2024 New Year’s Resolution

My New Year’s Resolution for 2024 was a bit off the beaten path for resolutions: I wanted to be out of Tucson for at least 12 weekends, ideally once a month. I knew that a majority of my focus for the year was going to be on Lodestar. So I wanted a resolution that would encourage me to find some novelty and diversity, without being overly burdensome.

In the end, my trips were a bit more clumped than I had hoped. But, I still had a lot of adventure this year. From beautiful nature, to joyful times with friends, it’s easy to find reasons for gratitude in the past year.

1. Sedona Round 1 (February)

My first trip of the year had some twists. Twists like having RSV or something the whole trip, or falling on an agave plant and literally nearly losing an eye. But it’s hard to overstate how beautiful the color juxtapositions of the red rocks, evergreens, and pure white snow was.

2. Vegas (February)

This night in Vegas seeing a Benny Benassi show contained one of the most memorable conversations of the year. I was at a table with a group of neurosurgeons who had covered for the wild evening. I was in a delicate headspace because this was before we’d started consulting, so I was feeling a lot of financial pressure and a tinge of, let’s admit it, masculine fragility.

Halfway through the night, well past sobriety, one of the doctors pulls me over and shows me his phone. “Check this out. It’s my list of startup ideas. It’s so cool that you get to just follow your dreams and start your own company.” I quipped back, “Hey, all you have to do is go do it. You could start one!” He just grunted. “No I can’t; I’ve got golden handcuffs. I’d lose my house, my girlfriend would leave me. I’ve gotta pay alimony. You’re free.”

I’d spent the whole night envious of these guys throwing money around. You know, they’d really made it in life. And yet…

3. Kentucky Round 1 (June)

You know your family is cool when you can text “Hey, I’m coming into town” three days before you show up and there’s still an impromptu cookout for you with 20 people (and three more on the way).

The trip to KY was also a great time to catch up with the nuclear family and spend too much time playing Stronghold Crusader with Mahlon.

4. North Carolina (June)

A night out on the town in Durham. That evening was a good reminder that time’s flying by, that everyone is changing (in good ways!), and that it’s absolutely worth finding the time to catch up with old friends.

Another highlight of this time was getting to meet Wes’ and Sherif’s kids for the first time. Energy for days.

5. New York City (June)

Speaking of catching up with old friends, I did a lot of that in NYC too. But, this was my first time getting to wander around NYC at night by myself, and I was surprised by how pleasant it was! My baseline is SF. At least in my initial impressions, there’s no comparison. I saw more cops in NYC than I did homeless people.

But… SF is prettier, if sleepier.

6. Sedona Round 2 (October)

Even though this was an out of town trip for a wedding, this photo is a great representation of the appreciation I’ve felt this year for my Tucson crew. And even though this is a boys pic, the women in my Tucson life are equally amazing humans.

7. Denver (November)

This is a goofy representation of my third year at ASHG. I took it a bit more chill this year. I didn’t even lose my voice. I was hoping that I’d be inspired to write up an entire post on ASHG. But between the sizable amount of time I spent catching up with people in 1:1 conversations and the seeming lack of significant innovation this year, there wasn’t much I felt like talking about.

8. Gaithersburg (November)

Snack fridge…

9. Grand Canyon (November)

When your Canadian friend says she wants to see the Grand Canyon, you make it happen. And you sing road trip karaoke the whole way there.

10. Cochise (November)

This photo has to be dedicated to community and the work of community building. Community has been a reoccurring theme this year.

While this picture was taken on Thanksgiving day, it resonates with my Thankful this year during Friendsgiving. I wrote up a few notes to myself before opening the circle. Here they are:

• Every year, I get it easy.
• I get to be the first to say, “I’m thankful for friends for my community!” And then you all have to figure out something to say so it doesn’t sound like you’re a copy cat.
• But also, some of you have been hearing me say versions of this for 10 years now. So I gotta keep it fresh.
• It’s been a heady, existential year. I’ve had so many conversations about our purpose in life. About self worth and confidence. About what it means to be successful. About what it means to fail.
• I’m sure I’m not alone in this headspace. Especially for those of us who are more goal oriented, it’s tempting to measure life by progress towards those goals and as a side effect it’s also tempting to form this hierarchy and rank yourself and others relative to these goals.
• I’m so glad I’m in a community that’s been able to instill in me that life is more complex than that linear perspective.

• This year, like always, I’m thankful for each of you. But more specifically, this year, I really appreciate the aspects of each of you that make you unique and weird individuals. And I hope you appreciate those things about yourself too.

• People who take night hikes to look for bugs
• People who host and attend puberty themed birthday parties

• People who do group photo shoots of rainbows in their underwear

• So again, what I’m truly thankful for is each one of you and the uniqueness you contribute to the world. Thanks you for existing.

11. San Francisco (December)

Every time I visit San Francisco, I see something new. Every time I visit San Francisco, it feels more like home than any other city I’ve visited.

12. Kentucky Round 2 (December)

Speaking of home, there’s nothing like visiting secret little spots you first discovered when you were 10. These places trigger an acute nostalgia that call into question your understanding of time.