December 2024 Dump featuing the Holidays and the Future

So, we made it. And I don't know about you, but 2024 kind of sucked. Like, this past month was nice, but overall, not a spectacular year.

But let's start with the good. Tay-ronto was a great start to a relatively nice last six weeks of 2024. There were no major family emergencies (thank goodness), I finally got to meet my cousin's child, and winter break has been calm and restful. Here are some pictures.

My Model UN students did a great job!

The Christmas Carol

The Christmas Carol 2

Got to see the Lady Vols play!

The baby!

Nap time

A water view

Chopped twelve inches of hair!

Enchanted Forest 1

Enchanted Forest 2

So the holidays were good! 2024 as a whole? Not so much. 

Looking back, it was quite awful for me. First and foremost, I experienced two family deaths in a month in a half. That sucked. Second, I was constantly overworking myself. Overworking in terms of doing my usual full-time job and then a million side hustles. And my full-time job is teaching middle school, which takes it toll mentally, emotionally, and physically. I then overcommitted myself to side jobs and ended up eating dinner in my car 4/5 weekdays. That sucked. Third, outside influences (i.e. US politics) have made it really difficult to be optimistic about the future. That sucked, and continues to suck.

I have decided that 2025 will not suck. I'm calling it the year of self-care. I won't go into details here, but basically I want to take time for myself and maybe try something new. Less resolutions, more continuations and additions to things I already try and do. And I will try to keep myself accountable by posting in various places. This avenue will mostly stay monthly updates. But maybe I'll return to TikTok. And I'm trying Substack:

https://open.substack.com/pub/bterry/p/the-year-of-self-care?r=2uk1sh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false

Please let me know if you would like to join the year of self-care. I hope it goes well. And no matter what, I hope you have a wonderful 2025.

November 2024 (the rest) featuring Taylor and Toronto (TAY-ronto)

I love traveling. I love meeting new people and discovering new places. I love trying new food and learning new things. I love museums, and monuments, and national parks. 

Toronto had all of those things. I got to meet lots of new people (mainly Swifties!) and hang out with others I haven't see in a while. I tried poutine (10/10), maple syrup (10/10) and Tim Hortons (6/10), and I learned about the indigenous people of Canada and hockey. I visited a couple of very nice museums, went to the top of the CN Tower, and observed the power of Niagara Falls.

And I saw Taylor Swift in one of her last performance of The Eras Tour. Top moments: trading friendship bracelets, how much Toronto leaned into the Swiftie theme, meeting a former Smokey in the merch line, the mocktail, discovering Gracie Abrams, the fantastic dancers, and, of course, basically the entire time Taylor was onstage.

And while the concert was certainly the highlight of the trip, another favorite moment was Friday night. I had finished a city tour and I had visited the extensive Art Gallery of Ontario. From there, I wandered around Chinatown and Kensington Market. I got a latte and a massage. I even got asked where a bus stop was, which of course I had no idea about. I enjoy a good wander and seeing all the wonderful things each individual city/country/place has to offer.

Then I got home, we had Thanksgiving, and now we are back at school. We've almost made it to winter break!

Enjoy these pictures and have a wonderful holiday season.

The Power of Niagara Falls

Toronto Harbor

Casa Loma

Art Gallery of Ontario

Poutine!

The Spirit of TAY-ronto

The Friendship Bracelets

Hockey

The CN Tower