What I Learned in December

Another month of learning  has come to a close - almost, anyway - and today I wanted to share with you the things I've learned this December! (I have also learned that I can't believe tomorrow is the last day of 2019, though I didn't include that below.)

1. I do not have a future in professional ice skating.

I shuffled around the ice for the first time in my life this month, clinging to my little blue seal walker that I named Louis, and from all video footage, I fully believe that I looked like I was a patient in Ryan's hospital. I don't know that I'll ever find a measure of greatness on the ice. But I didn't fall. How in the world people spin and twirl and land on that itty bitty blade is beyond me, though I love watching them do it!)

2. Going back to work is such an overwhelming adventure!

After four years of staying home full time, I've (at least temporarily) re-entered the working world. Not only is it very interesting to get up and ready early...and pack a lunch again, it's a huge adjustment in being away from Ryan, learning to get in all my water and steps while sitting behind a desk, and oh my. There is SO MUCH TO LEARN! I am profoundly grateful that although He didn't have to do so, God worked it out that I could train and then have a bit of a break to get everything in order at home before actually beginning the job. I now spend most of my evenings wondering what I forgot throughout the day and if I thoroughly and irreparably messed anything up for anyone else.

3. You don't have to have any kind of training or license to own a recreational boat - even if you're going out to sea.

Ryan and I watched a documentary on the Bermuda Triangle (we are strange!) and we learned that there is no law in our country that requires boat owners to go through any kind of maritime training, even if they're planning to travel out in the ocean. Boy, I'd sure want some training! And I would like the drivers around me to have had the same.

4. Typing my journal entries works better for me (at least right now).

I've been keeping a journal since I was 15 years old. I have scads of good, old fashioned paper journals filled to the brim with thoughts, prayers, confusion, ideas, and so much more. I treasure every one of them, and I always will. But throughout the last year, I discovered my journaling has become quite disjointed. My thoughts move about three times the speed of my ability to handwrite, and sometimes my words became completely illegible on the page as I tried to scribble thoughts out as quickly as they came in. I had planned to make this switch at the new year, but I decided to start early, and about halfway through December, I started typing out my thoughts instead. I love it because I can keep up with my thoughts (and read what I wrote!). I am able to clear my head so much better. Maybe one day I'll go back to handwriting, but for now, I love this format.

5. The numbers 911 were chosen for a specific reason.

I was reading an article about life fifty years ago, and one of the points mentioned that 911 didn't exist back then. It went on to say that when it was created, the numbers were chosen because they had never been used for an area code or service code.

6. Hobby Lobby at 9 a.m. the day after Christmas is akin to Black Friday. Go at your own risk and be prepared to be trampled over a discounted roll of wrapping paper. 

Ryan and I planned to go look for after-Christmas sales on December 26th. We didn't have an agenda, but it just worked out that we were in the neighborhood of Hobby Lobby right when it opened. We stopped and watched people speed-walking into the store as the doors opened. When we got inside, it was a free-for-all, and people were pushing and grabbing and cutting off those around them. I was neither prepared nor caffeinated. We grabbed a few treasures and then decided our time there was done. No need to die over a bag of bows.

So there you have it! A few random things I've learned this month! How about you?