Update 2 of 2: 2022.
Now here comes the hard part: Trying to summarize 2022 into an entry.
I feel like most of this year has centered around Stranger Things for me. It's the most prominent thing I can think of when I think back on the last year, which I suppose makes sense since volume one dropped on May 27th. Seven months ago already, & people like myself are already feeling like that time is nostalgic to us. That makes sense, since I watched it so much over the summer, enjoying those Smirnoff Ice Neon Lemonades & baked sour cream & onion chips.
There was more to 2022 than Stranger Things though.
I'll have to admit, it started off fucking terrible. Eric was sick coming in to the new year, & on January 2nd, Logan & I ended up having to bring him to the emergency room when he was feeling dizzy & having a hard time standing. He had stopped eating at this point, & it was a challenge just to get him to hydrate. It was scary, especially when he ended up being in the hospital for two weeks. That was a VERY tough two weeks. I finally got to bring him home on January 17th, which his first request was Chinese food from Hawaiian Isle. We ordered the food & I ran in to get it. We had explained what had happened, since he always goes in every Monday & had wondered where he was, & they LOADED the bag up with tons of extra goodies for us. That was super nice of them.
February into March wasn't very exciting or eventful, for the most part anyway. It was my first time ever working from home, so I didn't have to drive in any snowstorms. It was SO nice. My brother had helped me get a nice monitor as well in January, which made working from home a lot easier as well. Having a 27" screen to see all my work was nice. Shit with Russia & Ukraine went down of course, so there was that.
I also returned to the Palladium in Worcester for the first time since December 2019. My last show there had been seeing Obituary upstairs, & my first show back was Overkill on March 4th. Alan & Logan came along for that show, so that was a lot of fun. That was about when I started watching Lord of the Rings movies again, & got into a nice little routine of having pizza while watching those movies. The Two Towers turned 20 back on December 18th, so I was wondering how it had been nearly 2 decades since that movie came out already. (I'm still wondering, since that two decade threshold has finally come & gone) We also got a new Batman movie that came out in March as well, with Robert Pattinson (who I primarily knew from Twilight & Harry Potter) as Bruce Wayne/Batman. I had to admit, I think he did a real good job with that movie, & I ended up loving it. Some of the music I heard in that movie ended up getting me to check out more new music as well, something I'm still doing nowadays. (EDM, phonk, etc)
Oh! Something else we started doing around then was D&D nights at Nick & Natasha's. We did that for a while, before Nick & Natasha both got covid later in the spring & had to put D&D nights on hold for a while. It's been nice going there though, especially since that gives us access to a kitchen & we can do better than just take-out or whatever can hang out in a crock pot at work all day. This is still something we do, although we're taking a break for the holidays & stuff, but I thought it was worth noting before I forgot.
I also saw Korn again in March. March 19th, to be exact. at the same place I saw them in January 2020. They were my very last show before covid, up at the Arena in Manchester, & that's where they were playing again. This time though, I opted not to try to go for barricade & happily hung back where there was lots of open room on the floor. I went to that show with Rick H. We got there early enough to go get something to eat Murphy's, which we grouped up with 3 other concert-goers so we could take the large table they were saving for a large party & avoid the wait. That was fun.
A big thing in March was that Netflix had The Lost Boys until the end of the month, so I FINALLY got a chance to watch it. I missed it all those years ago when Jon showed it for Cult Classics, no thanks to my 12 hour shifts at my last job, & I had never gotten a chance to see it since. I instantly loved the movie, & regret not having seen it sooner. I also played music bingo a lot with Alan, going every Tuesday after work. We haven't done it in a while, not since the weather warmed up for spring/summer, & we've just been too busy since fall to go back. Hopefully we'll get to start doing that again soon.
