We all watched gleefully as the year 2020 went away, and we all welcomed 2021 with open arms. Okay. Now what?
There didn’t seem to be a lot of emphasis on making “New Year’s Resolutions” this time around the sun. With social distancing, vaccines, masks, working from home and the sheer boredom of it all, making promises to become better, smarter, healthier, more fit people just didn’t seem to materialize. We just wanted to see 2020 go away.
Being well into the first week of 2021 we can now focus on what is next. We did our winter maintenance on our cars by Thanksgiving, even doing a few updates and upgrades. We cleaned out the garage. We put our parts and tools in logical order. We even threw out some stuff that we’ve been meaning to get rid of for years. The Christmas decorations are all put away until the “Christmas of Normal Times” returns in eleven months. So what do we do next? Here are some ideas.
- Start doing yoga a few days a week. Yes, we’re serious. Yoga. Not for the mental and esoteric benefits (which there are) but for the fact that Yoga is “organized stretching.” It forces you to get the creaks and pops working in your joints, extend your range of motion, and actually make you stronger. Without going into a lot of detail, muscles are strongest in the center of range of motion, and longer ranges of motion create strength in the center. Whether you race, autocross or just work on your car(s), being more limber – stretchy – increases your overall abilities. Give it a serious try. And you don’t have to go to a yoga place to do it – look online and do it at home Check this out – http://porschemama.com/want-to-improve-your-driving-try-this-yoga-for-race-car-drivers-sequence/
- Call your mother. She worries. Mom made this saying into a magnetic refrigerator thing decades ago and gave it to me for my house. She was right…she worries, and we should call. Mom’s been gone for nearly a decade, and I really do wish I had called more often.
Do something nice and unexpected every day. Okay, for some of us, “every day” can be a difficult thing to get into, so ease into it slowly. Hold the door for someone. Smile. Say “hello” or “good morning” to people you don’t know. And on a special note, take advantage of an opportunity to wave frantically to people in a passing car like you know them – they will talk about you for weeks. “Who the hell was that? I dunno. Me neither. Was that Uncle Joey? Maybe, but I didn’t think he was out of jail yet…”- Plan to get a physical exam. None of us are getting any younger, and many of us haven’t seen the doctor in a long time. We know too many people who have finally decided to see a doctor and find out that they have some very treatable condition that thankfully was diagnosed early. At our age, we know too many people who have not lived as long as they wanted to. Most insurance plans cover an annual physical. Do that. And also get back on your medications.
- Make a plan to do something fun later this year. The so-called experts are saying that with the COVID vaccines and such, life as we used to know it will be coming back to something normal by the end of the summer. So make some plans for fun stuff as COVID starts to assume its role as background noise. We are looking towards hooking up the camper and going somewhere that isn’t Florida. We also made reservations for a luxury cruise in October 2021.
- Break out the HPDE, Autocross, Club Race, or other car-related event schedules for later this year and go to some of them. Or all of them. ‘Nuff said.
We are starting doing yoga three days a week. We are keeping in touch with the siblings/relatives at distance since they live thousands of miles away. “Something nice” can be something of a struggle, but… Doctors see us every year, sometimes more. (We’re old.). We booked a cruise, looking to some HPDE and Autocross events, and even planning participation in some spring and summer car shows.
To hell with 2020. It’s time to make 2021 the best ever.
