As much as I love working from home, there was a part of me that struggled through 2020, like many.

Covid-19 sucked, but I got over it, mostly. I still seem to be having some issues. Running is harder than it should be. I just got back from what was supposed to be an easy 5 miler that just didn't feel easy. And like always, I can't tell if it's that or just that I'm about to turn 62 and the pages are turning.

By the end of the year, I was done with half of the country. Between the election and the pandemic, I'm convinced that 50% of Americans are either ignorant beyond reason or purposely callous. I always prided myself on having friends from all backgrounds. Seeing many of them reposting absolute (and obviously) garbage online made me so angry. Since I'd been there before, I recognized the signs that I was slipping into depression as I tried to reconcile the niceness of the people I thought I knew with the behavior I was seeing. Never thought I would do it, but I unfriended several. We weren't good enough friends for me to want to maintain contact. I hope they don't miss me. I will miss some of them. By October, I had to stop watching the news and social media. I was able to avoid going back on medication, but it was a close thing. And I still get angrier than I ought to when I see some things. I'm hopeful that by the end of this week at least one of the major problems will have finally been put to rest.

Anyway, I'm running about 25-30 miles a week. I've also decided that the risk of injury from running in bad weather is too high for me to run outside on some days, so there will be regular runs on the treadmill. The week of Christmas I ran on it 3 days in a rows. It was bleh.

About an inch of wet snow fell yesterday. Most of it was cleared from the running surfaces today, but not all. My feet are now cold.

In other news, T-Rex made it through the semester with As and Bs. It wasn't easy, but life isn't either, so we hope she'll gain some confidence from this success. There were a few minor miracles like having two of her finals cancelled. She also got engaged to her boyfriend. He's a nerdy little guy, but he makes no demands on her, is 100% patient, calm and the kindest kid I've ever met. We expect they'll be poor the rest of their lives, but there are more important things than money.

In homage to Sara, these are the books I read in November/December:

• Let the Great World Spin - Colum McCann (outstanding)

• The Communist Manifesto - Karl Marx (out of curiosity - not impressed)

• The Oregon Trail: Francis Parkman's Famous History of the 1846 Expedition (not bad, but issues with some of his historical and geographical "facts" - 19th century history is notoriously inaccurate)

• The Pilgrim's Progress  - John Bunyan

• Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, #5) - Stephen King