Solar Return

Another trip around the Sun is complete, and what a year it has been. Songwriting, Night of Philosophy and Ideas, SOPHIA kicked things off; MRIs, CT scans, a spider bite, a discovery of lies, emergency room trips, and a hospital stay made things wonky; the Jedi Council, Arby's with old friends, cemetery walks, adventures in knitting, a mountain retreat, like-minded companions, daily phone calls, adventures with AirBNB held me; Writing, a Bard, basketball, a dog; the shredding of February and the perpetuity of March. I couldn't have dreamed last year, and at times I found the whole thing unbelievable, nearly contrived in its terror and its beauty, never tame or timid.

If last year was surprising and surreal, I can't imagine what the coming solar journey is going to look like in this new World That Is. 

Onward!

Retrospective

End of the year update of things as they occur to me:

• January: Signed up at the gym and began going daily
• February: Finished Thesis
• March: Signed up for another year of local fruits, vegetables and eggs
• April: Presented at a conference at Virginia Tech
• April: Quit Smoking
• April: Started Yoga therapy
• May: Switched to a better gym and added sauna therapy nearly daily
• May: Graduated with a Master's Degree.
• June: Filed Paperwork to create Justice For All Foundation
• July: Took Post-Graduate Seminar on Men & Feminism
• July: Started sending care packages every month to the 15-turned-16-year old
• July: Got an apartment in Grandin Village for school district. This may end up being a safety net piece of the whole works, so I'm glad I did it.
• August: Entered into a Dire Legal Situation with custody
• September: Set up independent study on American Identity and the forces and personalities that shaped it in the 20th century.
• October: Received Articles of Incorporation for Justice for All Foundation
• October: Started a job -- with insurance and benefits and everything
• November: Wrote By-laws for Justice for All Foundation
• November: Retained competent counsel for the legal battle.
• December: Started sending newsletters every fortnight to the boys
• December: Filed IRS application for 501(c)3 status for Justice for All Foudnation
• December: Paid all credit card balances. This has been a wonderful peace of mind tool throughout the year, and I'm glad I was able to make use of it responsibly. Other debts remain, and can be dealt with in the coming year.
• December: Paid educational balances from needing to withdraw fora term to regroup when schedules changed dramatically.
• December: Filed my 2015 taxes. I know, it was nearly a full year overdue. But there it is, finally done.