100 things that made my year
(if you like lists)
A list of the good things in 2024. What were some of yours??
1. The fox in our backyard.
2. Other neighborhood wildlife sightings. Deer in the daily playground on two occasions. Our Great Horned Owls.
3. Feeding the House Finches, Black-capped Chickadees, Red-breasted nuthatches.
4. Autumn raking as a family.
5. Our neighbors and their pets esp. Vino, Andy, Maisie, Coco, Stormy, Sunny.
6. Getting to work with friends who share important values.
7. Discovering new (to me) artists on Spotify. Chappell Roan, Hozier, Bebe Stockwell, Kelsea Ballerini, Remi Wolf, Noah Kahan, Rosalia, Bad Bunny, Vampire Weekend, Gracie Abrams, Megan Moroney.
8. Rising without fail for zazen before 6AM. (1456 consecutive days and counting!--statistic thanks to the Insight Timer).
9. Morning coffee, dharma study, lectio divina. Richard Rohr. Blue Mountain Center. My Jewish Learning. Georgetown's Lent and Advent series by students and staff.
10. Daily Duolingo. Ich lerne Deutsch. Motivated by formative travel experiences, friends, film and reading: weeks in Berlin with Lee and Isa; Patrick Leigh Fermor: Rilke; Buber. Professor Frakes. Run Lola Run.
11. Remembering my saints who passed: David Adashek, Aunt Lorraine. Noting the passing of saints known to many: Paul Auster, Marjorie Perloff, Wally Amos, Kris Kristofferson, Jimmy Carter, Ethel Kennedy, Willie Mays, Fernando Valenzuela, Ruth Westheimer, Richard Simmons, Shannon Doherty, Bob Newhart, Maggie Smith, David Soul, Anouk Aimee, Donald Southerland,
12. Pink electric guitar. Our youngest son's passion for music and musical instruments.
13. Bedtime reading with my middle son. Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
14. Marriage and husbandry. All of it, the dailiness.
15. Weekly menu planning, shopping, cooking.
16. Baking bread. Filling the house with the smell of baking bread.
17. Playing Bob Marley all over the house on Alexa when alone at home doing chores. Using Alexa for shopping lists and weather reports.
18. Exercising daily. Peloton. Yoga.
19. Observing and loving all the seasons of Easter, Lent, Advent, Christmas and sweetest Ordinary Time.
20. Remembering the upsides of being an umpteenth generation Catholic.
21. Reading during breakfast: Charles Lamb's letters; M.F.K. Fisher, The Art of Eating; Reay Tannahill, Food in History.
22. Texting with friends and family. Sharing photos. Taking photos.
23. Joining other friends and family to celebrate my father's and step-mother's anniversary at their home in LA on New Year's Eve.
24. Spring skiing day with the big boys. Loveland. Breakfast in Idaho Springs.
25. Two nights in the Eagles Nest Wilderness. Upper Cataract Lake. Our boys every step there and back again on the trail. That din of silence.
26. The first sounds in our house every day.
27. Evening with the big boys, once the little one has gone to bed.
28. Watching music videos with the youngest. Letting him be the car DJ. Lots of Eric Burdon and the Animals. Gary Lewis and the Playboys. Beach Boys. Paul McCartney.
29. Appreciating Sir Paul as he ages. So glad to be on the Yellow Submarine.
30. Working in health advocacy. Editing & communications. Using language as tool for navigation and management.
31. Afternoon walks on our neighborhood loops. The running back and forth; easy chatter; little observations and discoveries.
32. Walking to the pool for early morning swim team in June. Staying for that. Walking back.
33. Spending a summer week with my mother and step-father in the Bay Area. Trip to Alcatraz (along with my niece). Wall climbing with my nephew. Cactus Taqueria, Tacubaya, Pegasus Books. Morning walks with Dave.
34. Two days on the beach at Point Reyes National Seashore. Favorite bookstore in Point Reyes Station. Dinner at Station House Cafe.
35. Accompanying Lauren and the boys to the Luxembourg Consulate in San Francisco to get their EU passports.
36. Conversations with and book recommendations from my step-father.
37. Spring break week in Scottsdale to visit my in-laws. Taking the boys to the Musical Instrument Museum. Hikes in the Arizona desert.
38. Solo drives across the Rockies for work trips. Dinner at the Peach Street Distillers.
39. Visits to the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs in summer and winter.
40. Feeling restored commitment to working to end political divisiveness. Zero tolerance for extremes to left or right of the healthier center.
41. Accompanying our biggest boy on his high school tour, helping him work on his application, taking him for his high school placement test.
42. Growing tomatoes in a raised bed on the deck. Putting the accumulation of compost into great service.
43. My father-in-law's craftsmanship around the house, as he put his time and talents to work to make countless improvements, large and small (the window trim, the building of a stone patio).
