The second car we ordered back in November finally arrived in time for the birth of the first baby, which is now only weeks away. This marked our first hybrid electric vehicle and, so far, we are loving it.
The news has been filled with stories about GameStop and other stocks with high “short” interests being squeezed in recent weeks so there is no point in me rehashing the specifics. There is a lot I could cover about the actual procedure for how trades settle, how short squeezes happen, who is innocent and guilty, and a host of other relevant topics. Enough ink has been spilled, digital and print, that I’m going to focus on the bigger picture, instead. This whole situation is not good.
As I write this message, it is January 2nd, 2021. Today marks the second day of the new year, the thirteenth day since the start of winter, and the 13,987th day of my life. The holiday weekend afforded me something I haven’t had in a long time: a moment of respite as much of the world shut down for celebration. Well-rested, I’m ready to jump into the New Year. Here is an inside look at some of the things going on in our home and business as we gear up for a post-pandemic world.
Merry Christmas! I hope all of you are doing well and that your celebrations were filled with happiness, laughter, and good food! For our part, this year marked the 20th Christmas that Aaron and I have spent together. Like every one of those other Christmases, it was one of the best days of my life (despite the unusual circumstances and challenges this year has brought). We decided that with the world feeling so uncertain, and the need to remain socially distanced from others, it would be the perfect opportunity to stay home, wear knitted sweaters and jeans, and enjoy a classic early-to-mid twentieth century dinner; pure, old-school comfort food that envoked a sense of warmth and safety, friends and family, prosperity and peace.
One afternoon last week, we decided to test a new Dutch Oven Tortellini Soup with Italian Sausage recipe while drinking eggnog and listening to Christmas music. It provided leftovers for several days, making our lives easier during the newest shelter-in-place lockdown in California.
Aaron and I are beyond thrilled that in a little more than four months, we will welcome our first child into the Kennon-Green family! Here is an update about the process and a few pictures of what we’ve been up to as we prepare for his arrival.
We recently discovered that in 2017, the SpaceLab9 booth at New York Comic Con sold an extremely limited edition Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Ultimate Vinyl collection etched to look like the famous sweet rolls from the game. The collection, which was limited to only 95 copies, contains the full 52-tracks found in the game. The moment we learned it existed, we knew we had to have it. After some searching, in June 2020 we were able to track down one of those boxed sets. We immediately bought it for our music collection.
Keeping an eye on numerous individual companies, as well as a broad array of economic data, I am far more optimistic about the next ten years than I was this time last month. Yes, there will still be challenges, but it looks like much of the worst-case scenario has been averted. Now, it’s about navigating the problems we will encounter due to the specific policy decisions made in the midst of the pandemic.
We started to see toilet paper (multiple varieties, sizes, etc.) as well as occasional bottles of Lysol appear at local stores, and beaches are once again full with people running, sailboats in the distance, and folks riding their bicycles. Many of the independent retail shops have reopened, and restaurants are beginning to accept diners, again.
Over the past year, one of my favorite tracks to listen to while I work is an instrumental piece by Iranian-born composer, producer, instrumentalist, and performer Sami Yusuf. In referring to his genre of music, Yusuf calls it “Spiritique”, which blends Eastern and Western sounds into something new and different.