COVID 19 and the year 2020

It's almost the end of the year. It's a Monday night and I'm home alone. My kids are with dear mommy in Sendai while daddy works in Akiu. I have gotten quite used to being alone, but it's not going to last much longer. I have worked everyday for the last three years, and at the same time I call everyday a holiday. Now that's a contradiction, isn't it? I'm working, I have a job, but I am on holiday. That's so strange!

 Things are not normal here in Paradise, Akiutopia. 秋保トピア。

     I don't like normal. Normal is extremely boring for me. I have changed careers 4 times already and I am young enough to do it again and again if I please. I like it when things change. The only things I don't like changing are my daily rituals. I like to get up and go to bed at the same time everyday. I also like to eat my meals as usual, but my business? I want that to go up and down. I want to have the power to control my own business. So, if I don't want to work hard, then my business will suffer. Or, if I want to make more money, then I just have to put the time in to start a new project. I like being in control of that. Of course, the market is a whole other animal. And Novel Coronal Virus is an animal unlike anything we have ever seen!
      This year, many people around the world were affected by travel restrictions, lockdowns and unemployment. Me too. I bet big on the Tokyo Olympics 2020, but they were postponed. I had thought that my guesthouse would have a breakout year. That didn't happen. I didn't really care though. To me, losing business to Covid 19 was a very small thing. I didn't concentrate on my losses. Instead, I focused on what I could do with all this free time! So, I began...

     IN 2020... This is what we have accomplished:
All hallways have new flooring.
Tatami replaced in 6 rooms.
A new restroom (with a water toilet)
A new reception room
A new tool room
An outhouse was built!
New walls and ceiling in the onsen
Repair of many fixtures, electrical lines and water lines
The campsite began in 2020 and there are many customers every week!
4 rooms with new flooring
Painting interior and exterior walls... About 80% has fresh paint!
Repaired numerous broken walls inside and out

     So, 2020 was an excellent year in Akiu. I am way ahead of my target. Maybe 5 years ahead of schedule. Now, I have time to expand Akiu-Canada. It'll grow outward, up the hills, along the river and even across the river. One day, it might even go inside the mountain. My plans are endless, just like my dreams. I just finish one thing and quickly start something new. I thank the mountains, the river, the winds, and the sunshine. I feel blessed.