Kyle also finally built his computer then, which I got to go hang out with him & Johnny while they assembled it. It was neat to see, & it made me wish I could built a desktop. I never did because I didn't think I had the room for it. I didn't have a desk, didn't have the room really for a desk, & a laptop was just so much easier for me space-wise. Unfortunately a laptop doesn't let you upgrade parts, so there'd come a time where it was finally time to upgrade. My old Alienware I got in 2011, I had replaced it back in May 2018. I got a lot of miles out of it, but it overheated so easily & I had to turn down graphics settings so low that it started to interfere with game play. (i.e: The Mage Tower challenge in Legion in WoW. For my demon hunter, I needed to see sparkles on the ground to know where to step to avoid my character getting hurt/killed, but with the settings so low, I couldn't see them. The only reason the challenge ever got completed was because I had Sha/Ferchu get it for me) While my latest Alienware was still doing pretty good, it was starting to show its age. New things were being released, & existing games were getting updates. After seeing Kyle put his PC together, that was when I bit the bullet & decided to just go for a desktop PC. I had a monitor & had a USB keyboard since I needed a keyboard with a numberpad, so at least those were all set. Kyle helped me find parts & good deals, so before I knew it, I was getting parts. We got it all done in August, & it was August 22 I had it up & running here at home.
The rest of spring was pretty uneventful. It wasn't until May that things got interesting. I ended up going to see the new Doctor Strange movie at the theater with Alan, In The Multiverse of Madness, which I actually REALLY enjoyed. Sam Raimi directed it, so I could definitely see elements of his style, & I think that was a big contributing factor to my enjoying it. I hadn't seen much in the way of Marvel movies, especially not at the theater, since I'm still pretty new to it. Alan is a big fan, so he's been my go-to buddy to see those (and other) movies with. I also attended a cat show up near my dad's for the first time since the one in 2018. I could definitely tell it was the first post-covid show, as there wasn't a lot of people or a lot of cats. I still had fun though, & I got to pet this adorable little black cat. I also went to a MicroCenter store for the first time, which is where I got more of my computer parts.
That was about the time gas started to get pretty expensive too. Gas ended up climbing to $5+ a gallon around here then. Other states had it much worse, with stations in California exceeding $8/gallon. I feel like I got lucky & managed to squeak by with paying no more than $4.99/gallon at a Cumberland Farms, with a gift card I had gotten for Christmas & then forgot about helping to eat up a portion of the cost of a tank of gas. (Just part of it, sadly)
Toward the end of May, I went back to Maine & stayed at the cottage for the first time in many, many years. (I spent a weekend up in Maine last year for Jessica's wedding, but stayed at the Tarbox instead of the cottage due to all the people also staying at the cottage.) It was hot & humid at home, but rather cool up there. We had a lot of foggy weather, but it was neat. I also ate dinner at the Tugboat for the first time, which still surprises me since I've been to Boothbay so many times. It was delicious! So much so, I brought Eric there for his birthday dinner in August during a day-trip we made up to the Harbor. (He also loved it)
Then of course, May 27th rolled along. Volume 1 of season 4 of Stranger Things dropped. I ended up having to wait a couple of days to finally start it, since Friday I had to work & Saturday I have no idea what I was doing, so I had to be super careful on social media until then. It was amazing, & I instantly loved it. I rewatched it a few times of course, but that cliff-hanger right at the end of episode 7 was something else. I loved episode 4, Dear Billy, as well. This also introduced me to Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) as well, which I've been listening to ever since then. So much so, I'm calling it my Song of 2022. I heard it everywhere too, as the song SURGED in popularity thanks to the show.
June, of course, was race month. We hit up the national NHRA event at the track, which was so much fun. We hit up some of our usual places afterwards too, like Tuckaway & Telly's. (It's not a proper race day if I'm not cooling off with a margarita after) That was the highlight of June of course. That, & of course, summer! All the warm weather & green leaves.. It was nice.
July 1st: Volume 2 of Season 4 dropped. On the 1st though, Eric & I went to Lebanon Valley in NY to hit up a jet car race there, as I was supposed to be in Alaska when the Epping race was occuring. Once again, i had to be careful on social media & absolutely avoided TikTok until I had finally seen those last two episodes. Being at the track all day helped though, since I had stuff to look at there, including a jet truck called Bone Shaker that I had never seen before. July 2nd was a sad day. Chris Darnell, who drove the Shockwave jet truck, was killed in an accident at an airshow. Still blows my mind, knowing I'll never see him or the truck ever again. That same weekend though, I did watch those last two episodes of Stranger Things. So good, but omg so sad, too. Things got so intense, I had to stand up to watch, like a dad watching the news. I bawled my eyes out over Eddie & Max, & then had immediate emotional whiplash with what happened immediately after with the gates. It was intense. So much so, I couldn't stop thinking about it, especially after re-watches.
