(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Morning Open Thread. Kicking off the New Year; first Saturday in January. Take a break. [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-01-07 “Many things are thrown our way in this game of life. It's how you deal with them that shows your true character. I want all of you to feel the hope, love & passion I feel for the upcoming year & the rest of my life. I want ALL of you to not only go for your dreams, but have a damn ass good time doing it! Love & Warmth, May ♥” ― May Water First Saturday MOT of January last year [2022] I had to explain in an opening note that the diary y’all was reading had been intended to be my Christmas [2021] Day diary but since my computer had crashed on December 14 [2021] the diary was out of place. I also wrote But forget it was supposed to be Christmas 2021. For that matter, try to forget 2021 entirely. Jeez Louise (and Louise is my sister’s name, so I don’t invoke that name lightly) let’s hope 2022 has not been a year for everyone to “try to forget entirely...”. Mine hasn’t been. On the contrary, 2022 went pretty fair for me, except for my, eh, “intestinal” malfunction, to which I’ve become mostly adjusted but I still hate having to wear the damn thing. You know which “damn thing” I’m talking about, and if you don’t then never mind. Morning Open Thread is a daily, copyrighted post from a host of editors and guest writers. We support our community, invite and share ideas, and encourage thoughtful, respectful dialogue in an open forum. This is a post where you can come to share what’s on your mind and stay for the expansion. The diarist is on California time and gets to take a nap when he needs to, or may just wander off and show up again later. So you know, it's a feature, not a bug. Grab your supportive indulgence(s) of choice and join us, please. And if you’re brand new to Morning Open Thread, then Hail and Well Met, new Friend. I accomplished some things last year I’m happy about. Mainly though, I took a lot of photos. Even if the year started out kind of cold. January 2, 2022. Coldest day of the 2021-22 winter. Yeah, I keep a record. Spotted Towhee, Jan. 5, 2022 First bird photo of the year. I took photos of things that were bigger than birds, too. February 16, 2022 A major highlight of the year came at the beginning of May. I went to Point Reyes National Seashore for a week. Thirty-two new-to-me bird species and some non-birds too. A couple of favorites: American Avocet Wild Turkey Elephant Seal Black Oystercatcher Blacktail Deer Caspian Tern Red-eared Slider In June I fixed this mess of a workspace: Much nicer. In July I got out and around quite a bit, taking photos. Great Egret July 3 California Mule Deer July 5 Eight-spotted Skimmer dragonfly and Northern Bluet damselfly. July 7 Cedar Waxwing July 8 Turkey Vulture July 15 California Mule Deer July 20 Purple Finch July 24 Black-crowned Night Heron July 26 Green Heron, juvenile July 28 Red-tailed Hawk July 31 In August I went out on a kayak for the first time in my life. funningforrest gets his wet on, Grebe Festival, Lake Almanor, August 6 At the end of August my right ascending colon developed a perforation, sending me to the hospital for emergency surgery and a week’s stay. I used that week of involuntary confinement to quit smoking. Wow! A full four months now. I guess it’s going to hold. I didn’t get out much in September, it being a month of recovery. One highlight, however: My first-ever photo of a raccoon. And right alongside the Great Blue Heron for such a bonus. In October I got around to getting rid of my old coffee maker (which I had grown to despise) and replaced it with a coffee maker I really enjoy. OUT with the old, IN with the new. In November my son came for a visit. I hadn’t seen him since July of 2020, although we talk on the phone about once a week. Rick (my apartment mate and best friend for over eighteen years); my son Ryan and me, November 26, 2022, just west of Reno, NV. More of that “out with the old, in with the new” that very day, as a matter of fact. New recliner (from a Reno thrift store): Ahhhhhhhhhhh………. Toward the end of last month I got tired of looking at and using my old dish drainer. Cheap plastic piece o’ junk, it has served its usefulness. Yup, 2023 coming in bright and shiny. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/1/7/2141996/-Morning-Open-Thread-Kicking-off-the-New-Year-first-Saturday-in-January-Take-a-break Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/