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2022 In A Word: Adversity
A hard year all around
When I saw that one of the most disruptive Christmas storms on record was brewing, I was not surprised at all. It was the perfect cherry to top what has been a shit sundae of a year. I was supposed to leave on Thursday to make the 17-hour trek from Florida to Chicagoland, but that plan was destroyed by the possibility of icy roads, whiteout conditions, and 60 mph winds. As a Floridian, I have never driven in snow, and it was too dangerous to risk sliding off the road in holiday traffic.
Instead, I decided to drive overnight on Wednesday to beat the weather. (Hence my absence for the last two days, sorry readers!) At 3 AM, I lost a tire in middle Tennessee and then had to wait four hours for the nearest tire shop to open. By the time we finally made it to Chicagoland, the snow was blowing, and we barely made it in before being forced off the road. That story is a microcosm of my year as a whole.
2022 has been about facing adversity. Emerging from adversity. Being worn down by adversity. To be honest, I’m exhausted.
A Laundry List Of Troubles
I am glad that 2022 is over. It has been trouble from the start, and it hasn’t let up since. In 2022 alone, my family and I faced a slew of adverse situations and conditions that compounded on one another…