2005, The Year in Review

So another year has passed. It seemed quick, as it usually does. And what a year!

For the world in general, it seems 2005 was not the best of years. Earthquakes, tsunamis, and wars were rampant. Most tragic of these disasters had to be the earthquake in India and Pakistan which killed more than 70,000 people. I felt that didn't get the media coverage it should have. The loss of life was unbelievable. This lack of media is probably because we had our own problems here in the US, with 27 named storms, five of those being "major" hurricanes. Katrina, of course, being the most destructive.

Pope John Paul II passed away and Cardinal Ratzinger was elected our new German pope, Benedict XVIth. And I took particular interest this year, the year I returned to the Catholic church.

On a more local level, Bismarck is exploding with new retail business and home construction. Hobby Lobby, Home Depot, Lowes, Kohls, Best Buy, and many other stores opened up during the last year. And many more are on the way, including no less than two Wal-Mart Supercenters and a Sam's Club. This is disheartening, in a way. The appeal of Bismarck was that it wasn't completely overrun by retail and ugly sprawling suburbia as far as the eye can see. Soon, we will be a carbon-copy of Fargo.

On a more personal level, my brother Ira and stepsister Lauren graduated from NDSU and UND, respectively, at the end of the fall semester.

My good friend, Melanie, was married on June 10th. My brother, Ira, proposed to his then-girlfriend Heather. She said yes, and she'll join the family in 2007.

This year, I was one lazy cyclist, though I did take part in a short bike tour, "Bike the Border," at the end of June. But Jesse, the adventurous fellow that he is, took off on a solo, unsupported bicycle tour of Australia around Christmas.

The tail end of my year was rather uneventful, spent at work in my cubicle and buried in books at home.

2006 is a big unknown. In February, I will be travelling to Rome for about two weeks. I am very much looking forward to that. And I'm planning on taking some bicycle tour, though I'm not sure where or with whom at this point.

Happy (very belated) New Year!