already I am pretty happy with myself since I did not think I had read that much non-fiction.

As I look at my non-fiction books more, I’m even happier since I read fewer memoirs than I thought. My favorite book was The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History by Barry. It shot to the top of my to-read list in April, when I thought I should get better perspective on a historical pandemic. It’s really well-written, engaging, and informative. Learning about the disease spread and its likely start in Ft. Riley, Kansas were new information for me. It was also interesting that the incubation time was 48-72 hours, which meant that once it arrived at a place, it hit like a lightening strike. 5 stars, for sure!

Other recommendations from the year include She Said by Kantor and Twoley, Cork Dork by Bosker, Poor Economics by Banerjee and Duflo, and Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Wilkerson. And if you want a totally satisfying memoir in the beach readiest of ways, try Open Book by Jessica Simpson.

For 2021, I would like to read a more “educational” non-fiction book every month that broadens my knowledge base and academic frame of reference. I’m going to focus on the Navy Surgeon General’s list and Bill Gates’ book blog, but I’m open to other suggestions!

Fiction reading is my joy and if I scroll a little less on my phone, I anticipate even more reading in 2021. I gave myself a little grace to be mindless during parts of 2020 but it’s time to shape up!

On my year in review post, I listed all of my five star reads: Olive, Again by Strout; The Dearly Beloved by Wall; City of Girls by Gilbert; Celine by Heller; Writers & Lovers by King; Milkman by Burns; Deacon King Kong by McBride; Girl, Woman, Other by Evarist.

For Olive Again, I would definitely recommend reading Olive Kitteredge first. I really liked this character- a prickly, off-putting, stoic Maine woman. It reminded me of a more modern Ethan Frome where, due to upbringing and temperament, the character suffers because of how much is left unsaid. In Olive’s case, there is also the addition of what is said is often said in a less-than-constructive way. [By the way, I should have started off saying that I am the worst at describing books in a manner that would make people want to read them. But then this paragraph would have made such a warning redundant.]

The Dearly Beloved was a really thoughtful book on two married couples over several decades. The two husbands are co-ministers at a church, while the wives are as different as me and my college roommate (very). I loved the character of Lily Barrett, but all four members of the quartet are well-developed and complex.

City of Girls was a surprise to me since I find Elizabeth Gilbert slightly insufferable in her non-fiction (Eat, Pray, Love anyone?). This novel was well-told, frothy, and fun. I recommend!

Celine might be my favorite book of the year. This sporadically employed private investigator is a feisty, formidable woman in her 70s with COPD but she can still take on bikers in a bar! I so wish that there was a series based on this character but alas, this book is a one and only (so far!). I do like other Peter Heller books but this is tops for me!

Writers & Lovers opened my eyes to how good a writer Lily King is. The main character Casey is 31 and basically, just trying to figure it out. The writing is excellent and I really like it. There are few unlikeable characters, but none fully demonized which is pretty true to life, right?

Milkman is a similarly themed book of a young woman trying to figure it out but set in the time of “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland. Since I had read Say Nothing by Keefe earlier in the year, I had a pretty rich historical context while reading this novel. It may be a little too dreamy and “literature-y” for some, but still, it was a five star for me!

Deacon King Kong features several characters in inner city 1960s Brooklyn. While there are some heavy themes and circumstances, the book is also hilarious. The title’s character ability to get himself into trouble but then somehow comically escape his fated comuppance/score-settling is laugh-out-loud funny.

Girl, Woman, Other starts as several loosely tied stories featuring a different protagonist before tightening up over the course of the book and becoming a pretty cohesive whole. I almost lost the thread a few times but ultimately, thought the book was fantastic.

So, the above fiction books are listed in order read through the year. If I had to rank them (tough for me!), I would say…

1. Céline by Peter Heller
2. The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall
3. Writers & Lovers by Lily King
4. Deacon King Kong by James McBride

But ask me again tomorrow, I may have a different order!

Since 2011, I’ve used this list to help reflect back on the year.  I really enjoy looking back while preparing to move forward. So…

1. What did you do in 2020 that you’d never done before?

Got vaccinated against COVID!

2.  Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I did ok!  I feel pretty happy with my betterment efforts although there is still work to be done. To pick a small area, I am happy with how much I read this past year (67 books!) but I will make a much more concerted effort at reading more non-fiction!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

My sister! (Repeat from last year.  Go B!)

4. Did anyone close to you die?

No.  

5. What countries did you visit?

Ouch.  Oh 2020, what could have been.

6. What would you like to have in 2021 that you lacked in 2020?

International travel!

7. What dates from 2020 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

March 23: I was supposed to go to Norfolk for a one week surgical visit and instead, I was on the USNS Mercy response to the Port of Los Angeles!

April 2: On the Mercy for my 40th birthday.

August 21: Our housing offer went bottoms up

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

SMS and I navigated a tough Fall.  I 100% realize that we are still very fortunate in our lives but August and September were rough.  

9. What was your biggest failure?

Well, it’s not really a failure but I do feel a little stuck in my job if I want to advance from a research or military rank perspective.  But more opportunities should open in 2021 assuming that things will, in fact, start to get back to “normal.”

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

My right shoulder for a bit.  And I think I’ve avoided being sick with COVID.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

SMS Christmas present- a pair of special sneakers.  I might realize the high of being a sneakerhead!

12. Where did most of your money go?

Rent/Two Households for 2/3 year.  Real estate debacle. Savings account.

13. What did you get really excited about?

SMS and I have had a great time being together in SD.

14. What song will always remind you of 2020?

“Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion.  And let’s be real, W.A.P. made quite a splash :]

15. Compared to this time last year, are you:

– happier or sadder? Same.  Pretty happy.

– thinner or fatter? A little thinner

– richer or poorer? Poorer (real estate debacle)

16. What’s one thing you wish you had done more of?

Non-fiction reading!

17. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Phone-scrolling.  Gossip site reading during the second half of the year- I was so good the first third! (Argh, this is a repeat.  Will do better in 2021!)

18. How did you spend Christmas?

With family.

19. What was your favorite TV program?

Call My Agent (Pour Deux Percent) Seasons 1-3; Pandemic; The Queen’s Gambit; Insecure Season 4; Unorthodox

20. What were your favorite books of the year?

Olive, Again by Strout; The Dearly Beloved by Wall; City of Girls by Gilbert; Celine by Heller; Writers & Lovers by King; Cork Dork by Bosker; Milkman by Burns; Deacon King Kong by McBride; Girl, Woman, Other by Evarist; Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Wilkerson

21. What was your favorite music from this year?

“Dance Monkey” by the Tones and I.  Hahahahaha

BTS, “Rain on Me,” Dua Lipa, Mabel, Emili Sandé

And one of my last workouts featured “Wait Til You See My Smile” by Alicia Keys is really beautiful, even if it’s from 2009.

22. What were your favorite films of the year?

I watch so few movies that, shamefully, my favorite of the year was Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.  I thought The Social Dilemma was a huge missed opportunity and about 40% of the “documentary” was a super-cheesy Hallmark-like film.

23. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

40.  On the USNS Mercy.  I mostly tried to avoid anyone knowing it was my birthday.  

24. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

No COVID.  Is that too glib?  Yes, but it’s also true.

25. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2020?

I am all in on the joggers trend and recently bought a huge sweater.   When I wear it, SMS calls me Dobby the House Elf (not in a good way but I don’t care!)

26. What kept you sane?

SMS and my family!

27. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2020

The power of social justice and hoping/believing/acting that the moral arc of the universe truly does bend towards justice.