I'm sure we can all agree, 2020 has been quite challenging. The following events are some of the things that stood out to me this year that I believe affected the course of humanity, and are therefore worth noting.

- Hong Kong protests - This one hits close to home (literally, because I was born there and it actually was my first home). I'm torn with this issue because violence is never the right answer to me. And yet, I understand that this is the only way Communist China will listen. There is no way anyone (in this case, Hong Kong) should have to lay over and take it up the a** when facing wrongdoing (China's irrational rule). So I understand why Hong Kong feels the need to fight back. However, at the expense of hurting innocent civilians and the economy though? I mean I guess, letting China wear the pants is basically letting people get hurt anyway, just insidiously. I wish the UK would take HK back under its wing again. Not that China would EVER let that happen but you know, they lived peacefully like that for 50+ years. You'd think it'd be as easy as negotiating a deal that's fair for both sides and signing a contract again.

- Kobe's death - Kobe was an important role model to so many around the world, and he symbolized goodness, dedication, and invincibility. You didn't have to be his fan to feel the devastating impact his death had on the world. It just feels wrong for a legend like that to fall so suddenly and in such a trivial way. Not to mention his daughter too. It's always awful when a child's life is cut short.

- Covid-19 - *rolls eyes* I have way too many thoughts on this topic. First of all, is this not THE MOST annoying virus to ever exist? There being no end date in sight and misinformation being shared left right and center leading to fear propaganda...it's like being in an insane nightmare I can't wake up from. It's great that some people recover so easily from it, but the fact that this is the case is making society not take the virus seriously enough. Honestly what we should have done in the very beginning was shut down our city for 2 months like Wuhan did. Just get it over with for good. And when I say shut down, I mean everyone going on literal house arrest. It would be terrible, don't get me wrong. As opposed to now, we have to live with it and accept it as the norm. It's like living in a home with a bug infestation, and saying there's too many bugs so we're just going to have to live with them now. Like uh, what? Also if I hear the word "quarantine" one more time, I'm going to f*cking scream.

- Police brutality and George Floyd's death - Why do so many innocent people have to suffer/die before the rest of us become aware that we are allowing figures in power to use their power in evil ways? I mean, I'm sure policing is a tough gig and you'd have to be super desensitized in order to face criminals on a regular basis. I don't think you could be a successful cop if you were a sympathetic cop. (Cue the debates.) But being tough and being racist are two different things. You can be desensitized and relentless to dangerous human beings and NOT racist, right?

- Beirut explosion - I hope we humans learn from this, because it could have been prevented, big time. Store dangerous explosive materials away from highly populated cities. You don't say.

- Chadwick Boseman's death - It's always sad when a beloved hero leaves us for good. I never got to watch his other films but am deeply appreciative of his role as Black Panther. At the time, it was a refreshing take on the typical superhero mould that we were all familiar with. I'm finding that as I get older, I crave and value originality more and more. Because the older you get, the more things you see and experience, and the less opportunities there are to experiencing things for the first time. So anything new and never done before is really worth appreciating. I'm glad Chadwick was able to make me realize that, just now.

Well that was quite a handful. I hope I won't have more things to add by the end of the year. Take care of yourselves and be kind to one another. Earlier this year I witnessed two men fist-fighting in the middle of a busy street. I don't know the context but man, it just made me think how reactional and emotional you'd have to be, to ignore the world around you and your own safety, and just want to punch the lights out of another grown man. To say that we're all a little high-strung is probably the understatement of the year. Til next post.