From Darkness comes Light - Sharing the Good things on Good Friday
Mates,
As the world found out just over 2 years ago, we were in for a life-changing time due to covid. Anxiety and uncertainty ran at maximum high. Family, health, jobs, money, even the basics of food/medicine/access to health care were up in the air. First responders and medical personnel were challenged like never before. Literally every one of us lost friends, family and other loved ones. Virtually all on this list got covid and some had terrible, long-standing fights to get past it. Some might not yet be healed. It was like the 10th plague in Exodus, only nobody was spared and no amount of lambs blood above your door would ward off trouble. It was a very, very dark time.
But from darkness comes light, or as some might say, ex tenebris lux.
Not every fall-out from covid was bad. Many here took the time to focus on closer relationships, started to take better care of themselves, spent time with family and other loved ones that they might not have otherwise done. Some had significant changes in employment and how that fits in with the rest of life. Some finally changed residences, others changed careers completely while others decided 'I'm out!' and kicked out of the employment saddle altogether.
So this thread is about the good things that have happened in your life since or because of the bad thing that happened to our planet 2+ years ago. Share the good - share the light that has come from darkness. And for those who attach religious significance to this time of year, may you have joyful and meaningful celebration of such things.
Blessings,
XM
April 15th, 2022 at 12:54 PM ^
42-27
perhaps we should call this the 'holy hurdle'
Here is a better view. You can see everything!
a bit graphic, but hey, those are some big zelenskys.
April 15th, 2022 at 12:55 PM ^
Some returned to this Blog and helped some us be more positive. Appreciate you, XM.
April 15th, 2022 at 12:58 PM ^
I now work from home, which saves me 45 minutes each way in time and gas each day. With two young daughters (3 & 4), this has been a clear win for our family.
The pandemic also made clear how important our friends are to us, and how toxic certain family members are and had been all along. That perspective gave us a lot of clarity in our decisions now and going forward.
I will second the Work From Home comment.
With 6 kids, and a wife with an auto-immune disease (unsure if MS or Lupus), this has been a lifesaver.
Not to mention I have been able to attend SO many more events and activities with my kids, and even knock off early sometimes to help coach my son's football team.
First off, 6 kids! Got dang! And congrats.
Just 1 for us so far, and I'll 3rd the WFH comment. Getting to spend time with the little one and help around the house (laundry, dishes etc) during the day is amazing.
Also, my physical health is in a really good place. No commute means more time to exercise, and my office being in my gym means I can hit the treadmill for a 1:1 or bust out a few reps on the bench if I have a break.
Plus, not wearing a watch has allowed me to track my steps and heart rate with a fitbit. Maybe could have before, but felt weird wearing something on both wrists, and I was glued to the desk in the office anyway.
Thanks God that my wife's fam are awesome and live nearby so we had a social circle throughout the last 2 years!
Ha! Well it's a his, hers, and ours situation.
3 from my first marriage
2 from her first
1 together
And your reaction is "normal" lol. For example, I worked every other week at Sears LP for a while so new people didn't see me right away. I'd come in and a newbie would ask my name and they'd say: "OH! You're the guy with the 100 kids!" lol
how fitting. we have our own mgoblog brady bunch. nice.
There's a story......
God bless you brother. That's beautiful and the more kids the better!
April 15th, 2022 at 10:24 PM ^
2 words. Apple Watch. Tracks steps, heart rate, etc with a bonus EKG function!
An Apple Watch is amazing if you're a swimmer. It tracks number of laps, time per lap, total distance, number of strokes, KIND of stoke (breast, freestyle, etc.), time per 100 yards, and pace per 100 yards through the swim. If you prefer meters, it'll do that.
Graduated, bought a house, got married, got a job.
you've been hitting with power there, goingblue, congrats on all of that.
Bruh. That's awesome.
April 18th, 2022 at 11:34 AM ^
Before I congratulate you, how are the marriage, house and job going?
I don't know about me, but my wife gets to work from home now in peace and quiet with a good view of the Sunrise. Just her and the cat with no phones to answer. I'm jealous.
What do you do? So many companies are trying to compete now by offering the WFH option that Covid made a necessity.
I got a new job out of 911 dispatch and its toxicity. Now I fix 911 systems.
so...username checks-out?
I know several people who either passed away or were extremely ill from COVID, and also understand there are mental health impacts on nearly all of us, so don't mean to downplay the negatives but I do think there were definitely some positives that came from it if you look for them. Although there were some dark stretches where we questioned everything, in hindsight the last 2 years has been fantastic for my family.
