Hoofing it to 2025
Phew! Thanksgiving was later than usual this year, and it felt like I was barely recovered from all the turkey before I was late to mail cards again. Last year’s recap started with an apology if you received a card after Christmas; this year is apparently no different.
Since writing up last year’s reflections and guest writing ian newsletter’s October recap, I’ve honestly missed putting thoughts to (metaphorical) pen. So here we go again! Buckle up, it might be a long one.
Where did I go?
Travels end up being some of the most exciting things to tell people about, so here’s a rundown of where I’ve been this year.
May: Taiwan
A 2 week trip to Taiwan with my parents. It was the first time I’ve traveled internationally in a while, and on top of that I haven’t traveled with my parents since before COVID, and I had a blast. The food is amazing, the cities are very lively, and the landscape is beautiful! I met some extended family for the first time, and spending quality time with my parents was fun and wholesome. Randomly traveled the same dates as my friend Ziwei so we hung out and got to tour the Google office in Taipei 101. I’d love to go back! (To Taiwan, not specifically the Google office lol.)
June: Mexico
Mexico City (with coworkers) & Cancun (with work). Watched Lucha Libre and ate lots of tacos in CDMX... and then got food poisoning, which put a bit of a damper on the rest of the trip. Be careful out there!! Would go back for a non-food-poisoned experience.
The Cancun leg was a company offsite at a resort. It was a beautiful and crazy and fun couple days. We took over a nightclub for a night and spent lots of time in the pool. A great few days of bonding with my coworkers.
July: The Olympic Peninsula and Seattle.
Colleen and I took a trip out west to Olympic National Park and Mt. Rainier. We joked that this trip was our honeymoon—just two girls sharing a bed on vacation. During the week it was hikes and nature galore! There was a day where we went from hiking along a river in Olympic National Park to taking a dip in the lake to a swim in the hotel pool to an evening ocean walk at a La Push beach. Four bodies of water (if you can count a pool) in one day!
One of our stops was Forks, WA. For the uninitiated: it’s where the Twilight series takes place, and they’ve really leaned into it. Colleen & I meandered around Forks and basically every store was plastered in Twilight paraphernalia. I’ve read the books dozens of times (I really liked Twilight in middle school lol) and was really enjoying all the references on t-shirts.
Afterward we finished up at Rainier, we made our way back to Seattle and spent the weekend with our college friends. Ate some food, kayaked, took the Underground Tour of the city. Fun stuff!
Honorable mentions (shorter trips)
Hung out in Chicago with Ian’s family, western Massachussetts to visit mine, followed by Boston (Ian’s first time!), and we ended up in Ithaca twice this year for reunion & a wedding.
Spent a handful of days in Denver working and hanging out with some of Ian’s friends from high school, then seeing our college friend get married! Mazel tov!
Took a spontaneous trip up to Syracuse with Hansen to see the total eclipse. Would totally go out of my way to see it again. See you Aug. 12, 2045! Google says that one will span coast to coast.
I brought Michelle to Thanksgiving in upstate New York at my aunt’s house, and saw my cousin get engaged—we love love!!!!
Local activities
When not traveling, I’m still up to the usual shenanigans in New York.
My weekends typically consist of eating good food, birthday parties, karaoke, bar crawling, or just hanging out at home.
When the weather was nice, we grilled and went to the beach and did other warm weather activities. Ended up going to a handful of concerts (my favorite was Khruangbin at Forest Hills Stadium) and the US Open in the fall. These days we’re just trying to stay warm indoors.
We went to two weddings in the city, one in Central Park and one at the TWA Hotel near JFK. If you don’t know about the TWA hotel, you’re missing out on a really cool airport themed hotel with a cool origin story and amazing architecture.
I threw a big birthday bash in September at a local beach-themed bar called Surf Bar, which was one of my favorite nights of this year. Sand under my feet, disco music in the air, surrounded by my friends!
What else is new?
Honestly... not much! Ian and I live in the same apartment, I work the same job. I got a promotion in January of this year, but that feels like forever ago. (I guess Ian got a new job in 2024—twice—but this is my recap soooo...)
I built a PC at the beginning of this year, which was a first for me. And went to physical therapy for some funny loosey-goosey joint business. But really I didn’t really pick up any new hobbies or activities this year; I’m still climbing, playing tennis (occasionally), playing video games, music, etc. I’m trying to start running, but it’s an uphill battle (sometimes literally). Cardio is so hard.
On a sad note, my family lost one of our pups, Caesar, this year to a kidney issue. Pet deaths are so devastating and difficult to process; they are so loyal and pure—they should get to live forever! But I’m grateful for the many years of companionship, and that we still have more time with Coby. ❤️
In closing
Before I started writing, I honestly not much had happened, and I didn’t have much to say. But looking back, I think it’s just felt like it has gone very quickly. Maybe just a symptom of getting older. :)
I’ve got a lot (tentatively) planned for 2025, and I can’t wait to get started. Grateful for each and every one of you reading this, and I hope I see you next year!
Cheers to 2025!
x Cindy
...and a final reel of pics
