Christmas 2015
Seems like Christmas Day hiking is a new normal here in New Jersey. We did the same thing last year because it was so warm. It's rather fitting, as we did lots of hiking this year.
We spent time in Colorado. Mom went to Colorado last year and had a bad fall while visiting Sue. First I went in March to see her, and then Monika and I went in September. We visited with her and did a bunch of hiking. Mom has been recovering and she is doing great.
Anna continues to work at the Science Museum, London as an Exhibition Content Developer. She is working on an exhibit about Robots that will go on display in the future.
Things are not too different from last year. Eva lives in Montclair, NJ and works in New York at Barkley Kalpak Agency. She helps to create events for corporate clients. Maria lives in Rochester, NY where she is doing freelance graphic design and working at other jobs to make ends meet. Monika is working as a Polish interpreter for the Superior Court of NJ, and I'm working for myself, keeping computer networks running and programming websites like this one.
Monika and I spend time together, traveling and seeing things. We took a few days this fall in the Adirondacks to enjoy the scenery. I have made a few trips to Rush help my sister Sue with mom's house. I have started scanning our huge family collection of photos, some of which can be seen here. Dad was a huge photo bug, and so were a few other members of our family. I have spent time with my Aunt Mary (my dad's sister) and Cousin Gilbert (my mom's cousin) trying to identify the people in the pictures. I estimate that there are around 20,000 images in total. This work could go on for a long time, so I do a little scanning and then some detective work to identify the pictures. Part of the picture identification requires knowing the family tree, so I have also been doing genealogy research, picking up where my mom and dad left off.
I've spent lots of time looking at pictures this year, and I think this is the one I like best. It was taken in the Rocky Mountains this September when Monika and I were hiking. We stopped to take a picture of this beautiful mountain lake when two fishermen appeared and started fly-casting. Here's to the hope that you can go someplace as pretty as this and have the time to do something you enjoy with your friends and family. Be sure to take time away from your regular life to relax and enjoy the important things.
Peace be with you and your family in the coming year.
