2014's End

2014, which hasn't been a particularly good year, ends in a few hours. It's been a year of endings. Too many people I know have died. Some friends have had relatives die. Some have lost pets.

I've lost a couple of pets, too—elderly dog Emma and favorite cat Eddie-Puss.

Moon on the last evening of 2014

The environment is changing, and not for the better. Fewer birds and bees were around here in 2014. And way fewer butterflies. I saw only a couple of Monarchs. Lots of woods in the county were clear-cut. There are more GMO crops in the area, which means a lot more herbicide spraying. The Mountain Valley gas pipeline will pass close to our property if the powers that be don't stop it. It'll be near the big power lines that went in a few years ago. While it won't be on our property, we'll be in the blast zone (if there's ever a mishap).

View looking south. There's a big power pole on the right.

2014 is the year that I became elderly. I've lost the energy I used to have, so I've dropped out of some activities I used to enjoy. I've given up expecting to ever be fully mobile again. Thanks to diabetic neuropathy and fascial restrictions, my legs just don't work the way they should, and my strength and stamina has lessened. Luckily I bought a golf cart several months ago, so I'm able to get around the property. But I'll likely never be able to walk the woods the way I once did or even ride my horse—who's also elderly and has had some health issues.

I no longer go to places where I can't get a close parking space, and I rarely drive at night. No use taking foolish chances. I rarely go into Roanoke—anything I need I can find in Rocky Mount or at Westlake. Luckily I live in a house with few outside steps and all I need on one floor.

So I'm making do, taking one day at a time, and whatever other clichés happen to fit.

Sunset in the west. Another big pole to right of center.

Will 2015 be better? We shall see.

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