We made it to the end of 2018! For me, I can say right away it was better than 2017, which was summarized by stress and anxiety. Thankfully, I’ve had less of that this year. I wish I could think of one word to describe 2018, but my mind comes up blank. Maybe resilient.
Looking Back
In the last 12 months, I made changes that would, among other things, help manage my anxiety better. Overall, I slowly improved; my anxiety was not as bad as in 2017. There were severe flare ups at times, but I was able to bounce back quicker and easier.
A big change in 2018 was returning to my previous employer, which was surreal at first after having been gone for 3 years. I got to do more of the work I once did, and I really like it. It’s been very good to be back. Usually the stress of this kind of change is too much, but it was worth it.
This year, my wife and I also started a new part of our family ranch: raising meat goats. So I built a pen and a shed for our new goats. And we expanded our chicken population, building a bigger chicken coop to house our additional hens.
Back in January, I took on a new reading challenge of 1 book per month. But instead of 12 books this year, I read 22! This included, for the first time, the entire Harry Potter series! I was late to the game but glad I finally showed up.
A few other highlights for 2018: I was able to visit with my brother and his family. It’s a real treat because they live overseas. My family went on a 7 day Caribbean cruise in the Spring. I deleted my Facebook and Instagram in the Spring, then rejoined in late Summer.
One last kind of milestone: the Summer had a surprise that kind of resurrected an old pastime of mine. My wife bought me a used Wii U for Father’s Day, so I did a bunch of gaming! I finally played Zelda Breath of the Wild, among others (Xenoblade Chronicles X!). It was like reliving my childhood. The last console I owned was the Gamecube. Nothing like escapism through some Nintendo.
Looking Forward
Peaking at 2019, I wonder how we’re gonna close out the teens of this century before embarking into the 20s!
I’m not a big goal setter, but I hope and plan to continue blogging on a regular basis.
Also, my family is looking at getting some major house projects completed: adding on a bedroom, renovating the living room, building a barn and paddocks, adding donkeys to the ranch, and expanding our goat herd.
So, I’ll be busy. I hope when I do the 2019 year-in-review it’s not summarized by the word, “busy” or “exhausting.”
A parenting milestone occurs in the upcoming year: we will have our first teenager! My oldest turns 13 in a few months. Life may get interesting.
The rest…we’ll cross those bridges when we get to them.
How was your 2018? What are you looking forward to in 2019?
Thanks for reading!
-Jason
Jason Journals 