We are all in agreement that 2020 was definitely not the best year (Our best year so far was probably FY 2017-2018). But even a pandemic, a contemptuous election year, raging wildfires, and various eczema flareups couldn't stop us from having some great times that we'll always remember (especially because we are recording them here!) In no particular order:
Best Day on the Slopes
Braden spends more time than he probably should thinking about skiing. So last January, when we were in Idaho, we decided to spend a little bit of time at one of our old stomping grounds: Pebble Creek Ski Area. We could wax poetic about the special exhilaration of ski on snow on mountain; the beauty of snow spray as you lean into a stop; the quiet of the trees and snow... but instead we'll just post this video of Abby's rad jump, which is poetry in itself.
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| Keep your tips up! |
Best (and only) Concert - iLe
To be honest, if some time traveler had visited us at the beginning of 2020 and told us "you can only go to one concert this year, so choose wisely", iLe would still have been our choice. (If you haven't heard her music, check her out!) Braden got Abby tickets to the show last Christmas, and we turned it into our Valentine's Day celebration, complete with Italian food and cannolis in the North End before the show. Once the concert started (2 hours late), we danced and sang along and danced some more. The Haymarket Lounge isn't our favorite concert venue, but it is intimate! And iLe's music goes well with intimate.
Best Road Trip - 4th of July day trip to Cape Cod
By July we were deep in isolation mode, which made it even more of a treat when some good friends invited us to accompany them on a short day trip to Cape Cod. We spent a good chunk of the day at the beach taking long walks, reading, and enjoying being in a place that wasn't our apartment. Cleo was fascinated by the seals in the water. Then we drove around and admired the beautiful beach houses, occasionally looking our favorite ones up on Zillow to see just how far out of our price range they were. We ended the day with seafood and enjoyed the illegal fireworks over Hyannis. All in all, a perfect day.
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| Cue Baywatch Theme |
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| Watch Jaws right before a trip to Cape Cod? Sure, why not! |
Best Dinner (Red Meat Edition) - Anniversary Steak Dinner and a Movie
Actually two movies! We (like most people) love the cinema experience, so when we were trying to decide how we could best enjoy a COVID-appropriate wedding anniversary, a double feature at a classic New England drive-in was a no-brainer. We stopped for takeout at a steakhouse and got some curbside service and then drove ten minutes to the drive-in, just in time for The Iron Giant. The second feature? Our perennial favorite: Beetlejuice! Did we kiss in the car? Just a little bit.
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| Surf and turf + shotgun = livin' the good life. |
Best Dinner (Poultry Edition) - Thanksgiving Dinner for Two ft. Cornish Game Hens
We have lived far away from family for a few years now, so we are used to making Thanksgiving for two, and we imagined that our COVIDsgiving wouldn't be much different. But boy, were we wrong. This Thanksgiving was maybe our best one yet, and it's largely thanks to the discovery of Cornish Game Hens. These little guys are tasty, and we will likely be celebrating with our favorite "personal pan poultry" again in the future!
Best Hugs - Family Hugs at Christmas and New Years
Boy, a big family group hug after isolating for 9 months sure hits different, doesn't it?
Biggest Piece of Paper - Braden's M.A.
The university sent us a comically large piece of paper that proves that Braden isn't done with his schooling yet. It feels like it is bigger than our apartment - guess we'll just have keep it in storage until he has an office to hang it in.
Best (and only) National Park - Acadia National Park
Despite Braden's deep-seated mistrust of islands, we packed up for a weekend of hiking and leaf peeping at Acadia National Park on Maine's Mount Desert Island. We stayed at a charming little (dog-friendly!) motel and hiked along the coasts and through the woods. We explored the summit of Cadillac Mountain in an impenetrable fog that facilitated a recreation of a Caspar David Friedrich painting. The carriage houses in the park are beautiful and the popovers at the Jordan Pond House were worth the long wait! Cleo gives Acadia two paws up (she would give more, but she she is sitting on her haunches and can only raise two paws).
Bonus Best Thing! Weirdest Snack - Lobster Ice Cream
Near Acadia National Park is the charming town of Bar Harbor, where you can find tourist shops filled with souvenir tees, decorative lobster traps, and stuffed moose toys. It is also home to Ben & Bill's Chocolate Emporium, and their strange specialty, lobster ice cream. The ice cream itself is an unassuming buttery, creamy treat, but when your tongue hits one of those lobster chunks, a strange sensation occurs - a cold, fishy sensation. Abby had one spoonful; Braden happily finished off the entire cup.
Best (and only) Museum - Harvard's Fogg Museum
Hooray for Harvard friends who take us to see cool art! We had been sleeping on this museum, and we were so glad we got to go inside before everything got shut down. We saw lots of great art from some of our favorites, including Rodin and Picasso. Plus, we got to hear Alex say "museum" several times, which is always a pleasure.
Best Girl - Cleo
Who could have predicted this? Cleo has won this category three years in a row now, and we're starting to worry the jury is rigged! We intend to launch a full investigation as soon as possible.
Best Stimulus Purchase - 'The Green Monster'
After a few months without really leaving our Brighton neighborhood, we felt a call to adventure that required us to find a trusty steed. She's a 2008 beaut with some dents and dings, and we may have had to remove some creature's nest from the air intake, but she's been real fun to race around the parkways and side streets of Boston. We drive it like it's a Prius.
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| Cleo still doesn't have her license |
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| Sun's out, tongues out. |
Best Books - A variety!
Some of Abby's favorites of the year:
Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts by Kate Racculia
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
Less by Andrew Sean Greer
Sounds Like Titanic: A Memoir by Jessica Chiccehitto Hindman
I also went on a huge Agatha Christie spree this year. Some of my favorites have been A Murder is Announced, And Then There Were None, and Crooked House.
Some of Braden's favorites of the year:
90% of the reading I did this year was for my Ph.D. There's just no way to sugar-coat that. But the good news is that I read some very fun books - I especially enjoyed The Devil to Pay in the Backlands (Grande sertão: veredas) by João Guimarães, Yawar Fiesta by José María Arguedas and Kenneth Brewster's poetry collection Whale Song.
For a full list of all of the books we read this year, check out our Goodreads lists!
Best Bums
This was a slow year for good bums, but we did manage to appreciate these two notable derrieres:
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| Good Game. |
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| This could count as two bums, if you count that mountain. |
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