Yeah, it’s been a hell of a year. It started with big plans for travel and other projects. It ended with depression and wondering where things are going in 2025. There were lots of ups and downs along the way.
On the positive side, I started my new podcast, Carolina Ghost Towns. That’s been a blast and it’s added more incentive for my to complete my long delayed book on that topic. I’ve enjoyed doing the sound design, writing the scripts, and putting everything together. I’m up to 20+ episodes and Season 2 starts on January 14. I think I’ve set reasonable expectations for the show, and so far it hasn’t gotten away from me. I’m looking forward doing more work and research on this project.
I’ve been taking part in lots of music. I’ve been playing with the Fireforge group every Tuesday. That group has gotten more and more popular, and there are almost TOO many musicians, but it’s still a blast. That group will be continuing into the next year, and I look forward it. This past year we even played for Fall for Greenville.
There have been some new musical opportunities. The guys at 13 Stripes Brewery in Taylors have held Celtic sessions and sea shanties singings. These have rapidly become my favorite events. The Celtic sessions at 13 Stripes have not been nearly as formal as the ones in which I’ve participated in the past. It’s more like a pub sing with a few jigs and reels thrown in.
I’m made some great friends at both of these venues and I look forward to every time we get together. My closest friends, though, are at the Pickens Flea Market. I’ve tried to get there every Wednesday. Our numbers are dropping, but our core group remains strong.
As for me, personally, I’m learning many new songs and I’m feeling more confident on different instruments and improvising in different genres. I actually look forward to performing.
Kayaking has had its ups and downs. I’ve had some great trips, but one of my favorite paddling groups has finally disbanded. Lowcountry Unfiltered is no more. Matt moved to Spartanburg and his pastoral duties have taken precedence over his paddling activities. We’ve still gone on some great trips, but many of our low country haven’t been able to join us. The name was less and less descriptive of the group. We finally decided to end the group, but with the understanding that we would still get together whenever we could.
Health-wise, Laura and I both came down with COVID in February. We had managed to avoid it since the pandemic started, but it finally got us. It wasn’t a bad bout, but it was there. I also had a couple of rounds of just common cold, which I’d been avoiding during the pandemic.
The biggest challenge for me was my predilection for skin cancer. Being out in the sunshine while paddling or exploring isn’t good for my fair skin. I got carved on more than usual this year.
These carvings, especially the one on my hand, interfered with both kayaking and banjo playing.
Then came summer…
We really wanted to get out west to our Samish Island house. There were the doctor visits and dental visits, but it was work on our master bathroom that really delayed things. We weren’t able to head out when we wanted, but we did get a lovely new bathroom.
We were ready for an August departure. The hotels had been reserved, and the route was planned to drive out to Washington. Apparently our cats didn’t want to go. We took them to the vet for their annual shots, and afterwards both looked like they wouldn’t survive. We thought we would have to put Cosmo down because he was so lethargic. Rory wouldn’t eat and was limping. We cancelled the trip and they made a miraculous recovery. We planned for a later departure and a shorter trip.
Then came Helene.
Nearly 1/2 of our house was either destroyed or affected by the storm. Dealing with the aftermath has been a full-time job. Our insurance company has been great, but even through resources have been overwhelmed. We’re in temporary housing, but it’s small and it’s not home. We’re hoping to start asbestos removal in January, then we can start rebuilding. It’s a long process.
And it’s taken a toll on our mental health. Throw that on top of a horrible presidential election, and we have both been dealing with major depression. It hits us at unexpected times, and it can be debilitating when it hits. But, there’s nothing we can do about the election, and we are so much better off than many, many others (and that adds a layer of guilt on top of the depression.)
For both Thanksgiving and Christmas we headed down to Florida to spend time at Amy’s. We needed normalcy, or some semblance thereof. I kayaked, we ate and drank too much, and we had a blast flying kites.
That brings us to the end of this year. Depression still hits us, and we still don’t know what the new year will bring. I’m hoping that we can do more traveling, and continue to do the things we love. More importantly, we hope that home will once again be home.
So here’s to 2025. We’ll hope for the best, and try to cope with the rest.