Publisher's Note: Happy New Year

“I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.” –Douglas Adams

If 2020 were a TV show, the network executives would brand it as “memorable,” “exciting” and “you never know what’s going to happen next.” For all of us stuck in this dumpster fire reality show of a year, the season finale can’t come soon enough. That’s not to say, of course, that we want to forget everything about this year, because none of us will emerge from 2020 unchanged.

This week, the Gabber starts what we hope will be an annual tradition – a review of the year behind us. In addition to a recap of some of what happened, we’ve included first-person stories from our readers about 2020. They cover everything from hairstyles to teaching on Zoom with a toddler screaming about poop in the background, and each one offers a real, heartfelt and a look at 2020 from the inside out.

As for my story? In January 2020, I had freelance and speaking gigs lined up for the year. Barry had retired a few months prior. We had a year of road trips and day trips planned across the state. Life was relaxed, easy and fun. Buying a newspaper was so far off my radar it may have been something that happened on Mars.

Then came March. We all know what happened next, for all of us. But you know what? Even though I didn’t have plans to buy the Gabber a year ago, and I wouldn’t wish a global pandemic on anyone, I’m glad we own the paper now. I started at the Gabber in 2003 and left in 2015, and in the five years after that, I did, and wrote and experienced a lot of things. None of those things have ever felt as right as being back at the Gabber feels. I feel like I’ve come home.

That’s my 2020 story. Keep turning pages to more stories from your neighbors.

Oh, and Happy New Year. Let’s hope, as John Lennon wrote, it’s a good one, without any fear.

Lloyd Mason