Happy New Year!

Another week, another year has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. Thankfully, today finds us in good health, peace and contentment.

Wendy's done Puzzle One

I have little time for New Year's celebrations. If they did it at a Solstice or an Equinox, I'd give it more consideration, but this is just an artificial designation. There are some aspects of our lives that are impacted by the turning of the year, so I do take notice of those. As I do each year, and on occasion, much more often, I review how I'm doing on my investment project. This year, I've chosen to do a write up of my thirteen years in the markets, and attempt to describe my latest permutation of my investment strategies. I won't bother you all with the details, but if you wish to check it out, it's on my blog. Read at your own risk! We are long since retired, and busier than ever! The pandemic has interfered markedly with our plans and activities. We long for the time when we can travel freely, and visit our loved ones around the world. We also have a few adventures on our Bucket List, so, we hope for a time when we can pursue more of those. But, for now, the pandemic rages stronger than ever with the Omicron variant building case numbers higher than ever before. It must be observed that the count of virus infections has always been lower than the reality, but it is even more true during this wave. Omicron appears to be producing much milder symptoms, and with its surge, many jurisdictions are even refusing to test or count low-symptom victims. Still we find all USA states and all provinces reporting out-of-control infection rates. Recall that 100 infections per million is considered the control limit—there are 17 states, and 1 province reporting (emphasis on reporting) over 1000 infections per million! There are 44 states and 6 provinces reporting over 500 infections per million! It is way out of control! The potential candle in this darkness is the lower hospitalization rates for Omicron. There is much discussion over why this may be happening, and until a conclusion is determined, we remain in suspense, but hopeful. We got a major snowstorm last weekend, and finally cleared the driveway on Tuesday. It was a big job! Then, we got a bit more snow on Wednesday, but that didn't add up to much. We only had three days of market action this week due to the holidays, but we managed to close the year with a gain, and achieve our yearly quota for the first time in five years—thanks, uncle Joe! The hockey season has been severely impacted by the latest pandemic surge—many games have been postponed. The highly anticipated participation of the NHL players at the Olympics has been cancelled. The Junior hockey World Championship was cancelled after the first few games! Many provincial curling championships are impacted as well. I remain hopeful for the Scotties scheduled for the end of the month here in Thunder Bay, but that is by no means assured. The Bowl season continues in football. My Sooners won the Alamo Bowl comfortably. The Cowboys won the Fiesta Bowl today with a big second half comeback. The Longhorns did not qualify for a bowl game this year. In the NHL, my Oilers continue to falter, but remain in playoff contention. They've lost the last two games in OT. The Pens and Leafs have suffered many players lost to virus protocol, but are getting them back now. Jayhawks continue to rack up the wins, but they are not on TV up here very often. 

The Baileys passed a frigid holiday season in Prince Albert, but they did get out for a few celebrations with their friends. They enjoyed having Liam home, and extend warm thoughts and prayers for Haaken and Greg in Victoria and Kenora, respectively. 

Erin and Kristian are likewise hunkered down in frigid Regina as the cold snap for western Canada has been pronounced. They got in some time with Shawn, Astrid and Liam. Erin also had some days of work this week. Kristian's return to classes is a bit in doubt; we wait to hear of the plans for that. 

Travis and Joanna have remained busy catching up on all the photo sessions they got in before Christmas. With pandemic protocols it is questionable whether they will have more team photo sessions. We were able to enjoy some time with them over the break, including Christmas Turkey Dinner, and New Year Chinese Supper tonight with the whole family. 

And that's enough for this week!