Saturday, February 20, 2021

2021 So Far

 I can’t believe we’re already so far into 2021.  I think even in normal times, without a pandemic, January shouldn’t really count when it comes to goals, resolutions, etc.  It just seems like the weather is always truly awful, and a lot of it is filled with trying to re-set back to normal after the holidays.  

I took this picture on January 2nd, when we were out for a walk.  It seems fairly representative of 2021; bright spots of hope against a lot of gray. 


My best/brightest news for 2021 so far is that Nick and my sister have both received both doses of the vaccine.  My sister works in healthcare, and got her second dose two weeks ago.  Nick works in the emergency services, and got his second dose last week.  They both ended up with Moderna.  There doesn’t seem to be any pattern to which vaccine people are getting.  My sister’s boss got his vaccine a few days before her, and got Pfizer.  A friend of ours got hers at the same hospital Nick did, a week after he did, and got Pfizer.  

I don’t know about other states, but NC keeps changing the groups and priorities.  I think most of the changes have been for the better, so I’m hopeful that it will keep getting better.  Initially, they weren’t going to prioritize people in the emergency services, and said they’d get the vaccine based on age/medical conditions.  That meant most of them would have been in the last group.  How many 75 year old firefighters and police officers do you know?  I was very happy when they changed that, and put them in a higher priority group.  Last time I checked, teachers will be our next group.  My job might fall under the second part of Group Three, but no one seems to know for sure.  We’re still mostly working from home for the foreseeable future.  

South Carolina has started vaccinating people 65 and older.  My dad is over 65, but my mom won’t be 65 until July.  My dad is on a waiting list, but has no idea when he’ll get it.  

In non-COVID related news, we’ve had several days of high winds with wind advisories.  We lost a tree to one of them.  Nick has to go in to work really early every other Thursday, so it was still dark when he left, so he didn’t see the tree down.  It was how I started my day because I saw it as soon as I let Duke out.  And Duke barked at it, a lot, so once he saw it there was no missing it.  




I’m not sure how much you can tell from the pictures, but we were incredibly lucky it fell the way it did.  Most importantly, Duke was safely inside when it fell.  It destroyed the hammocks, which I’m very sad about, but we think at least the stands are okay.  And if it had fallen any other direction it would have hit one of the following: our house, our fence and our neighbors’ (on the right hand side) fence, our fence and our neighbors’ (on the left hand side) fence, or our back fence.  Any of those would have been worse than the hammocks!  And at least it happened when it’s too cold to want to spend time in the hammocks anyway.  

Our neighbors have a fire pit, so we asked them if they wanted the wood, which they did.  They were also nice enough to loan us a chainsaw, and help move the wood.  So the cleanup was a lot easier than it could have been.  

We’ve also had some snow.  Definitely not as much as other places have had, but I’m still hoping we won’t get anymore.  


I got a very sweet surprise from one of my chemo buddies in the middle of January.  I checked the mail and there was a package addressed to me from a business I didn’t recognize.  I thought it was a maybe a case of something I ordered from Amazon coming from an independent seller, but I usually pay fairly close to attention to that, so I was a little surprised.  This was what I found when I opened the package.  


And this is what it looks like all assembled.


It was totally unexpected.  You’re told, over and over again, not to expect to hear back from your chemo buddy.  The program isn’t supposed to put any pressure on them, so they have no obligation to write to you, let alone send you a surprise package.  I think mine are just extra nice because I’ve heard from all three of my current buddies.  My senior buddy sent me a sweet Christmas card, and my teenage buddy sent me a sweet New Year’s card.  I’ll be honest, it totally makes my day whenever I hear from them.  

So how has 2021 started off for you?  Are you working from home?  How is the vaccine distribution going where you are?  




18 comments:

  1. So nice to see a post from you Danielle! That top photo really in a perfect representation of this year so far. I'm sorry to hear about the storm damage but glad it didn't fall on your house. Looks like you got quite a bit of snow there too. I love the little gift your chemo buddy sent you. I know it's not expected but I can imagine how nice it must be when you do hear from them. I'm so glad to hear you are still working from home where it's safe until after you're able to get the vaccine. Here in Florida it's being handled horribly, I don't even know of anyone over 65 who has been able to get it yet. Who knows how long I might have to wait. Enjoy the weekend and pop in more often!

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    1. I think the fact that it's unexpected makes it even nicer to hear from them. Hopefully the vaccine process will start moving along more quickly and you'll be in line soon.

