1. What brought you the most joy in 2025? If your answer this year is the same as it would have been last year, what brought you the second-most joy in 2025?
This is a tough question because 2025 has been a tough year, between the state of the country and my health. I think I had to find joy in little moments and for other people. LIke Man Child #3, who’s gotten promoted twice in less than six months. Like putting up the Christmas decorations, which make me happy.
2. What’s the best discovery you made in 2025?
That I really am one tough bitch. And also more of a rediscovery… my love of jook. I had it in the hospital, and then proceeded to eat it for just about every meal for the next month. What can I say? It’s delightful and comforting and I needed that after my surgeries.
3. What’s the best feel-good story of 2025?
Way harder to answer than I wish. I feel like it’s hard to remember much of anything good after this year, so I’m going to give several examples. Here’s some contenders…
- Steve Carell bought prom tickets for students affected by the LA fires. That’s using your wealth for good, giving those kids a night of normalcy after something so terrible.
- Natalie Grabow of Mountain Lakes, New Jersey. At 80, she became the oldest woman to successfully complete the Ironman World Championship Competition in Kailua-Kona, Hawai’i. Impressive, especially since she didn’t even learn how to swim until she was 59. The race: 2.4 miles swimming, 112 miles biking, 26.2 miles running.
- Trials have begun for the world’s first lung cancer vaccine, created by researchers from the University of Oxford and the University College London.
- The green sea turtle is no longer close to extinction. It’s now reclassified as a species of least concern. Levels were downgraded for another 20 animal species as well.
- The world’s largest protected marine area was established by French Polynesia.
- Poland eradicated the last remaining LGBT Ideology Free zone, after five years of politically sanctioned assault by the formerly-in-power right-wing Law and Justice party. The party pressured regional and local governments to discourage tolerance, as well as cut funding to any organization that promoted nondiscrimination and gender equality.
4. What was your best small win in 2025? If it’s the same as your answer to #5 last week, what’s next on the list?
My answer to that was surviving, which was pretty big. So I don’t think it counts for this one. Small accomplishment… honestly I can’t think of something worthy of being the best. It’s been an off year; what can I say?
5. What was the kindest thing a stranger did for you in 2025?
There was a nurse in the ER at the Kaiser Permanente hospital who was super kind to me. I’d just been told that I needed to have a thrombectomy immediately for my pulmonary embolism, and that it came with a 9-15% risk of a brain bleed. I was alone, the hubs on the way. I freaked out. She’s the nurse I talked about here. She distracted me by talking all things Hello Kitty with me, and she made me feel seen. <3
Leave a Reply