I don’t know that I’ve ever consciously done this before,
but with the new year upon us I decided to take a look back at 2017
before looking forward to 2018. It was a
busier year than I realized once I started scrolling through my photos and I
think this is something I’ll start trying to do every year.
What did I do this year?
For starters I spent a week at Disney World with my mom
celebrating our birthdays. We take a
trip together every year and this was our second time at Disney. On our first trip we had a breakfast at the
Animal Kingdom Lodge and I made it my goal to stay there when we went back so that mom could go out on a balcony every morning to watch the animals. We weren’t disappointed!
Sports were a big part of the year. Growing up in Detroit I became a Red Wings
fan in high school. 2017 was the last
year for the team to play at Joe Louis Arena, and a friend took me to see one last game
there…my first since I was in college.
Early in the baseball season, we went to see the Tigers play the Indians
in Cleveland. Detroit got the win that
day and gave me completely unwarranted optimism for the season ahead. Of course there were plenty of Monsters games
through the year too, including free glass seats behind the goal for a game
which were outstanding! At the end of
the 2016-2017 season the casino downtown held a photo contest to give away 3
signed goalie sticks from the Calder Cup winning team the previous year. My friend had a great idea for how we should
pose and she won! That stick is one of
my prized possessions and hangs in my living room where I can look at it daily.
There were plenty of shows and events through the year
too. I saw the Avatar Cirque du Soleil
show and more concerts than I’ve seen in years thanks to a ticket sale promo in
the spring, including one combining Joan Baez, Mary Chapin Carpenter and the
Indigo Girls. I finished my third half
marathon, and we signed up to do our fourth next year. I visited Alabama for the first (and last)
time and New Orleans for the first (and hopefully not last) time. I had the privilege of seeing an
inspirational Tuskegee Airmen speak one afternoon at work. I spent time with close friends that I don’t
see nearly often enough. And I visited
my family in Michigan to see my nephew compete in the “Battle of the Books” and
sing in “Bye Bye Birdie.”
It was a good year for my Type 1, too. My 2 visits to the endocrinologist brought
new record low a1c results of 5.1 and 5.4%.
I volunteered to be a mentor to newly diagnosed adults…though it appears
many of them are as reluctant to ask for help as I was. I shared 16 blog posts that included sharing
the horror and triumph of an insulin
overdose, showing the 248
needles and 292 test strips I used in a month, and explaining why the
ongoing health
care debate scares me. I posted 5
days in a row during my first ever Diabetes
Blog Week, and talked about my theory on a potential
cause for my diagnosis. Sadly,
the T1D community and the world lost Mary Tyler Moore, who like me was
diagnosed as an adult. She was the
International Chairman of JDRF for over 30 years and a strong voice advocating
for Type 1 awareness and research.
What’s coming in 2018?
That fourth half marathon for sure, though my friend and I both have
some serious work to do if we want to set a new record! I’d like to go ice skating this year, I’ve
been thinking about it recently and I’d love to get back on the ice. We’re talking about another trip to Detroit
to see a Red Wings game, this time at the new Little Caesars Arena. More time with my family, and less time
saying “we should get together more often” to friends. In the T1D space, I want to maintain my a1c below
5.5 and maybe bring it down further.
Though saying it is meaningless without follow through, I’d like to spend
more time blogging and sharing T1 news on my Facebook page. I’m also looking for more ways to get
involved with JDRF, but I’m not sure what that looks like yet.
2017 was a good year and I’m grateful to every one of you
that has joined me along the way. There
were over 1,200 views of the posts I wrote this year, which is pretty amazing
considering I expected just a few people to tag along – and 2 of them I call Mom
and Dad! Thank you all for being
engaged, thank you for supporting me and thank you for being part of my
life. Happy New Year!
- Epcot with Mom
- Waiting to get into Joe Louis Arena
- Bourbon Street in New Orleans
- Progressive Field for Tigers vs. Indians
- Running the 50/50 for JDRF at the Cleveland Monsters
- Tuskegee Airman Dr. Harold Brown
- Cleveland Rite Aid half marathon medal
- Signed Cleveland Monsters goalie stick
- Monsters glass seats behind the goal
