THE YEAR 2013 IN REVIEW

As 2013 comes to a close, I wanted to review this eventful year.  It was jam packed with memorable events and people, and since this is a blog/journal of my life, it seems appropriate to now look back with words and some pictures:

• New Years Day spent at the Rose Parade with my siblings, Tom & Darlene, and their spouses, Janeen and Bill.  The six of us had planned on this for over a year, and we finally did it.  It was a great opportunity for the six of us to bond and strengthen family ties in a fun setting.
• Remodel of our kitchen into a diner.  Another thing that we had planned ever since we move into our home in Tujunga.  We decided to remove every remnant of the kitchen except our vintage and incredibly accurate O'Keefe & Merritt range/oven, our light fixtures, and the window shutters.  I wrote about this in an earlier posting. 
  
  Walls are variations on white, back splashes are white tile with primary colored (and some black) tiles, black Corian countertops, a custom red naugahyde breakfast booth with a gray, boomerang and chrome table, black and white vinyl flooring, and new refrigerator, microwave, and dishwasher.  It really is quite a stunning sight for our home built in 1950.
• My freeway car stall and brush with death #1.  This was anything but planned.  My Prius came to stop in a freeway lane of traffic.  It is by the grace of God (and finally a highway patrolman who arrived about ten minutes later) that I survived this terrifying experience.  I wrote about this in an earlier posting.
• Our weekend at Big Bear.  A delightful time in the snow with our friends, the Lees, in a cabin of one of their friends.  
• River Running the Kern River for our 35th Wedding Anniversary.  Ann and I decided to not act our age and celebrate our anniversary in a large rubber raft with paddles shooting the rapids on a river in Central California.  Unlike the last time we went, we did not have to stop the car on the highway to wait for some sauntering cows!
• A beautiful Descanso Garden Day.  I had read about the cherry blossoms of nearby Descanso Gardens, and armed with my camera from last Christmas and enjoying a warm day, I took pictures all over the place.  I displayed some of those pictures in an earlier posting.
• Attendance at exciting BYU volleyball games.  BYU, my alma mater, had a fantastic men's volleyball team.  Either accompanying my buddy, Ed Johnson, or going alone, I attended a number of games played in Southern California. The team won the title of their difficult conference, but lost in the National Championship game to UC Irvine.  Arrrrgh.  By the way, it was returning from their win over UC Irvine at UC Irvine's arena that I had my first brush with death on the freeway.  

• Trip to Maryland and New York for nephew's wedding and for spending time with New Jersey family.  We took advantage of attending a wedding and reception of my nephew, Philip Johnson, in Maryland and New Jersey respectively, to spend some time with Emily & Adam and their brood, and to walk around the Mall near the White House/Capitol.  

  

  Korean War Memorial Reflection

  Besides spending time with the Johnsons and Emily & Adam and their brood, we were able to also go to New York City and attend the Museum of Art, Central Park, and Ground Zero memorial.  I wrote about some of this experience and post some pictures in an earlier posting.
• Seeing son Doug graduate from Army basic training and from medic training.  Ann attended the basic training graduation along with Doug's son, Daniel at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.  I attended his graduation from medic training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.  I wrote about this experience in an earlier posting.
• Surprising Ann with a Flamenco date night.  Ann had no idea as we began this night which involved eating at a Spanish restaurant specializing in Spanish tapas and then being treated to some honest-to-goodness flamenco dancing accompanied by guitar and drum.
  
   It was truly an amazing and magical night.
• The death of my friend, Stan Klock.  This was a completely unexpected event that happened as a result of Stan being killed while riding his bicycle.  I had known him from my years in the Southern California Mormon Choir.  I attended the funeral which was very memorable.  He was a good man, and loved by many who knew him.
• My head-on collision, brush with death #2, and my hospitalization.  I am still amazed that I cheated death twice this year.  My car was totaled, I suffered three fractured ribs, a hurt sternum, left clavicle, and right foot, and came dangerously close to a collapsed lung.  As it was, the medical staff was afraid that I might get pneumonia because of the fluid at the bottom of my right lung.  As it was, I spent four very uncomfortable days, but was visited by a number of friends and family.
• Our trip to the Palm Springs, California area.  I was still not at 100% physically when it came time to go to Palm Springs, but since we had made the plans to go with our friends, the McClendons, we made the trip. 

  

  The Above-ground San Andreas Fault in the Background

  We had a wonderful time riding the steep tram to the top and back of the nearby mountain (near Idyllwild), sitting in a hot tub, going on a Jeep ride (ouch!) to an above-ground part of the San Andreas Fault, eating out, and shopping (Ann bought two swim suits at one store; Marie bought three!). 
• Wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas interactions with BJ.  Because my #3 child and first-born son BJ still lives at (and now works for) the Beacon House in San Pedro, California, he is limited as to the interaction we have with him.  This was our second year to go to the House the night before Thanksgiving to help him and some of the guys there to prepare food for their Thanksgiving outreach to the nearby homeless.  We decided to give BJ a Christmas present of cooking up goodies for him to give to the guys at the House.  We are so appreciative of the staff there that have helped BJ turn his life around, and feel to do whatever we can to help the House any way we can.
• Visiting the Huntington Gardens and taking grandson Daniel there on Santa Day.  I had only been once before and only briefly so it was almost a new experience to visit part of the grounds of the Huntington in nearby San Marino.  The grounds were breathtaking, and sensing that we could spend many days here over a year's time, we decided to buy a year membership.  As a result, we were invited to bring children to see Santa, and we decided to bring Daniel. 
  
  He did fine until it was time to sit on his lap.  No way!  But he did allow his grandmother to hold him in Santa's chair while Santa stood behind it.
• Experiencing work related connections and completing my 3000 hours for licensure.  I continued to work for A&A Wiping Cloth as a salesman and felt supported by Jeremy and the staff there.  They are good people.  I also had many memorable experiences with the staff of Center for New Directions, not to mention the increasing number of clients I saw in my one-on-one therapy sessions.  I really do enjoy working with these people although sometimes it is excruciatingly difficult.
• My involvement with the missionaries and leadership of my church congregation.  I was called to be a Mission Leader, and as such had the opportunity to interact with good people who are sincere and who really care for those around them.  I particularly enjoyed getting to know better the head of my congregation, Bishop Bob(by) Bigelow. 
  
• Great times with our friends, the Lees.  Not having much extended family in Southern California on either side, and with many if not most of our good friends living in Utah, we have felt somewhat isolated.  This year saw the intensifying of our friendship with Kent and Kathy Lee.  Kent was the person who called me to be the Bishop of the Young Single Adult congregation, and we have kept in touch since then.  In 2013, besides spending time with them at Big Bear, we have gone out to dinner and a movie with them (or seen a movie in their home), been invited over to partake in Cathy's French-trained culinary delights, and just hung out with them. 
• Our year-end trip to New Jersey for Christmas.  "Pumpa and Gee-ma" packed their winter woolies to journey east to spend "this most wonderful time of the year: with the four grandbabies.  They spent wonderful times with the kids in the brisk, chilly air.  We were blessed with snow on Christmas Eve and we were listened to carolers at the door.  Christmas morning was complete chaos, but then, what can you expect?  We were pleased to send Emily and Adam on a night away at a bed and breakfast the night before we returned home, giving them built-in babysitters.  The trip was a fitting way to conclude an eventful year!