What will it be?

Now that many of us have bid a very unwelcome adieu to a mostly miserable 2021 with its nasty omicron variant, it’s time to wax optimistic as 2022 ascends to center stage, where we can only hope that it will put on a better show than its predecessor. I’m not big on making New Year’s resolutions because I always end up breaking them and subsequently feeling like a jerk for having made them in the first place. Instead, what I’m going to do this year is ponder what 2022 may bring us. Please keep in mind that the following are neither predictions nor wishes; rather they are just random conjectures in no particular order.

And so let’s begin. Will 2022 be the year when: we will finally see an end to these damnable viruses; most of the road construction in downtown Wheeling is completed; the so-called leaders of our country in Washington, D.C., will quit squabbling among themselves like a group of badly spoiled children and get on with running things as they are supposed to do; find some way of rewarding all of the health care professionals who have so valiantly battled the viruses in hospitals across the country and around the world; we will see the invention of magic medicine that allows pets to live as long as their owners; someone who discovers a politician who actually tells the truth; we will see the legal distribution and use of medical marijuana; find some means of reducing the number of mass shootings; put an end to daylight saving time; Time for a quick break. Back in a few.

OK. Back for more. Will 2022 be the year when: Congress actually gets something positive and/or useful accomplished; we will see a time for massive mask-burning parties take place; there comes a time when it’s safe to go on a cruise again; the instant replay is abolished in all sports; a happy retirement for big Ben Roethlisberger; Tiger Woods wins another major; we find a peaceful resting place for our sheltie, Caddy; a successful return of WOMP radio to the Valley; we will have a Major League baseball team in Pittsburgh again; we will Ponder This:  HAVE A SAFE, HAPPY, AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR!