Continuing a comprehensive series of “year in review” posts [and by “comprehensive”, the Scaianalysis Editorial Board means, “We can now brag that we’ve done it a full 50% of the time.”], the time has come to look back a year most of us may not enjoy looking back upon.

Since I’m nothing if not a hip millennial with his finger on the pulse of pop culture, the title is a reference to work by Tom Lehrer. His “National Brotherhood Week” was released in 1965 but still has ideas that might hit home today including everyone coming together briefly to support each other after a tragedy but then going back to normal the following week.

Back in January, I wrote about how we were all exhausted about hearing about COVID. But we’ve gone from people lining up around buildings to get vaccinated to people thinking this is all a scam by the Illuminati to put computer chips in us. And that’s caused us to continue to be exhausted about it.

In April, I wrote about the head of the Bridge Homeless Recovery Center giving me a mask when I forgot mine. You might also be exhausted from hearing about masks, but when I was home this week, I did add to my collection to take back to Texas. My new masks can can reinforce a message first sent by modern philosopher David Allan Coe [albeit in a less raucous tone]: I’m from Ohio.

But current research now suggests people should wear surgical masks, that cloth masks might block large droplets, but the omicron variant can spread more easily, and cloth masks are not as effective with smaller particles.

“But how will a surgical mask let passersby know I’m from Ohio!?” you’re shouting at your screen. The CDC has not responded, but we’re a nation of innovators.

As a nation of innovators, we’re never done improving. I went home for Christmas this year. An associate I worked with in Houston now works at a station in Findlay, Ohio. He grew up in northern Ohio and said he did not recall Dayton having a particularly majestic skyline when he’s driven through. Naturally, I sent him a shot while I was riding to the airport a couple days later:

“A thousand apologies, good sir,” he replied. He was right to say it.

But that was taken from a car on the freeway. While home this week, I googled to find the best places to view the iconic Dayton skyline. That brought me to a cemetery. They had even set up a gazebo with an overlook of the iconic skyline, but it was foggy, so I find myself still questing for the right picture.

In other blogs: earlier this month, I talked with Ralph Sobel, one of the organizers of the Interlochen Lights in Arlington. He sent an email the other day, pointing out they were even featured on the Sunday Night Football broadcast, saying they got about $200,000 worth of free advertising. If you add that to the value of the free advertising they got here, that adds up to a total of $200,000!

But another Scaiaholic caught an issue this month: I offered my secret eggnog recipe in a blog about Polar Express. I got an email explaining I had already given my secret eggnog recipe in a blog in November. They were, technically, two different recipes: one recommended pouring bourbon in store-bought eggnog; the other recommended pouring brandy in store-bought eggnog.

The editorial board at 1 Scaianalysis Esplanade regrets the error. We have not been sampling too much of the eggnog. But listen: In Scaia’s America, you have the freedom to choose which liquor you prefer. Maybe you’ll like eggnog with brandy more than eggnog with bourbon. Maybe you won’t. But you’ll learn something.

While at home, the fam [because we have our finger on the pulse of pop culture] screened an episode of Star Trek. My brother received a couple Christmas ornaments from the “Mirror, Mirror” episode where Kirk, Dr. McCoy, Uhura and Scotty end up in the evil dimension.

A previous entry in #ScaiaBlog addressed the hard-hitting issue of why, when Biff stole the sports almanac in Back to the Future Part II, 2015 did not immediately change to the post-Biff future. An associate posited the DeLorean could travel through time, but not traverse dimensions, so the 2015 where Doc Brown threw the almanac away was not changed.

The transporter at the Enterprise had, however, traversed dimensions, so technology apparently advances in the 23rd century. In addition, no one on Star Trek is arguing about masks, so that’s a technological advancement we can look forward to, also.

I’m sorry to say about a week after World War II vets went to Hawaii for the 80th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, I got an email from a contact at American Airlines. One of the vets I talked to passed away after the trip. That highlights the rate at which we’re losing the greatest generation. I was glad, though, to be able to share his story and send them the interview so they could pass it to his family.

We had a tough 2021. We might feel like things will never turn around. But don’t lose hope. The editorial board at 1 Scaianalysis Esplanade has introduced a “subscribe” button on the contact page, so even if you’re sick of arguing with people on Facebook and Twitter, you can now get a notification sent straight to you when a new #ScaiaBlog is posted.

Star Trek shows we have better things ahead if we stop flipping out about whether a mask is a slight inconvenience or an assault on all the rights we hold dear.

And when I left that dinner in Northern Ohio, I stopped for gas on the way home. When I went inside for something to drink, I was heartened to see 2022 is already turning around: It’s been declared the Year of Dew. The Year of Dew.