A Look Back at 2015, And a Look Ahead.....

The new year is always a good time to review what happened last year. It's also good for setting resolutions for your future. I won't really be making resolutions. More like hopes, and maybe a dream.

First, let's look back. It started with a cold winter, but ended with me doing a hot version of the whip and nae nae. But there were three major items I'd like to talk about that were a big part of 2015 to me.

Biking at Marblehead.

My Bike: After taking a break for several decades, I decided to get a bike and start riding again. Nobody believes me, but I actually started looking into it as an activity I could do with my wife. She was big into power walks. Not me. But she hurt her knee pretty bad, and I wound up the only one riding. Now Cleveland is not Paris, but I bet Cleveland has the better Metropark system. It is a bike riders paradise. I remember at the start I was nervous about even a short ride of a few miles. But I ended up with great rides of over 20 miles. My favorites had to include a ride/hike to Brandywine Falls. I actually consulted with the National Park Service as to how to do this.

Riding to Niagara Falls with Kris was great.

The other highlight was packing up the bike and taking it to Buffalo to ride with my daughter Kristina. There's a video of our ride around the Niagara Falls area is on a link on the left side of this page. (Kris had her new bike stolen about a week later. Shame on you nare-do-wells of Western New York.)
Now when I pull into my garage, I see my bike sitting there. I wonder what adventures await in 2016.

My hotel - the beach - the ocean. 

Traveling: If I have a regret lately, it's that I haven't done enough traveling. I have been to Hawaii, but never to California. (Maybe I'll make that a resolution.) But we had a great time traveling in 2015.The wife and I traveled to Myrtle Beach, SC.It was later pointed out that this was one of the first times my wife and I were able to take a trip by ourselves in quite sometime. We would not consider ourselves beach people. But we had a blast. The beautiful beach, the waves, the fun. Loved it all. Myrtle Beach is your typical tourist town. But we enjoyed that too. We also enjoyed driving around that part of South Carolina. So much so, that I have started daydreaming about eventually relocating there. (See blog number 1).

We also traveled to Colonial Williamsburg, VA. We have been there before, but as an American History nut, I love it. Williamsburg is not a museum, it's a fully restored community. You think you're in the 18th century. There's where Thomas Jefferson worked. There's where George Washington planned. They've got re-enactors there, and sometimes what they do can be quite powerful. People that lived back in Revolutionary times were a ballsy group. Everything was enjoyable on that trip except driving through Washington, DC. on the freeway. What a mess.

Next year?

The Cleveland Cavaliers: The last time a team in my town won a major championship was the Browns in 1964. I was a kid, and it wasn't on TV either. I regret not getting to the World Series games in 95 or 97. I thought the Cavaliers were my best shot. I did get to a finals game, and what a blast. The crowd, the atmosphere, the sights, the sounds. And that was before we even got to the game. Yes, we lost. Key injuries stopped the dream. But as a result, I became a member of Wine and Gold United this season. I'm having a great time at the games now. The Cavs really treat you right. As for the playoffs in 2016? I hope we will be dancin' in the streets!

A Prediction and a Hope for 2016

The Presidential Race: We will have a new President as a result of the November elections. That's a fact, not a prediction. But I just don't think it will be the current frontrunners. I think people are looking for somebody younger and with fresher ideas than Hillary Clinton. She also seems to have a trust issue with the public. Sort of an old school politician.
Donald Trump appears to be a reality show contestant. He is capitalizing on the voters frustration and apathy I don't think he will win the Presidency. If the Republicans even nominate him they're nuts.

The Hope - a Major Cancer Breakthrough: According to my daughter, the microbiologist, there have been some promising developments recently. I hope this is especially the case for pediatric cancers affecting children. Kids deserve better in life.

So happy new year to my readers. Remember, the best is yet to come!