2011…Don’t Let the Door Hit You on the Way Out…

So I’m thinking a rainy, late December morning is a perfect time for reflection.

Later this week, I’ll post my annual “Top 10 Gary Stories of the Year.” Everyone has a “Top 10 ____ of the Year,” Right? I’ll write about accomplishments and achievements; trips and treasures.

But here, I want to spend the time to officially bid farewell to a year we won’t miss. My Mom has a theory - and I’ve heard it espoused by others - that bad things come in threes. This year would qualify for that policy ONLY if you extend it to ‘multiples of 3s.’

Lisa’s theory is that there are some years that are just bad by their very nature. She lists one year in particular because of the deaths and illnesses of numerous relatives. 

My own convenient theory about 'years’ is that the ending digit holds some significance. Here’s how it works: '81, '91 and '01 all saw more than their share of bad events. They were followed up, however, with great years in '82, '92 and '02

So, based on that idea, '11 was bad, so '12 has to be great. Right?

For me, I will always think of 2011 as a year that was shrouded in a black cloud of malaise (hey, that was three metaphors rolled into one!). Americans, generally, don’t feel good about things right now. We just felt a bit uneasy this year. That was the backdrop for 2011.

Drilling down to a personal level, this year was tough on so many levels.

My mom suffered two falls this year resulting two broken limbs - a broken leg in the spring; a broken arm last month. Both accidents necessitated surgeries, hospital stays and lengthy, painful rehabilitation. She’s only now starting to have some limited use of her right arm.

It’s been a hard year for her.

With Mom’s injuries, a greater burden fell on my dad this year. He always has a 'can do’ spirit about getting things done but you know it had to be rough on him, too. Also, he was worried about his brother, who battled some pretty serious illnesses of his own, this year.

In this household, there was the unbelievable Thanksgiving week. I still shake my head in disbelief when I think about it.

Paul had an illness and then another and before you know it, he was severely dehydrated and on his way to his OWN hospital stay on the Tuesday of that week. Fortunately, he got to come home the night before the holiday. Then, unbelievably, Lisa got sick with a serious stomach bug and missed Thanksgiving completely.

If that wasn’t enough, Paul tacked on a bout of sinusitis this fall along with some bronchitis later. Only within the last few weeks has he been fully back to good health. Thank goodness for antibiotics.

I’m so glad he has the school’s mid-year break to rest up.

My sister even spent a night in the hospital a few weeks ago. I commented that, with her stay, that meant three different Garys had spent at least a night in a hospital within the span of a month (doing our part to boost the economy, you know!).

And, lest I forget, Lisa reminded me that there were deaths of a great aunt and great uncle in her family.

Oh yeah, we won’t be sorry to see the end of this year.

This year, we dealt with two car accidents - one involving our heirloom truck. Fortunately, there were no injuries with either incident. You can fix metal.

And no review of the trials and tribulations of '11 would be complete without remembering the horrible storms of April. Hail damage throughout the region was massive. On the plus side, there was a real boost to the economy in the forms of auto repairs, new gutter installations and roof repairs.

On a lighter (but still negative) note, Holly tweeted the other night that the year in sports was also a dud. Our favorite sports teams: #Braves, #Titans, #Vols, #Tigers struggled this year. It looked so promising, too, when the Braves rolled into September with a substantial lead in the N.L. wildcard race only to experience an epic collapse.

Holly had a pretty good year, herself, health-wise but I think living at home this fall presented some challenges. It’s hard to be plugged in as a college student when you live 15 miles away. On the plus side, she enjoyed working at her part-time job which is very close to our house. And, since she only had classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the schedule and living arrangements made sense.

I think she’s happy to have to decided to move back on campus when school starts back next month. And hey, it’ll be a New Year then.

Ah. A New Year.

A New Year brings a renewed sense of optimism. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/dec/29/ap-gfk-poll-in-2012-it-can-only-get-better/

It’s a clean slate. A Blank Canvas. And more metaphors!

Holly noted '12 is one of those years with lots of interesting events. We’ll have a Presidential election and the Summer Olympics on the horizon. Also, it’s Leap Year. It should be a good one.

So you see, in this family, we’re looking forward to the turn of the calendar. 2012, we can’t wait for your arrival. As for you, 2011, don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

JG

(Source: abcnews.go.com)

Originally posted 11/27/2011