July was also kind of a neat month in that Eric & I ended up eating out a little more. We went for seafood at the beach a few times, with Alan tagging along at least once, so I finally had someone to share a tequila tower with. We also did beach pizza a few times over the summer, so that was neat.
July also had a big let-down. My dad ended up catching covid less than a week before we were supposed to fly out on our trip to Alaska. He asked if Kyle & I wanted to go ourselves, which I did, but Kyle wanted to rebook it for next year so dad could go. So we agreed on post-poning the trip, which I didn't realize meant cancelling it, as my dad didn't want to bother with the hassles of booking a cruise. I found out a month or two later that he had no intention of rebooking, saying it was too complicated & frustrating & he didn't understand it. Too many forms, too much paperwork, & complained that if your flight was delayed or you missed your right, you missed your cruise & your whole trip was ruined. That made no sense to me since originally we had planned to arrive early to allow for that just-in-case wiggle room, but I guess he thought it wasn't enough. So I wish Kyle & I had just gone ourselves after all. I was also super bumming out because I haven't had a week off from work in over 11 years, with my last proper vacation being in 2010, so I had been really looking forward to it.
On the plus side, a cancelled vacation meant I could attend the local jet car event at the very end of July, so I did. Kyle came with us, since he was originally supposed to be on vacation & had the day free. We had fun, although it was sad not seeing Chris or the Shockwave truck. His father was there, & he did speak to the audience, & it was pretty sad & emotional. I ended up getting a poster that he signed, & Kyle got a Shockwave shirt.
August was pretty good. SInce I wasn't on my cruise, I was able to tag along for my work's company outing, which was a teambuilding event right in the city followed up by a booze cruise. All on my work's dime! It was neat, & it was fun. Eric & I also did that day-trip up to Maine. Fan Expo was also in August this year, & I got to do something VERY cool. I got pictures wth & autographs from two actors from Star Trek: The Next Generation: Jonathan Frakes & John de Lancie, aka: Will Riker & Q. It was SO cool! I also got to meet & get autographs from Brian O'Halloran & Jeff Anderson, aka: Dante & Randall from the Clerks movies! Just like with the others, I got selfies with them as well as the professional photos, which Brian had on a Quick Stop in the professional photos. It was a lot of fun, spending two days there at the Expo. I look forward to 2023's Expo! (And hope for some Stranger Things guests!) There was also the Lucas Oil event at the track, which was fun as well. August was also when my PC was finally built & finally up & running. It was wild, playing WoW on such a big screen after playing it on a 15" or smaller screen since 2009. Having one PC with enough under the hood to be able to do my work AND my gaming was neat too. No more switching computers.
August was also when my hyperfixation/obsession with Stranger Things seemed to somehow intensify. I blame it on fanfiction. I had seen some fan theories regarding Eddie, which I found pretty entertaining. It led me down the road of fanfiction, which I had not read since high school when FanFiction.net was the big site. I was introduced to AO3, & it was downhill from there. It's been a fun ride, & some fanfictions I've read have been absolutely fun and/or wild reads. (Like Eddie Munson's Vampire Mixtape series, or You're Divine)
September was pretty eventful as well. I went back to New York again, though not for a race this time. It was a celebration of life for Eric's uncle, who had passed away the previous year. I also got to see Jaws at the theater for the first time. (I saw it in a drive-in in 2020, which was neat & counts as my first big-screen showing, but a theater? Way cool!) They had it in Imax, so that was super cool! The BIG thing about September though was the Rammstein show. I had gotten the tickets in January 2020, & they FINALLY got put to use. It was an incredible show. INCREDIBLE. Eric ended up not going, so his ticket went to Robyn's husband Dylan. (Initially it was going to be her, Kyle, Eric & I. She hadn't even met Dylan when I had first got the tickets, so I'm glad that ended up playing out well) We all had a lot of fun. Kyle even got himself a Rammstein shirt, so that was neat. My birthday was also in September, which dad took Kyle & I out for lunch at Warren's since that's where we wanted to go. We hit up the candy store in Kittery, & stopped at a couple other places as well. September wrapped up the way it usually does for me, with the Deerfield Fair. This time, I took the Thursday day off so I could enjoy the least busy day at the fair. It was still mobbed though. Funnily enough, there was Hellfire Club merchandise EVERYWHERE at the fair. Stranger Things had been SO popular, with the Club raglan shirts in such high demand, that knock-offs appeared everywhere. I already had Hellfire Club shirts, so I ended up just picking up a flag & a little Demobat plushie.
