So, the last time I posted, I had been set to keep updating more regularly and excited for my upcoming trip to Germany for Oktoberfest.

Then it all hit the fan.

My trip was fantastic, actually. I adore Germany, and every place I went was fabulously photogenic. The food and wine were incredible. I even had a rainbow over Munich on my very last night there. Unforgettable!

Then, while I was flying home and planning my trip report, my mother had a serious fall. She had noticeable memory issues afterward, which resulted in multiple hospital visits and scans, at which point it was determined she had suffered a stroke. Soon after that, my parents came to stay with me, and more medical scans ensued.

In December, my mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The one silver lining of the stroke was that all the scanning and tests revealed the tumor early enough that it could be treated, when ordinarily that type is not discovered until it's too late.

I immediately started helping with her anti-cancer diet by delving into the subject of fermentation for foods that are nutritious and more easily digestible, like tempeh and sourdough. I spent quite a lot of my free time developing recipes and cooking.

We all know what happened in January. When federal workers were being fired in droves, I took stock of my financial situation. Since my job in agriculture inspection is part of border security, I'm mostly safe, but the future is uncertain. Fortunately, I have enough money in savings that if I absolutely had to, I could pay off the remainder of my mortgage. It wouldn't leave me much of a cushion, but at least I wouldn't have to worry about being homeless. And here in the Bay Area, property = money. If worse came to worst, I could always rent out my master bedroom as a studio apartment for income. <crosses fingers it won't get that bad>

Months of chemotherapy treatments for my mother ensued, forcing her to cancel her plan to travel with me on my birthday trip to Spain in April. Since all the hotel reservations for two had been in place for months, it would have been a shame to go by myself, so I managed to get a local friend to go with me instead.

Spain is amazing. Easter in Seville is a crazy experience. Genetically speaking, I'm 50% Mexican, which is a blend of indigenous North American and colonizing Spanish. Standing on the edge of the ocean from which Spain launched its ships toward the New World, next to the cathedral holding the remains of Christopher Columbus, I had many thinky thoughts about history. I also walked miles through the streets of several major cities, sampling the food and drinks and window shopping.

I could live in Spain. I could live in Germany, too. Based on the two days I spent in Lisbon, I could probably live in Portugal, but I'd want a larger sample first. (Yes, I've been researching countries outside the US where I could move if I had to, isn't everyone?)

Shortly after I returned from my trip, my beagle died. He was my first working beagle, and he was very special. That was a huge blow.

Some friends wanted to go to Japan with me, and I had reserved a week off in November, so we made an itinerary for a trip. My mother thought her treatments would be done by then, so she initially hoped to go along. However, she caught Covid and pneumonia over the summer, and that delayed her surgery to the point where she had to cancel. My friends also backed out because they decided their kids needed to grow a little older before they could behave properly on the trip, leaving me once again with bookings and no travel companions. I contacted the same person who accompanied me to Spain, and she agreed to go along to Japan as well. That's my big adventure, coming up tomorrow morning. I'll be traveling to a part of Japan that I've never visited before.

My mother finally had surgery to remove the tumor, and all indications are that it hadn't spread anywhere else. She's recovering to the point that she's no longer considered immuno-compromised, which is great, because she can leave the house and do things again.

I've recently taken up an additional hobby, spinning yarn, and it has revived my interest in YouTube. I used to have a channel a decade ago where I posted a couple videos about board games, but I stopped when I got a puppy. (It's hard to film videos with a baby border collie demanding attention.) I'm thinking of reviving and rebooting that channel to post videos about ALL my hobby and homesteading interests. I'm planning to work on that as soon as I get back from Japan.

As a side note, I am being affected by the government shutdown and have not been paid for any of my work in October. (As border security, I am considered essential and have to keep working.) My savings are sufficient to tide me over for a while, but I feel for people who don't have that to fall back on.