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  2. So glad you posted! And that’s so nice to receive a gift from your chemo buddy! Remember when mine sent me an angel? I’m sorry you lost a tree
    But glad it went the other way! We’ve been fairly lucky with that, too. I’m glad your husband got his second dose! My son-in-law who’s an ICU nurse also got his second dose. Unfortunately, my mom who just turned 82 has been on a waiting list the whole time. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the distribution in our state.

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    1. I do remember you posting about your buddy sending you a gift. I actually thought about that after I opened mine.
      That's great that your son-in-law is vaccinated. It sounds like he's definitely someone who needed it. Hopefully your mom will get an appointment soon.

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  3. Yay for Nick and your sister. My father got his first dose as did my 77yo landlady. Currently our area is doing educators, so technically I should be able to get an appointment, but no luck yet.

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  4. What a sweet gift from your chemo buddy. We are glad that tree fell the way it did, and that no one got hurt! Sorry to hear about the demise of the hammocks, though.

    We have had lots of snow this year so far, and are excited for spring to get here. :)

    As for distribution of the vaccines, Tracey's mom got her second dose last week. And my mom, who lives in Washington state, also got her second dose. We are pretty far down on the list of priorities, so we're hoping maybe we will get ours in April-ish? Hoping. Still working from home -- going on a year now. Wow!

    Hugs!

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    1. I'm with you on being ready for spring! That's great that both of your moms are vaccinated. I'm pretty low down the priority list, too. I totally understand that, though, and was just really happy when they prioritized first responders. It's so weird that we're all coming up on almost a year of working from home.

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  5. This year is an extension of the last but with more hope on the horizon. Eighty year olds have their vaccine appointments, starting this week. We expect ours to be sometime in the spring.

    Thankfully the tree damage was no worse.

    Take care, Danielle. Hope you get vaccinated soon.

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    1. Things do feel more hopeful this year. That's great that some people there are getting the vaccine already. I'm hoping for sometime in the spring, too.

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  6. What a delightful gift! I am sorry you lost a tree but glad no greater damage occurred. Hurray for good neighbors.

    We are blessed with them, too, and also to have retired a bit early, so the only real reason I would get the vaccine is to visit your beautiful state. :) Between the mountains and seaside, I would pick one and move there if it were feasible.

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    1. We're incredibly lucky with our neighbors. It makes such a difference.
      I've actually never been to a NC beach. We'd have to drive about twice as far, so we always go to SC beaches. I love SC beaches! But the NC mountains are beautiful.

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  7. As you probably know, the vaccination roll-out in the UK is going very well, with a third of adults vaccinated. But that's mostly the first shot, and only a small number have had their second shot. I have to wait until early April for my second shot.

    As you say, it was lucky the tree didn't fall in any other direction. Strange that it fell, it looks like it had pretty strong, well developed roots.

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    1. That's great that so many people are at least partially vaccinated.

      We'd had a lot of rain the week before the tree fell, so the ground was still a little soft. And we had 50 mph wind gusts the day it fell. I think it was just a bad combination of weather that got the tree.

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  8. I'm gld the tree fell the way it did, and nothing but the hammocksgot in the way.

    That's really nice that you sometimes get things from your buddies. It's probably that they love what you send them so much it makes them want to return the gesture of kindness.

    We've had a decent amount of snow, but I wouldn't mind a bit more if anyone wants to send it my way. It's been a pretty goodyear so far, with only a few small hiccups, like the fact Lilie's skin irritation issue is back, and the vet has announced she'll be needing treatment for it for life now, so we're trying her on some pills that will hopefully keep it under control.

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    1. I wish I could send our snow your way. We're supposed to get a wintry mix tonight.

      I hope Lile's skin issues improve with the medication.

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  9. What a kind gesture. And how beautiful -- that is so very thoughtful of your chemo buddy. Very lovely.

    I'm sad about your tree, too. I hate seeing healthy trees come down. In fact, I even hate to see challenged trees come down but that's especially hard when it's so big and beautiful. Glad it didn't hit anything terrible.

    Three cheers on the vaccines. I hope you are open for yours soon but very relieved about Nick!

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    1. It was disappointing to lose the tree, but still feels like we got pretty lucky. I'm definitely looking forward to being vaccinated, but my exposure is pretty low since I'm working from home, so I fully understand waiting until after the people with higher exposure get theirs.

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