October was... Not quite as fun. After all this time, Covid finally got me. It was making the rounds in the office something fierce, & despite my best efforts, I caught it too. I got lucky in the fact that it felt more like a cold for the majority of it, with the worst of it being a few days of really severe exhaustion. I couldn't even sit up on my computer & just spent the weekend in bed, calling out on that Monday since I still had no energy to even sit up to try to work from home, which I did the rest of the week. I missed two outings with my D&D group, so that was a bummer. I did get better in time to go on the fall foliage ride my dad had planned for us though, so that was fun. My first time riding a train like that! He splurged & got seats in the nicest train car, so instead of being crammed into ordinary train seats, we got to enjoy cushy chairs & couches. I think my favorite part of the train ride was standing outside between the cars, & then at the end car to see the railroad tracks behind us.
November was a busy month. The D&D group, along with a few other friends, all went to Salem, MA that first weekend. We waited until after Halloween so the crowds would die down. It was a smart move. Not only did we avoid crowds, but we had an unseasonably warm day that day as well. I expected sweatshirt weather, & it ended up being t-shirt weather. We all had fun though, & we followed up with dinner at a Cheesecake Factory. I had never been to one before, & it was not at all what I was expecting, but in a really good way. The interior was far nicer than I expected, & the menu was MASSIVE. It was a literal book. The food was great though, & so were the drinks. November 13th, Alan & I went to go see Mercyful Date down in Boston. That was a great show! I also saw my friend Stu, who I hadn't seen since Germany in 2010! The following week, on the 23th, was the Amon Amarth, Carcass, Obituary, & Cattle Decapitation show. That was a LOT of fun. The day after Thanksgiving, Alan & I went to go see Trans-Siberian Orchestra. That was fun because I have not seen them in several years, & Alan somehow scored floor tickets only 5 rows back, so it's the closest I've ever sat. That was super neat, especially when they had the snow falling on us!
And now we're at the very end of December. About the only noteworthy things were the Christmas parties, & Christmas as well. Only 6 hours remain now of December, & of 2023. I just called to pick-up food, as is my new tradition, enjoying alfredo & TV.
I had mentioned that Kate Bush song being my song of 2022. When I think of 2022, I'll think of that song. I'll also think of Chrissy Wake Up. So many people hated that trend because it was annoying, but I loved it. I loved hearing that all over TikTok. I even have a t-shirt on right now that's got Eddie & Chrissy, with Chrissy floating in the air & Eddie looking with writing that says Chrissy Wake Up. Stranger Things will definitely be my summer memory for sure for this year. (2021 was Pirates of the Caribbean, & Avengers. Previously before that, it was DBZ, especially in 2017 & 2018) Spring was more a Lord of the Rings, Batman, & Lost Boys vibe for me. Doctor Strange got in there for a bit just before Stranger Things, & that movie was my preferred movie to watch when prepping envelopes at home for work for some extra money.
Ok, that was far more detailed than I had planned, but that's okay. I'm super forgetful, & I still tend to forget pretty large chunks of time, so it may not be a bad idea to be more detailed. All in all though, despite the really scary start & the cancelled trip that put a bucket list trip back out of reach for me, it was not a bad year at all. 2022: Not bad. I still did some fun stuff, enjoyed some great shows, & got to meet some cool people I never thought I'd get to meet at Fan Expo. If only I could tell my younger/childhood self that I met William Riker!
I have no idea what to expect or hope for 2023. I did buy myself a 3 day pass for Fan Expo, so I know I have that to look forward to. My dad had considered a trip to Estonia, but given what happened with Alaska & the fact that he has not discussed it further with anyone, I'm not counting on that. I know once May rolls around, I'll be wanting to recreate May of this year with the Stranger Things watching & the snacks/drinks. Maybe I can even have a watch party or something.
I'm still not ready to say that season four of Stranger things came out last year. Not "this year" or something. "Last year." Blech. Not ready for that.
Anyway, my train of thought is fizzling out, & I've gotta go pick up my food shortly, so I'm calling it a wrap.
Adios, 2022.