Man, this month has been boring! I am doing Dry January again this year. Last year I successfully went the entire month of January without a single drop of alcohol. This year has not been all that difficult either, but here’s my conundrum: I work from home. I have nothing to do outside the house after work either. I am confined to this house 24/7. A singular happy hour beverage after work does wonders to signify the end of the workday and changes my frame of mind. I have replaced that with non-alcoholic beverages like NA beer or mocktails but damn it, that isn’t really tricking myself into believing it. I have read that “Damp January”—simply cutting back—is more sustainable and teaches better lessons. Tomorrow at noon will signify the exact halfway point of January. I may end my streak and enjoy that happy hour beverage. Still, 15 1/2 days is quite an achievement. I just need to stick to my goal of beating last year’s mark of 111 total days abstaining and it will be a victory. You would think I’d have lost weight during this period, but somehow I have gained quite a bit, probably because I am snacking willy-nilly.

Football

John decided to play flag football this winter instead of basketball. I like John playing basketball since it’s something he is going to pursue going forward, whereas he has no intention of playing organized football. But all his friends are playing football, so he’s giving it a shot. He is on a team with a lot of friends—Clark, Wyatt, Jackson, Blake, etc. They were placed on the Chiefs. His first game was Sunday evening and played mostly defense. They were trying to cycle 12 kids in when only 5 can be on the field at a time. John actually had an interception and nearly ran it back for a TD before stepping out of bounds! They are off this weekend for the MLK holiday but have 5 more games left.

Spring Break ’26

It’s not too early to start thinking about spring break. We booked a trip to Florida this year. We’ll be flying to Miami and doing a bunch of southern Florida stuff—Miami, Fort Myers, Key West, Everglades. I have purposefully traveled to Florida twice, but only to Twins spring training. I also stepped over the panhandle border a few times during the Gulf Shores spring break trip a few years back. Like me trying to cross off all the states, Lauren’s goal is to go to National Parks. This trip could cross up to 3 off the list—Biscayne, Everglades, and Dry Tortuga. Tortuga though is 70 miles from the end of the keys and you have to take a ferry or plane there, and they are sold out for months. Seems highly unlikely we get there.

Illnesses

Lauren went to San Diego for 4 days for work, and naturally, Edie came down with the flu for those exact four days. She developed symptoms as Lauren was leaving, and recovered as she was walking back in the door. Almost down to the minute. That left me tethered to the house with her. Edie missed two days of school where she was laid up on the couch, watching TV to her heart’s delight in between puking episodes.

Other Stuff

  • We are excited that it’s John’s year to do his 12-year-old Grandma Marcie trip. John has chosen Seattle. He was there when he was 1 but has no memory of it. A Twins-Mariners game is one of the many things on the itinerary.
  • I was chosen to give a speech at the Willow Lake all-school alumni gathering this May. It will be my 25th reunion. I’ve already begun drafting my standup comedy act.
  • I have paid more attention to the Minnesota Wild this year than ever before. I am finding hockey kind of soothing to watch. The pace is just right. I can’t watch basketball on TV, too fast paced. The Wild are good this year, which helps.
  • I actually read a book in its entirety! Lauren had borrowed Dungeon Crawler Carl from the library and recommended it to me, so I plowed through it in 3 weeks.
  • I desperately need a new hobby outside the house. Luckily kids’ baseball isn’t far off, where I’ll no doubt be coaching for both kids’ teams in some capacity.