lasley holiday letter - 2022
This year started out with Laura’s mom having neck fusion surgery. With no humor intended, the degradation was equivalent to a bobble-head doll, so it was imperative that she got it done, even in the deepest part of a Chicago winter (4F at 6am). We were there for a week prior and a week after to get both her parents through the most challenging parts. Having arranged for a caregiver, we headed home much less worried.
On the other end of the spectrum - February brought Jasnah! (Nerdy points if you know where that name comes from) Ben and Yanessa welcomed their second child, with Auntie Jacqui in attendance. She’s a cutie, with black hair and dark eyes - unlike her older brother Tristan’s curly blond locks.
Soccer continued, but having been sidelined for much of 2021, Laura’s left knee and right Achilles were not happy, so she went to PT in a heavy rotation. Dan is just as slow as ever.
We both remained employed through the year, with the usual mix of satisfaction and frustration.
In March, we were cleared to visit the kids in Dallas, and got to meet Jasnah in person. She’s very sweet, and Tristan (4) is a very good big brother. Everyone is well and is adjusting to their ever more complicated schedule.
Speaking of offspring, we had a set of fox kits again this Spring - 7 - count ‘em 7! So cute! They all reached maturity, and we’re hopeful that we get another couple living with us next winter.
We splashed baji-naji in early April, and went out right away, even though it was too cold, in retrospect. Later that month, Laura and Jacqui went to NYC with a few friends for a girls weekend. They saw “Six” and visited their favorite places, coming away with a souvenir or two. Jacqui came out sailing with us before she left. We went back to NYC a few weeks later to enjoy the release party of a friend's album. We had met him before he started recording, and we shared several “remember when” stories with his newer fans.
As the bars slowly emerged from the pandemic, our band was able to play a few gigs. Our personal schedules didn’t provide many open dates, but we did get to play 3 new venues, including an outdoor gig, which was a first for us.
In June, we started our vacation a few hours late so we could see another musician friend who was playing midday a few blocks from the marina. We sailed a bit farther south than last year, reaching Onancock, VA. We visited some favorite anchorages, and discovered a couple of new ones, well, new to us. Off of Crisfield, we were surrounded by dolphins who were actively feeding. They didn’t dance with us, but came quite close as we idled in the bay. Overall, the sailing was great, with only two storms and one calm day. We really enjoy the Chesapeake.
Our vacation overlapped with GMa Louise’s birthday, so the kids flew to Chicago in our place. They confirmed that great-grandma was getting around pretty well, having slowed to what most people would consider a normal pace.
In July we hosted the postponed Riverside Jam 2020 (+2). It was great to see these longtime friends again. Later in the summer, Laura attended one of their daughter’s bridal shower, and together Dan and Laura went to her wedding, along with several of the Jammers.
As autumn approached, we kept sailing, even as it got chilly. Worse than the cold were the shorter days. Our friend Bob was in town from Oregon, and he came out with us one weekend. Our last sail was Nov 5-6. Looking back, we realized that we only went out on Sonja (our little catamaran) 3 times all summer. Doesn’t seem right.
This fall, our indoor soccer team decided to try playing outdoors on a half-size field. The extra spacing made the game very different, but we had fun. But we also decided to keep playing indoors at the same time, and Laura’s knee took a beating from games twice a week.
This year, we made a day trip to the Annapolis Boat Show, where, surrounded by the latest and greatest sailboats, we confirmed that baji-naji is the right boat for us. That evening, we had dinner with a marina friend and his collection of crazy ocean racers. Wild stories, none of which encouraged Laura to sail the open seas.
Two days later, we got up before dawn to attend the EPL Fanfest, where NBC TV hosted 10,000 people to a party to watch soccer games from England and cheer and jeer with each other. It was wild, crazy, and fun!
The Thanksgiving rotation had us in White Plains NY for the feast, and gave us the opportunity to have breakfast with other NY friends. This was followed by the traditional Black Friday jam, which was both relaxing and enjoyable.
Once again, our band had to search for a new drummer, and we found one just in time to get ready for some gigs in ‘23.
In December, we flew down to Florida to see Dan’s Mom for her 88th birthday. The damage from Hurricane Ian was still apparent, and they don’t think that they’ll get the repairs completed on her condo until May or June! Crazy. But it was great to see her and Barb and Skip. Good food and good stories.
Christmas will be just the two of us, with random events spread across the end of the year.
2023 will bring the usual assortment of traditions and surprises, with milestone birthdays, reunions, gigs, soccer, sailing, and sunsets. Maybe we’ll see you out there somewhere.
Love,
Dan & Laura
