Dave and Samantha at their annual 49er game
Whew, now with the dreaded Covid-19 at least under much better control than 12 months ago, 2022 was closer to a normal year than we have had in a while, and we are so happy for that. Luckily, we (Mona and Dave) have yet to have a bout with it. I am sure getting all the shots we could and being careful in everyday life have contributed to our avoidance.
We finally got to take our first European river cruise this past spring, visiting Switzerland, France, Germany, and the Netherlands, and it was super. One unplanned event was Dave’s assisting Amsterdam police in locating a fleeing shoplifting perp.
Mona and Dave also travelled to Maui in the fall, San Diego (baseball tournament) and a couple of trips to Florida early in the year. And Mona visited her brother, Jason, and his family in Kansas City.
One piece of sad news, Dave lost his dad, Bob, after a one-year battle against pancreatic cancer. He led a long and fruitful life, passing at 91 years old. Dave and his sister, Debbie, were with him for the last few of weeks of his life.
Dave continued playing in two baseball leagues and participating in his third San Francisco Giants fantasy camp in January, where his team won the camp championship. As typical Dave, he continued full throttle with his two horses and his 20% work level for Equibase, as he moves forward on his gradual approach to full retirement. He did a century bike ride with friend John Zoglin after his 2021 effort fell short when his car was totaled en route. During a visit from his sister and significant other Scotty in August, Dave and Mona were introduced to pickleball. He now plays several times a week.
Mona continues to enjoy a leisurely retirement. She walks nearly every morning with our neighbor and her dog Rocky and tries to get in her 10,000 steps. Perhaps the most enjoyable part of her retirement has been spending time with our grand-dog, Max, and his Palo Alto friends during her backyard playgroups for the dogs and their people.
Becky continues to enjoy San Francisco, especially its hills for challenging bike riding (she continues to be a monster rider, along with her boyfriend, Matt) and nearby Marin County with its amazing landscapes just a quick jaunt across the world’s most famous bridge. She matched her feat from 2021 and achieved one million feet of climb! (Note – Dave is happy achieving 10 feet of climb up the steps once a night). She continues working as a software engineer at Google, working about half of the time from home, and half at the Mountain View campus.
Samantha began working for Visa at the end of 2021 and continues to very much enjoy the proximity of the office (1.5 miles) when she works there two days a week, the other three working from home where she gets to be with her precious mutt Max. He spends part of those days out on the sunny balcony looking over San Francisco bay while Samantha toils away.
We wish everyone a healthy and joyous 2023.
Mona, Dave, Becky and Samantha