2022 - All About that Base

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

Stop me if you've heard it before. 2021 came in like a lion, lambed it up a bit in the middle, and then roared a big roar right at the end.

And yet.

2021 was filled with my dream come true. If you haven't read the book, The War that Saved My Life, this is a good time to read it. The book addresses the concept that during a horrible time, miraculous and wonderful things can happen. How do I feel that during a year when so many lost so much, this amazing bookstore dream came to life?

Remember this? Grand Opening!

The fam checking out an empty store front...
thinking...could this be it??

Paint samples to match our branding

My ride or die,
helped from the
very first beer paint strokes

The AEAB family we created is just the best!

Still wrapping my head around that one so let's move on to resolutions, shall we? 

Note... long post ahead. TLDR: I did it for 2021! Trying again for 2022 with a little financial awareness and practicality. 

Looking Back at 2021

Here's where we ended with my LONG list of resolutions for 2021.

The Big One - Stop biting my nails.
NAILED IT! (Pun fully intended.) 

The Other Goals - Just things I sorta wanted to do.

1. Read a novel written in Spanish.  Nope

2. Learn how to roller skate...again. Nope

3. Stop dying my hair. Yep

4. Learn how to use power tools. Sorta

5. Join a writing group. Yep

6. Learn to play "Blackbird" on the guitar. Nope

7. _______ Bookstore YEP!!! (Also, can we all just say a collective, "HOLY SHIT I DID IT!")

In 2021, I knit exactly one thing...
This toy for Oscar. He forgot about it the next day.

In 2021, I turned 40 and
spent lots of time with my BFF.

In 2021, I was published in Ms. Magazine! 

In 2021, we moved Oscar out of the crib.
He moved to the door.

In 2021, Oscar got really sick about
3 months before we opened the store.
I was glad I was home to take him
to many doctor visits
and spend time together.

In 2021, we welcomed Wolfie to the family.
He's a 1968 VW Beetle.

I thought perhaps I should take a break from resolutions. I mean, how do you top a year like last year? But really, I love resolutions. And no, it's not all about a "new me." It's about looking at how things are going, finding places to adjust, grow, and learn. It's not a new me, it's just me being more me. Ya feel me? 

Let's Talk 2022

For 2022 I had a few things I knew I wanted to accomplish and there was a nagging feeling that they were all sort of connected by a theme. It finally came to me when I was doing Yoga with Adriene. While transitioning from the ground to a warrior pose, Adriene said, "Before you rise, make sure you build a strong base." DING, DING, DING! I love it when a life metaphor comes flying at you in exactly the right moment. 

All of the things I want to accomplish this year are about building a strong base. It makes sense though, doesn't it? 2020 came at us with Covid and a quarantine and then a hasty move back to Buffalo. 2021 started with migraines and illness and all of a sudden I was 40! This snowballed right into opening the bookstore and soon we were in our first holiday season. 

Holy. 

Moly. 

Before Covid, my partner and I were rolling along, raising a kid, lots of routines, a tiny home that was easy to take care of, steady incomes, lots of plans for the future. Then all of a sudden things went all sideways, some great, some not so great. This past holiday I noticed the beautiful home we had was A MESS, our routines were all over the place, the shop is thriving but new small business ownership means I am figuring out finances in a whole new way. In other words, we are rising but the base is not so strong. So my goals this year are about getting back down to basics and building a strong foundation. Here's where I am.

The Big One

Really, my biggest goal is to have a solid retirement plan. When I was a teacher I wasn't getting paid a whole lot but I had a solid retirement plan. Now that I have a small business, well, I'm not getting paid a lot AND I don't have a retirement plan. So I'm going to spend time working on finances this year, both personal and in my business, so that by the end of 2022, I will have, say it with me now, a solid retirement plan. This also includes creating a will. Who wants my collection of thimbles? Anyone? Bueller?

The Other Goals

These other goals are things that I would like to accomplish. You'll notice they also have to do with building my foundation, creating a strong base, getting back to basics.

1. The House Goals

We bought an amazing 100+ year old house, sight unseen, and we are very luck that it is in pretty stable condition. I have lots of dreams of little projects (looking at you, tiny half bath) but this year I want to focus on...yep, the foundation. We need to "point" our foundation. I loosely know what that means. But I know it is important and takes priority over penny tiles in the half bath. We also need to work on our windows so that next winter we aren't quite as drafty. Once those basic tasks are done we will be ready to roll with fun projects!

2. The Writing Goals

Last year's goal was to join a writing group and I did! They are amazing and this year we will welcome one new member to the crew. Since opening the store, my writing habits fell to the wayside (hello neglected blog) so I'd like to rebuild that foundation. Once I get back to regular writing, my next writing goal is to actually query an agent and/or publisher with my writing. YIKES!

3. The People Goals

You can't build a base without working on yourself, right? I have to say, one thing I am proud of is that throughout all the chaos of the past two years, one thing that has remained constant is my yoga. I have done yoga almost every single day. In 2020 I missed 2 weeks total, in 2021 I missed 4 days total. So I feel like my commitment to self care is pretty ok. I'd like to diversify it a bit - maybe some face masks or more reading. But with Covid and quarantine and running a small business, relationships with friends and family got a bit...distant. So I'd like to put more effort into the foundation of friends and family. This includes a trip back to LA, more phone calls, actually responding to texts, taking time to reconnect. This also includes making my relationship with my partner a priority. It's funny how easy it is to forget to connect with the person you share a bed with. Know what I mean?

So that's it! Ha! No biggie, right? I mean, I've got Adriene on my side, I've got a theme song, I think I'm ready to go! 

Cheers to you all and whatever kind of 2022 you can make work for you!

Ended 2021 with friends, on vacation
and happy to be here.

Also ended 2021 with my
sister home and lots of snuggles