I can’t bring myself to write about 2017, until I finish this
post which I started writing on December 31st, 2016:
Many people around the Internet claim 2016 was a bad
year. For me, 2016 wasn’t great but it
wasn’t horrible either. The year my company's HR
manager attacked my management skills causing my confidence to plummet for
months was worse, so was the year my mom was diagnosed with cancer, the year my
father-in-law had a stroke and the year my husband lost his job. And let’s not
forget the years of the Great Recession which brought pay-cuts and job losses to many of my friends and co-workers. For me, even 2015 when one of my key employees resigned was worse than 2016.
In saying all that 2016 was a disruptive year full of change:
It began with an old oak tree falling in our back yard during
a winter storm smashing one of outdoor structures. This resulted in a month of insurance hassles
and clean-up.
Around the same time, I purchased a new vehicle throwing off
my financial independence goal for all of 2016.
I had planned to keep my 2004 Acura TSX for 2 more years, but after
putting over $2000 into in 2015 and faced with another expense (new tire rims to prevent my tires from constantly deflating). I decided I couldn’t take it anymore. I went with a Honda this time. From now on I’m going to plan for a new
vehicle or new to me vehicle every ten years.
In February I lost my beloved dog Buck who finally succumbed
to lymphoma. He had been diagnosed in February 2014, so I was fortunate to
have had him in my life for another year, but his death left an empty space in
our home and hearts for months to come.
In March, my company’s President signed a contract with a
new business software company to convert our software despite members of the
software selection team recommending he wait a year.
The summer was good. I spent time with friends and vacationed
in the Apostle Islands, a place I had never been.
Fall brought the software conversion.
It started out well enough with everyone working long hours cleaning up our old system prior to the conversion, but once the data was converted work slowed to a halt company wide. Every single person struggled to learn the new system. The training and support from the new company was/is poor. Even my boss who is usually an optimist feels we were oversold. We continue to struggle in 2017 to make this system work for us.
It started out well enough with everyone working long hours cleaning up our old system prior to the conversion, but once the data was converted work slowed to a halt company wide. Every single person struggled to learn the new system. The training and support from the new company was/is poor. Even my boss who is usually an optimist feels we were oversold. We continue to struggle in 2017 to make this system work for us.
In November my husband had bi-lateral knee replacement surgery:
Yes - bilateral means having surgery on both knees at the same time. Despite all of his preparation - building upper body
strength which improved his ability to lift himself out of a chair - life
after surgery was challenging. He was in more
pain than he imagined, he was more mobile than I imagined, but his insomnia was
worse than either of us could have possibly imagined.
Thankfully his healing has progressed well with no major issues in 2017.
Reading:
One of the bright spots of 2016 was my reading. I read 32
books up from my average of 25. I have now read 33 nonfiction books as part of my 200-500 nonfiction reinvention challenge. I did join a book club at my local library, so I read more fiction than I normally do.
Unlike book clubs I’ve participated in previously, the attendees of this one actually
read the books, the monthly selections are good and it is well facilitated.* Plus,
I don’t have to drive far, spend money on books or dining costs or have to host/entertain in my home.
2016 reading highlights:
The book I talked about, thought about and recommended the most in 2016:
Runners up are Andre Agassi’s book:
Open: An Autobiography
and What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
by Haruki Murakami
Open: An Autobiography
and What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
by Haruki Murakami Best business book:
Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
by Daniel Pink, since reading this book I’ve decided to spend a good portion
of my 200+ book challenge reading business books.
Author I’m not going out of my way to read again: Gloria
Steinham. My Life on the Road
is the third book I've read by Steinham, for being such an influential part of the women’s movement I
find her writing to be uninspiring.
is the third book I've read by Steinham, for being such an influential part of the women’s movement I
find her writing to be uninspiring.
The book I read everyone should read: Atul Gawande's book Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End.
(This one was recommended by my financial planner and should be read by everyone who is caring for the sick).
(This one was recommended by my financial planner and should be read by everyone who is caring for the sick).
Most well-timed read: Dancing with the Devil in the City of God: Rio de Janeiro on the Brink during the Olympics. Author
Runner up:
James Feldman's book A Storied Wilderness: Rewilding the Apostle Islands
(this one is a bit academic can be repetitive). I read this one after visiting the Islands last summer.
James Feldman's book A Storied Wilderness: Rewilding the Apostle Islands
(this one is a bit academic can be repetitive). I read this one after visiting the Islands last summer.
Most relevant fiction book:
Man Called Ove
by Fredrik Backman. Many employers in my area down-sized older employees with outdated technical skills in 2016. Some of them certainly are also a tad curmudgeonly.
Man Called Ove
by Fredrik Backman. Many employers in my area down-sized older employees with outdated technical skills in 2016. Some of them certainly are also a tad curmudgeonly. 
· *I was a guest at book club last year, where the discussion of Paula Hawkin's book The Girl on the Train
became a competition between two members over who had the worst divorce.
became a competition between two members over who had the worst divorce.
Did anyone else have a disruptive 2016?
Please Note, I am an Amazon Affiliate
Since one of my reinvention goals is to improve my communication skills I am excited to read this book. Despite it being a short book, only 50 pages long, I did not find time to read this book in August and am adding it to my September to-do list.
A couple of months ago a woman I know signed up for a six-week boot camp program to lose weight before an upcoming family wedding. She prefers participating in intense exercise programs over crash dieting when trying to lose weight quickly. Unfortunately this time around she injured her knee during a running exercise two weeks in. Her orthopedic reluctantly agreed to give her a cortisone shot before the wedding, so she'd be able to walk without pain. Since she still wanted to lose weight, she asked when she could rejoin her boot camp class. To her surprise he said, "Never." Considering her age - 52 and her physical condition he would never recommend she participate in let alone begin an exercise program with a boot camp. Instead he suggested she change her diet and once her knee healed - walk for 30 minutes every day. If she did these two things he guaranteed she'd lose weight.