The Best and Worst of 2020

 As I said in the resolutions post, 2020 was the worst year ever! But not everything was bad. There were some good things that came out of it, as well as some adaptations made such as streaming concerts in place of live ones. So the Best Concert category will temporarily change to "Best streaming Concerts" So here is this years lists...

Best Albums of 2020:

Nights of the Dead, Legacy of the Beast, Live in Mexico City - A live album by Iron Maiden

CMFT- A solo album by Corey Taylor 

A Forest - An EP by BEHEMOTH

We are Chaos - by Marilyn Manson. A mix of goth rock with country featuring Shooter Jennings

Black Anima - by Lacuna Coil. It came out last year, but it's new to me.

Best Songs of 2020:

1. Corey Taylor Must Be Stopped - by Corey Taylor

2. As Above So Below - by In This Moment

3. We Are Chaos - by Marilyn Manson

4. Ordinary Man - by Ozzy Osbourne ft Elton John

5. Death by Rock and Roll - by The Pretty Reckless

6. My hands are Empty - by Machine Head

Best New Groups of 2020:

1 The HU

Best Streaming Concerts of 2020:

1. Behemoth's In Absentia Dei

2. Corey Taylor's CMFT at the Forum

Best Movie's of 2020:

1. Hamilton - Broadway play recorded and shown on Netflix

2. Freaky - haven't seen it yet, but intend to. It's like Friday the 13th meets The Hot Chick

3. Eurovision - Haven't seen, but intend to. Starring Will Farrell and Rachael McAdams

4. Bill & Ted Face the Music - the long awaited 3rd movie.

Best TV Shows of 2020:

1. The Mandalorian - Finally watching it!

2. The Witcher - Also finally got around to this show

3. The Crown

4. The Boys

In Memorium 

Chadwick Boseman

Eddie Van Halen

Sean Connery

Alex Trebek

Good Riddance!

Kobe Bryant

People of the Year

All the front-line workers such as Doctors, nurses, firefighters, the good cops, retail workers, restaurant staff, and all the volunteers who stepped up to help those in need, such as shopping for the elderly or sewing masks.

Most hated people of the year

Donald Trump: but thankfully...he is NOT re-elected!

Mitch McConnell: for shooting down the bill to bump up the stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000. 

Ben Shapiro: dude, if you don't like Cardi B and Nicki Minaj's WAP song, then don't listen to it!

Chris Taylor Brown, the lead singer of Trapt for doing that godawful song "Headstrong" and for his extremist views that line up with the proud boys. Now Nickelback is no longer the most hated band.

Ellen DeGeneres: Don't let that quirky personality fool you, she's a monster behind the camera

Amber Heard: I believed her until I heard the video of how she abused Johnny Depp

J.K. Rowling: Her stance on trans-people has tainted her. I will still watch the Harry Potter movies, but everything else she does will be ignored.

Resolutions of 2021

 Boy! This was the WORST year ever! Basically, it told 2016 to hold it's beer because Covid-19 proved to be worse than a bunch of celebrity deaths from 2016. I had a few close calls myself, but my family and I lucked out as some members of our extended family had close contact with the infected. But I will still make my resolutions. I did succeed in some of last years, although the pandemic made going zero waste very difficult, however, the flip-side is that I cut down on grocery shopping on a whim and being more decisive on what we really need. We even got around to some old items in our freezer and pantry during the first lock-down. So, here we go...

1. Continue with going zero waste. The pandemic has made it challenging, but this time I must try harder. My bottled shampoo and conditioner is almost gone and I have a shampoo/conditioner bar ready to go.

2. Support more local businesses. I've already taken the first step by quitting Starbucks cold turkey and now I go to the local coffee shops where I can still get my blended drinks or lattes. I also try to hit up local restaurants instead of fast-food or big chain restaurants. My rule of thumb is that the local place must have 5 or less locations at best, but the exceptions are places that are regional or only in a few states such as In-n-Out.

3. When mom and dad ask for help or a question, try not to groan, moan, or complain. Just help them with their need and then you can get back to what you were doing.

4. Continue with using social media less. I had been keeping so busy that I haven't had time to browse on my phone or use my laptop.

5. Leave the past behind and buried. There is nothing we can do about my actions in the past, except to never repeat them again. Also, the people who burned me then have not been in my life for years now. I need to stop thinking about them or bringing them up in conversation. I need to get them out of my head, but hold on to the lessons I learned from those mistakes. I need to focus more on the present and continue to get my life back on track as if those past incidents never happened at all.

6. When going shopping, whether it's for groceries, household items, or other miscellaneous items: have a plan to only get those items and then get out. Stick more to the grocery list and avoid impulse buying. Don't buy certain items until they are all gone. Try to cook enough to feed everyone and have little to no leftovers. Any food leftover should be eaten the very next day.

Resolutions of 2020

I was hesitant to do this again, but there have been some from the past hat I actually kept or finally accomplished a few years later. So here we go!

1. Take further steps to going zero waste. Zero waste means you reduce your trash and single use plastics. A few years before the plastic grocery bag ban, my family and I were already using reusable bags. Last year I've started my own process by using cloth napkins in place of paper, I try to carry my reusable cup with me when I go out. Then recently I bought a bar of facial cleansing soap in place of the ones that come in tubes. Up next...gooodbye Rubbermaid containers and hello bamboo containers.
2. Go to the gym more and stop counting calories. Having the membership paid automatically helps to motivate me to go more often, although I haven't gone since November, but I will catch up. I will also stop tracking calories or doing special diets, but...I will make sure to eat in moderation, but also incorporate healthier options.
3. Keep adding to my savings account. I wasn't good at making sure I put away money in savings, and a few times I borrowed money from it and intended to pay it back, but fell short. This time I got a loan, which forces me to pay it off, but it will go into my savings and it is building my credit!
4. Do more volunteer work. I still am seeking a job, but I can help fill in the gaps if I do more volunteer work that isn't at my church or American Legion.
5. Use my productive time more wisely. I've cut down my computer use times before, but I need to keep it up. It has hampered my creativity and makes me slack on my chores and staying up late.

And that's it! I think these are more realistic and am more likely to stick to them.