I say this with the utmost sincerity...I cannot believe 2025 is less than a week away. Another year is about to be gone forever and a new one will take its place. But first, I must take a moment or two to reflect on what 2024 was to me. Let's journey back in time shall we?
January and February were slow months of the year where nothing super exciting happened. Sure there were geocaching events, days and evenings spent with friends, and other simple life moments that occurred. But if I included all of them, this would become a book. I did however have nine trips set into motion for this year, but did they all pan out? Read on to find out.
March came in swiftly and brought forth an unexpected wedding invite. I do enjoy weddings so when I got the invitation, I RSVP'd without hesitation. The cool thing about attending it was that I ran into someone there who used to work at my company and was able to shoot the breeze with them about the intricacies of our job. It was a lovely wedding and I wish you both the very best. Congrats again Nick and Kimberly!
Before March moved along for the year, my first big trip of 2024 took place. I bought a plane ticket to San Francisco for my first return there since 2019. I was once again meeting up with Josh Toly and once again it was mainly for baseball reasons. This was my last chance to see a game in the Oakland Coliseum. Once the baseball season ended in 2024, the Athletics would be leaving Oakland for good. Even though this ballpark was falling apart, it was still iconic to both baseball and football history. So I had to go and check it off the list. I chose the home opener so I could see the last home opener in the Oakland Coliseum and my Cleveland Guardians were in town. It was a really good thing I did because Guardian ace Shane Bieber pitched a beauty of a game and it was one of the only two games he pitched before requiring Tommy John surgery, thus ending his season. It may have also been the last time he pitched in a Guardians uniform as he is a free agent now. Other highlights included getting seats in the lower portion one section behind the dugout dirt cheap, going to two games back to back, nearly getting a game ball that Josh Naylor threw over to our section, seeing the Guards get two wins, and being able to be by the dugout as Guardians players were interviewed at the end of the game.
I also checked off a two bucket list items while I was here. I was able to walk the Golden Gate Bridge end-to-end and I rode the cable cars through the streets of San Francisco. I only got pics of the bridge though.
April wasted no time throwing the first curveball, but also providing a once in a lifetime moment. The first weekend I had planned to go down to Columbus to attend a Mega geocaching event. Then right after I was going to attend the Flyers vs Blue Jackets NHL game for my second NHL game ever. But then, in a whim of fate, the geocaching event was cancelled and my first failed trip happened. I got over that real quick because two days later, a total solar eclipse occurred over Ohio. I've seen a handful of eclipses in my life, but never a total solar eclipse. I took the day off work and gathered in Elyria, OH with a bunch of geocaching friends to witness this incredible event. For a brief period of time, the moon blocked out the sun, the parking lot lights came on, and day turned into night. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen. If you ever get a chance to see an eclipse in totality, do it. You won't regret it.
Mayday! Mayday! We have entered the month of May. The weather was getting warmer and summer was drawing near. But that excitement would have to wait because an epic week-long adventure was un the works. Geowoodstock, one of the biggest geocaching events of the year was happening in Flagstaff, AZ. I hadn't been to one since 2018, but I've spent less than 3 hours in the state of Arizona and there was a week long trip organized beforehand. I couldn't pass this one up. So the week before, a group nine of us flew into Phoenix where we met up with a local geocacher by the name of Craig. We all spent that week traveling all over Arizona and even dipped into New Mexico. There's so much I could put here, but for length's sake, I'll put the big high lights.
The first day we trekked through the Arizona desert, looking for geocaches especially...
...the oldest geocache in Arizona!
Day 2 saw us venture into Tombstone, AZ. Home of the O.K. Corral and where Wild West legends Wyatt Earp and Doc Holiday roamed. It felt so surreal to be able to walk through the center of town, down the dirt road, and as the sun was beginning to set. We also got dinner at a saloon in town and the kicker was they were playing the movie Tombstone (which is a fantastic movie and you should watch it if you haven't). What was an unexpected moment, became a legendary memory.
Day 3 we took a detour into New Mexico (another new state off the 50 states goal), but our stay was brief as we cached our way back into Arizona. We stopped by road-side scenic views and eventually ended up in the Petrified Forest. We saw it at sunset which was incredible. Of the handful of national parks I've been to, the Petrified Forest is now one of my favorites.
Day 4 we traveled part of Route 66 to stand on the corner in Winslow, AZ, followed by the Meteor Crater, and then 200+ geocache trail up rocky roads into the hills. It was a good thing we had Jeeps!
The last few days brought three heavy hitters. Sedona. The Grand Canyon. And Geowoodstock. The Grand Canyon was a big bucket list item of mine and it was surreal. Someday I'll have to return and explore it even more. Oh and I went 0.7 of a mile into an underground cave which was pretty intense too. Arizona was a blast.
June brought the long awaited summer season, another wedding, and more travel. Dear friends David and Sarah tied the knot and had a reception that was a potluck meal provided by all those in attendance. What a fun time that was! Congrats David and Sarah!
For the first time in 10 years, I was Boston bound. It was a bit surreal that I was headed back. Last time was in the dead of winter and I only spent hardly more than 24 hours there. This time I was going to see a friend, explore the city, and check Fenway off the MLB ballpark tour. And while it was a short trip, the adventure was memorable.