- My wife was pregnant when covid lockdowns began, and she worked in a Dr's office. They were as unsure as everyone else and didnt want to risk her or the baby's health, so gave her 6 months paid leave vs. the 0 paid leave they offer for typical maternity.
- Welcomed our 2nd child to the family
- Had a cheap, lease-free rental house fall into our lap, which allowed us to sell our house and build new JUST before construction prices went crazy
- After returning to work there were some major shakeups with my wife's employer, so she looked around and found a much better job/career track and is very happy with it
- I work remotely now which has been a blessing and made me far more productive while adding flexibility, but am 7 minutes from the office so able to easily pop in as needed, be present, etc.
Now if I can figure out how to shed the weight that comes from being a lazy stress eater with 2 young kids who hasn't found the motivation to get back to the gym in 2 years.
My fitness guy said to eat less shit more .. I said I’m paying for this??
I mean, were you shitting more and eating less before he told you that? If not, then it sounds like he's earning his pay
Start your weight loss efforts by going for a long walk. See how good you feel and then take it from there. It's amazing how you can adopt good, long term habits from a very simple start.
I've been more or less continually working since last July. I've had a gig at least every weekend since January (often a few a week) and I'm booked for something every weekend going into August. I was invited to audition for the San Francisco Symphony back in January- I didn't advance, but they didn't hire anyone anyway, so I'll get to take another crack at it next year.
Thanks for the positivity. I thought this was be good recruiting news but still appreciated. Happy good Friday to all that celebrate.
For me, the pandemic felt removed, like something observed through a window. I thankfully didn't lose anyone close to Covid, and life in March 2022 was simply more virtual than life in March 2020.
Of course, as some of you already know, I lost my job on April 1st. I've had a series of interviews with one seemingly perfect match, and I'm supposed to get their final decision early next week. I've done my absolute best to shield my anxiety and worry from my wife and kids, but the pressure just keeps building.
I know I've strayed too far from my faith the past few years (okay, okay... decades), but hopefully the Big Guy Upstairs doesn't hold any grudges. We shall see.
Good luck with the job search, and I hope you get the one you want. Although having a family does bring the added pressure of being a provider, just remember that they love you no matter what, and that is the most important thing.
It's an interesting time for job searches. With the great resignation, hiring is nuts. I've had reqs open for 4 to 5 months for hiring on my team/department trying to get bodies in seats so to speak.
So definitely a candidate market!!!
I'm also looking for a new gig and conversely, it's nuts too. For senior positions in my field, people are cranking out 2 and 3 page job reqs and expecting 100% qualified candidates and low balling on salaries like it's 2008-09 all over again. I honestly don't get where some of these executives are coming from.
But as someone told me years ago... good jobs find good people. This too shall pass for you. Hang in there and Happy Easter.
Vlady, I have little doubt you’ll get the job, and if not, you’ll get another even better one. And if the Big Guy Above gave his son for a loser like me, he’ll be happy to have you back.
April 16th, 2022 at 12:05 PM ^
No worries Vlad, His mercies are new every morning! Just talk to Him, ask for forgiveness - He will welcome you back with open arms!
I got nothing really special.. just continue having a good relationship with my rib and all 7 kids and 3 in laws and 10 grandchildren.. my kids that are married are killing it .. one moved from Michigan to Indians become debt free good jobs .. the ones in British Columbia were able to sell their home to people wanting to move out of Vancouver and work from home for about 3 times what they paid and buy 160 acres by Alaska.. debt free and 1/4 million in the bank... plus 42-27!!
As a divorced dad, working from home has given me way more time with my daughters, and has allowed me to be an assistant coach for both of their hockey teams, and be there for more of their milestones. They are growing up so fast and this is time you can't get back if you miss it. I also have been dating an amazing woman who is great to me and to my girls. Covid sucks, but I am very fortunate in many ways.
April 18th, 2022 at 11:37 AM ^
The rest sounds great to but I mostly want to congratulate you on getting 2 daughters into hockey!
My daughter struggled mightily at the beginning of Covid but ended up getting into a great college where she is now a happy freshman. My son is about to graduate from college with a dream job waiting for him. I probably wouldn't give the credit to Covid, I'd just say that they both rose up through the adversity and that is a great source of pride and relief.
Enjoyed coaching my son to the Local Little League Championship last year. Was proud to see him knock in the game tying run in the bottom of the last inning and his teammate win it for us in the next at bat. A great moment for both of us.
As mentioned in other posts, the 2021 Michigan Football season was a lot of fun as well. Looking forward to taking my son to his first game this Fall.
Sigh. Within the last hour our only child, the mother of our two grandsons, got a port put in-chemo starts next Friday. Many things are in her favor but this retired pediatric oncology nurse knows the drill all to well.
