Gee, THAAAAANKS 2020.

 So, this year was supposed to be the BIG year for The Dead End.  The big 20th party blowout.  I was so excited, had so many ideas, so STOKED for it that I sent out virtual invitations back at the end of January!  Then March rolled around, and the Covid pandemic hit here in the US, and now it's in full swing, which means a lot of people are paranoid about attending parties.  I get it, I understand.  People are scared.  Some people are vulnerable to the virus.  I myself am not worried about it.  Disease and death is part of life, and I won't hide in fear because of it.  I was going to have my party anyway.  If you're that worried, then just don't attend, right?  

On top of that issue, we have the Presidential election the Tuesday before my party would have been.  Now, we all know what politics does to family ties and friendships, and this election is probably the most heated and nasty topic around today, even moreso than the Covid issue, which also is also political if you ask some people.  I decided I don't want to deal with the conversations about politics at my party.  I just can't deal with that after seeing and hearing it EVERYWHERE, nonstop.  The hatred is just sickening to me, and I don't want to have any of it here at my house.  I keep my political and pandemic opinions to myself mostly, because I would rather keep my family and friends on good terms.  

So, with all that in mind, I chose to cancel my party.  It was a very hard decision for me.  But I factored in things like the fact that I just started a new job and am still in the 90 days probation period, so I won't have the PTO to take a week off, which would make it impossible to get all the work done that can't be done well in advance that week prior.  We have a ton of remodeling in the works inside our house that I'm doing myself, and I can't work and get it all done at the same time.  I have a crapload of props that need refurbishing, that can't get done before Halloween even, so the yard setup won't be on point.  Plus a host of other things that are working against me this year.  My dumb ass would try to do it all anyway if this year wasn't the year of the plague, in more ways than one, but the stress would get to me and I don't want to put my family through that, especially my husband, who is always incredibly supportive and always take most of the frustration from me.

Next year, I WILL have my party.  I WILL make it the biggest, best party to date, and it will be amazing.  I just have a lot of extra time now to get ready for it.  Silver lining and all.....