July was a mini roller coaster as it started off with my second cancelled trip of the year. I was finally going to get to Florida, check another ballpark off the list, and so much more. But due to a series of foreseen and unforeseen circumstances, including sitting in the plane on the tarmac waiting for takeoff, Florida once again alluded me. Be the month wasn't a total loss as I had an awesome 4th of July at the Greenwood's dwelling where we shot off high end fireworks to our hearts' content. I also served at a high school camp for a part of a week and once again returned to the Midwest Geobash where it's always a blast to hang with friends from all over for a few days.
August caught me by surprise as on the 6th, tornadoes tore through northeast Ohio. For the first time in my 21 years here, I actually took shelter, albeit briefly. I was concerned my massive sycamore tree was toast, but she still stood, like a rock. I was without power for less than 24 hours which was a blessing as most in the area lost it for 3-5 days. It took 3 days for the internet to come back on, but that's a minor inconvenience compared to what could've been. But the crazy thing was that a well-known youtuber in the pokemon go community, who is from Singapore, was touring the US and chose to visit our community at Lakewood Park. About 20 or so of us showed up even though there were trees down and power was out everywhere. The youtuber, Brandon Tan, had good 5G coverage and created a hotspot so a bunch of us could still play. It was a cool experience and I'm glad he chose to visit us. Here's a link to that video he posted of the time and I make a few appearances in it.
In later August, three big things happened. I got summoned for jury duty for the second time in my life, my office was relocating and renovating, so I had to work from home for a few months, and our family vacation to my homeland in Pennsylvania. I looked into deferring jury duty to a later date so it wouldn't conflict with vacation and an upcoming destination wedding. I was successful and my new date would take place in October. My return to PA was a good time as always. Saw a lot of family and longtime friends, did a little disc-golfing, and made another return to the sweetest place on earth, Hershey Park.
September was for San Diego. My last major adventure of the year. I was planning on visiting in 2023, but after John told me in NYC that his wedding was taking place there in 2024, I decided to wait until then. Well, "then" has arrived. My original plan was to go for 8 days because I wanted to catch a Padres MLB game as their last home game was the weekend before the wedding. But after I saw what it was going to cost to stay that long and having traveled a lot this year, I decided to save the Padres for another time and shorten my trip to 4 days. But 4 days was still totally worth it. The weather was beautiful out there. I got an airbnb for the first two nights and I was hosted by an extremely lovely couple. My stay with them was fantastic as they were very welcoming and I had no problem coming and going as I pleased. I spent the first day exploring La Jolla and managed to squeeze in a Cali sunset I didn't think I was going to see due to clouds. I finished off that evening meeting up with John, Tim, and Jay, a face I hadn't seen in a few years, but reconnected as if time hadn't passed at all.
Day 2 I checked off a bucket list item by visiting the San Diego Zoo. I arrived in the morning with John, Sam (and his family), Jay, John & Sam's parents, and their cousin Vincent and his family. The zoo lived up to its hype and 10/10 would recommend, but the cost of admission is in the ballpark of an amusement park ticket. After the zoo, I made sure to check another item off the list by seeing an MLB game. I took my rental car and drove 2 hours north up the I-5 to L.A. Well it was three hours with L.A. traffic, There I found myself at historic Dodger Stadium for the final home game of the Dodgers regular season. They were playing the Padres (ironic ain't it?) in an attempt to clinch the division. With so many stars on both teams (Ohtani, Machado, Freeman, Tatis, Betts, etc) it was a real treat to watch. The Dodgers came back from behind to win the game and clinch the division. That made ballpark #16 for me with only 14 left to go.
Day 3 I left my airbnb and headed for the hotel. But first I had to pick up Stephen J from the airport and meet up with Jesse and Natalia. We had a blast exploring other parts of San Diego for the afternoon. Stephen and I went back to the hotel and found out there was a beach access in the Del Mar neighborhood within walking distance from the hotel. We had to check it out. We found the nearly hidden stair access and what my eye landed on was truly breath-taking. A clean, nearly people-less beach with foamy pacific waves lapping the shore. And there, on the horizon, was one of the most incredible sunsets I laid my eyes on. I took off my shoes and let my toes dig into the sand. And I just stared at the beauty before me. I did not know it then, but Stephen came up behind me and started snapping pics. I'm glad he captured that moment. Eventually the sun disappeared beyond the horizon, and we headed back into down town San Diego to spend an evening with the bride and groom to be as well as many other beloved friends who made the trip out.
Day 4 was finally wedding day. I've said it before and I'll say it again; I truly love weddings. The location was epic, the weather was perfect, the atmosphere was wonderful, and the night was just magical. Congrats again John & Lydia!
October turned out to be a very chill month. This was the month I pushed jury duty to. I called in the night before every day during the week, and it turned out they did not need me at all and my service was considered complete. So no jury duty for me in round two.
November was a month for lots of social events. A college conference, some cornhole and chili, fall fires, a mini church conference, multiple friendsgivings, and to a mini reunion with friends I haven't seen in awhile in Hocking Hills. The weather was fantabuluos and it actually felt like we had a normal Fall for once.
PC: Caitlin Ciulla
And now here we are in December. I just returned from my brother's place in the Baltimore area where we spent the Christmas holiday. If I had to sum up 2024 in a single word, it would be adventure. I believe this blog reflects that. And I know more awaits me in 2025. I thank you for reading this mini book and I wish you all the best 2025 can bring. And whatever trials may come, I pray you can whether those storms. Stay well my dear friends and I look forward to a fresh year with y'all.