Sorry to hear that. My thoughts are with you, your family, and your daughter.
Oh man, OTB, that is tough. Genuine prayers.
Since Covid began, I have graduated, begun a career, and got married (with the bonus of a legitimate excuse for the small wedding we both wanted anyways!) It's a strange feeling, almost guilty, that such an awful time for the majority of society has been so full of happy occasions for me.
Started my dream job August 2020. Bought my first house November 2021. In the best mental and physical health of my life at the moment. Coming out of this pandemic ready to rock.
I moved to Ohio (booooo) but more than doubled my salary (yay!). My kids still live in Michigan (booooo) but I see them regularly as we only moved ~4 hours away (yay!).
I bought a brand new custom built house in the country with a few acres. It has a nice creek running through it that leads to a pond (technically my neighbors pond but my property line is the shore and he's not a dick so I get to use it/fish etc.). I have plenty of room for bonfires, wildlife watching, a gun range, parties as late as i want being as noisy as I want, zero people I don't want around in my business, etc.
Almost finished insulating my shop. It has a furnace but had no insulation. I can now keep it at ~65 degrees in there even on negative temp nights. A friend dropped off a urinal a couple weeks ago so once i hook that bad boy up, no more going outside when it's cold to pee in the winter. Shop is for storage of toys, man cave (got a TV, couch, chairs, beer fridge etc. in the shop), and woodworking tools everywhere. Also work on the car in there. Just finished my floating bed frame (all red oak) for my california king mattress. About to build my son a new dresser.
I just celebrated my 24th anniversary this year and we're better than ever. I am still in love with that woman.
Wife and I took first REAL vacation in a long time and spent a week in Cozumel in January.
My son got accepted to grad school and is heading to Utah in August to get his PhD in biochemistry with his girlfriend (soon to be fiancee I imagine)
My daughter is still grinding in undergrad but got promoted to GM of her restaurant and will soon be running the new location they are opening. She reports to the owner. Imagine being 20 (now 21) and getting a $50k salary with only a HS diploma. My kids are some hard workers.
I got my dream car. 27 years old and has 24,000 original miles on it. Actually getting it out of storage tonight to drive it up to the bar with the old lady riding shotgun.
I have four people I call friends and we're very close. My best friend is a bit older than me but is the awesomest person I have ever met (besides my wife and kids). He is on this blog and I think he upvotes my posts regardless of how stupid they are. Real friend there.
......
Honestly, nothing bad has really happened to me or my family since covid hit. It's been all good things. Shit my 97 year old grandmother is still alive and kicking (love ya Memaw).
I'll take today to say some extra thanks to the man upstairs who made all this happen.
Doc, you need to post pics of the cave and the car, at a minimum. All good stuff
And at maximum, the California king bed and your new salary stub :p
it's a floating bed so I only have pics with the lights off and the led bed lights on. it looks like a space ship floating in mid air. it also weighs about 350 lbs and I had a friend help me carry it in the house in 3 pieces. Head board is ~5ft tall and 9 feet wide.
no way on the stub, creepy people on the internet. wife also works so we do quite well for ourselves
That sounds like quite the project. I really want to get into wood working and plan to make a small workshop of my own in the next few months. I probably couldn't make a good dog bed, let alone something that massive. Well done. I couldn't care less about a pay stub, but glad you doubled your earnings doc.
I worked as a carpenter for 2 years before I decided to go to college so got a lot of experience there. You tube is a fascinating thing as you can learn a lot in minutes.
tip: until your skill is high enough, mix sawdust from your project with wood glue and pack into the gaps where your angles/boards/joints don’t quite match up. then sand it down when it dries. Sawdust takes the stain and it looks like a perfect joint.
X, no one but me (and some people's grandparents) thinks my dream car is cool. I don't have a pic of mine but it looks EXACTLY like the pic below.
1996 Lincoln Town Car - Cartier Edition. Ivory pearlescent paint. I even have the window sticker from the lot. Leather seats aren't even creased. 24k miles, all original, all mint. minor surface rust on frame and that's it. Sun roof. Hell, it even has a knob to control the stiffness of the steering wheel.
I'll post pics of the shop sometime if i can. It's 25 x 35 foot, all steel roof/sides. huge 14 foot wide garage door. My kids/friends/wife used the walls as an art studio and spray painted all over. its at the point now where when someone who hasn't visited me does so, they have to leave something on the wall. I have 2 vehicles, riding mower, lawn tools, + all my other tools plus the work benches and table saws and I still have room for a front loader and a motorcycle (whenever I buy them).