This thread is being started in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and for that reason there is simply no comparison to any other thread. The previous one ran from December 2018 to December 2020, so the last 10 months of the thread are steeped in reports of life in self-isolation or lockdown during a pandemic.

The declutter and fitness threads serve as a place for Mudcatters who need more exercise and who have homes filled with interesting furniture, materials, books, music-related items, work stations with the accompanying accoutrement, and a lot more – it adds up to too many things, and we are going through the process of organizing, discarding, or re-purposing this stuff. Much of the exercise we get is in pursuit of household organization.

There is a core of active participants and there are probably more people who lurk, and several previously active Mudcatters who are unable to post now or are completely gone and still on our minds. Some of those past members have shifted to Facebook.

I'm not going to tell other people's stories, but there is a lot to read if you want to catch up. Previous years threads are linked at the beginning of each one when it was new. https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=165433 is the most recent before this.

A non-medical mental health component weaves though these threads for this disconnected community, where we share ideas and praise helpful to those who benefit from the continuity of conversation and encouragement in the accomplishment of all of our projects. And consolation when things don't go so well, and shoulders to cry on when they're downright awful. We share stories of recovery.

2020 has been awful for so many people that I hate to hang our hopes for recovery on 2021 alone, it will probably take longer than that to help families and rebuild businesses after the pandemic winds down, and to repair essential services in the US after the presidency of 45. I expect to get a vaccine in March or April here in Texas, based upon my age and how the line is forming. What we know now versus what we learn on January 21, 2021, may change that.

I hope those who lurk will step up and share news of how they are, and maybe we can bring in a few new regular participants. I'm always amazed at occasional lurkers who've read the various posted tips, done the work at their homes, then drop in to tell us about what work they did – and then they're gone again. Most of us are doing a slow-motion type of decluttering. This year I hope we'll all pay more attention to the exercise component of this thread – we need to shed the pandemic torpor.

These threads were started by the late great Katlaughing, who in particular enjoyed the vicarious activity as her health was failing. Her nephew was frequently a topic of discussion and for a number of years we were all adopted aunties. She's always in the back of my mind when I start one of these - Here's to you, Kat! Skoal!