44. A week’s visit from my sister--youngest fellow’s birthday (4), remote work, walks, and good company at mealtimes.
45. Dinners and margaritas at Los Dos Potrillos.
46. A telephone conversation with my Fordham friend and colleague, Cecilia.
47. Sharing 10 things from the week (for some number of weeks) with people with whom I'm glad to be connected; their kind words and things they shared in return.
48. Acquiring a building for Mental Health Colorado to house and support individuals who would otherwise be homeless or incarcerated.
49. Working with outstanding contractors to formulate a business plan for owning and operating the building.
50. Working with outstanding contractors to get the organization's development house in order.
51. Our oldest son's sense of style; his refined tastes; his interest in elegant fragrances.
52. Taking our middle son to his trumpet lessons on Tuesdays. Listening to him practice. Listening to him figure out how to play things on the piano.
53. Clearing snow from driveway and walks with the snow blower (such a relief from the labor of shoveling).
54. Driving the leased Tesla. The Tesla's unparalleled sound system and acceleration. Maybe just ask Musk about engineering and stop listening to the foolishness.
55. The Hot Lunch Band and all the colleagues dancing at the Mental Health Colorado Tribute Gala.
56. The recruitment and hiring of the VP for Development who is going to make all the difference for us.
57. Exploring different approaches to business sustainability with my COO, fellow-father friend.
58. Half a dozen cigars over the course of the year. The conversations and companionship.
59. An August week in Vail. Watching the big boys tube down the creek. Free outdoor concert: The Allen Stone Band.
60. The mostly mild, sometimes fierce Colorado weather. Days of subzero temperatures in January with a malfunctioning furnace. Wearing Aunt Tami's hats indoors.
61. Visits at the neighborhood pool with my Cousin Amy and her family. Knowing they're nearby.
62. Recruiting and hiring the best possible candidate to be our VP for Government Affairs.
63. Interviewing candidates for Georgetown, feeling hopeful and confident for the future based on these young people's incredible qualities, interests, and commitments to the common good.
64. The satisfactions of balancing work and family.
65. Self-emptying, learning to let go.
66. Approaching a monumental birthday. Appreciating the advancing in age.
67. Getting haircuts from Megan at Brixton Barbers (walking distance from home).
68. My friend Dave's visit to Denver.
69. Seeing my mother-in-law out for her walks around the neighborhood. All the neighbors know her for her energetic walking.
70. My mother-in-law's warm heart, radiant kindness, sense of style, and exquisite taste in baked goods.
71. My new friend and donor/volunteer, Laura. Conversations about Judaism and Christianity and the state of the world. Lunch at her house. Meeting her mother and son.
72. Working with great political consultants, great communications partners.
73. My own ten to fifteen minutes of bedtime reading. Marc Hamer. Michael Pollan. Taylor Jenkins Reid. Kristin Hannah. Rebecca Yarros.
74. Getting a good night's sleep.
75. Another successful Colorado legislative session. State (maybe national) firsts in protections in eating disorder care.
76. Jim Harrison's non-fiction essays.
77. Having a pile of books I'm looking forward to reading.
78. Cuddles and hugs with all three boys. Youngest boy's fierce embraces and declarations of love.
79. Surprising confirmations of general decency and aligned right-mindedness from a majority of Instagram comments.
80. Discovering new Christmas music on Spotify. Made a playlist.
81. Home improvements and decor from our family's personal history, all curated by Lauren. Seahorse from our first trip together (Cape Hatteras National Seashore) finally framed.
82. Teaching public policy to graduate students in international disaster psychology at the University of Denver.
83. Robot vacuum birthday gift.
84. Getting to deliver the keynote address at Colorado's third annual Collaborative Justice Conference.
85. Seasons and repetitions.
86. Evening games of gin with our middle son.
87. Roses, peonies, lilies and clematis and other front yard flora.
88. Full-zip Patagonia sweaters for all purposes, inside and out.
89. Wearing mostly sneakers and very few ties.
90. Making homemade gyoza with the boys.
91. Buying well-priced wines during sale marathons at The Last Bottle. Ask me for a referral & we all win!
92. Stopping in the middle of the street on the way to the mailbox to look at the stars.
93. Acquiring Envision:You as an initiative of Mental Health Colorado.
94. Living in the golden age of streaming television and movies. Things we have enjoyed watching ourselves or re-watching with the boys: Emily in Paris, The Perfect Couple, Nobody Wants This, A Discovery of Witches, Bodkin, Beckham, Gran Turismo, Geek Girl, One Day, My Octopus Teacher, The Diplomat, Derry Girls, The Witcher.
95. Doing sixth grade math homework after dinner.
96. Sending off our middle son on his first school trip away from home. His only complaint: he couldn't tell what time it was (he has a watch now).
97. Our boys' ever-changing faces. Their hilariousness. Their brilliance.
98. Lauren's devotion, her bottomless well of generosity and compassion.
99. Every sight of Lauren. The faces she makes, her laugh, the things she says.
100. Marking sixteen years of marriage (again, with no proper celebration).
Wishing you all innumerable instances of joy and light in 2025!