Utahredrock: 2020--The Good Things of My Year

At Utah's Dead Horse Point

This has been a hell of a year, and . . . not a good one, yet much good has happened and all in all I've been beyond fortunate and lucky.

So with gratitude here are 2020 highlights, focusing on the positive, I . . . .

Got to spend a ton of time with my beloved puppy, Jack Powell
Sold my house before a bigger earthquake came! (We had a 5.7 quake in March)
Started full-time RVing again on July 11, something that's been on my mind more in recent years. And I love it! (I previously full-timed from 2007-2009)
Still have my job at the amazing Natural History Museum of Utah working mostly remotely since March
Spent a lot of time with family, including:

A brief visit with my sister Elise when she came to Utah in early March
A five day visit with my mom in my hometown in Ohio in the early days of the pandemic
A month-long visit with my sister Cari on her farm in New York in April--the highlight of my year
About four weeks in Minneapolis and mostly in Wisconsin at my brother's lake cabin--including some time with him (he was gone more than he was there during my time there)

Had the privilege of riding horses when at Cari's for the whole month of April in a stunningly gorgeous part of our country including Listo, my favorite horse that's now living
Found a place to live in my RVs (old and new-to-me) for two months in Heber City, near Park City, thanks to my friend Darla
Bought the RV I've been wanting for a year, slightly used and at a great price, at a time when they're almost impossible to find
Sold my previous RV, the CampLite, to some dear friends
Reconnected with my Xscaper friends in October and have been with them ever since--Xscapers is a group of RVers and a beyond amazing community of people
Mostly maintained my sanity with a few difficult moments
Though I lost my friend Steve, I was able to remotely attend his funeral service and it reminded me not only how amazing he was, but how special life is
Served on the Executive Committee of Visit Salt Lake where I've been a board member for about five years, needless to say in a difficult and strange year.
Witnessed the election of my friend Mark Kelly to the U.S. Senate! He's a rock star.
Have not got coronavirus yet . . . and am hopeful I won't before I can get the vaccine
Am thrilled that we have a vaccine! #yeahScience!
Got an unbelievably killer solar setup on my new-to-me RV that allows me to live comfortably off grid, and I have been off grid since mid-October!

I greeted 2020 at an Xscapers New Year's event near Quartzsite, Arizona. I will bid the year farewell at an unofficial and unsanctioned Xscapers gathering about 50 miles to the east and an unimaginable year away from where the decade started for me a mere 12 months ago.

While this post focuses on the positive--and I certainly have much to be grateful for--it was also a tough year.

These are difficult times, but in a tip of the hat to the spirit of a slogan attributed to another difficult time, it's important to keep calm and carry on.

Sending love from the Sonoran Desert in Arizona,

Jim and Jack