Well 2020 was a dumpster fire. No arguments there, but if life works on the “f@#k around and find out” theory, 2021 is the year we found out what we’re made of.
The normal type is me, the italics is the Pretty Lady.
I have had one hell of a year. As you may recall, in 2020 the entertainment world collapsed and after a few months of what we’ll kindly refer to as down time, I channeled my anger with the world into starting DeLong Rigging Solutions. 2021 is the year that I more or less forced the company to go from just an idea to a fully functional company. In early 2021 we launched One Shot Training, a free online training resource for people wanting to learn about rigging. In March we were one of the sponsors for the virtual USITT Conference. During the Summer we did our fist run of The Basics, an 8 week long weekly online seminar series designed to introduce individuals to rigging (we’ll be running it again starting in January through USITT). Through all of this we still managed to complete a couple dozen inspections, repairs, and training courses across the state. As a company DRS has done better than I possibly could have hoped for, and 2022 is looking to be even busier.
I also had one hell of a garden going this year. I’ve got 6 raised beds, 2 vertical gardens, 4 berry barrels, a half dozen berry bushes, 3 potato towers, and over 1000 gallons worth of rain catch that irrigates the entire thing. Add in my mobile chicken coop ad it’s 6 residents and I am quite proud of my attempts at a slightly self-sustaining life style. I know my canning, dehydrating, and other tasks have started to annoy Caitlyn, but I think she is too afraid of what the next hobby will be to say anything about it.
My Turn! This year I am the one who is waiting till the last minute of writing the Christmas letter. This is why we work together. 2021 was definitely the year that we found out what we are made of. The building blocks were falling into place, and it makes me so excited for 2022. I love doing life with Tyler. We like to joke that we are a power couple but when we start listing all the things we have done and accomplished just in this year, let alone since the beginning, it really is hard to argue with that statement.
I graduated from Ivy Tech. Hallelujah! Got a full-time job at a small local credit union that on my second day there I found out that they were merging with a larger credit union. Where I got a promotion to teller supervisor and am now in the process of loan training to become a loan officer. I am so incredibly blessed and thankful for the new credit union coming in. The work environment did a 180, I have coworkers who are my second family and a manager who has taken me under her wing, training me to take her place one day. I have a job that I love and a career that I can make a future out of. Took a huge step towards making my mental health a top priority by starting therapy. We also got married! What an absolutely beautiful day it was. Everything about the day was perfect for us. Walking down the aisle, saying vows, and the bliss of being in the Smoky Mountains my favorite place was unbeatable. Then left the kid with family and enjoyed a week of us just doing whatever we felt like doing.
Grant has just been a long for the ride. He turned 4 and we had a great day at the park with family. He continues to learn daily and is very excited to start kindergarten next year. I think he wants to read just as badly as I wanted to learn when I was his age. As I just had to stop typing this in order to read him a book. All around he is a typical 4-year-old who loves chicken nuggets and thinks bedtime is the end of the world nightly.
Well Gang, that’s a very short summary of our year. So, from our family to yours, HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
