45.5 F
Davis

Davis, California

Friday, March 29, 2024

Happy New Year from the Editorial Board

It’s a goodbye, not a see you later, 2020

The Editorial Board is starting 2021 off thinking about what this year holds. Hundreds of millions of people are set to be vaccinated against COVID-19—nearly 5 million have already been vaccinated in the U.S. to date—and although we are not at the end of the pandemic, at least we can envision it. Kamala Harris will be inaugurated in just a few weeks as the first woman and first woman of color to serve as vice president in American history. In June of this year, the European Union will present legislative proposals to implement its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030. After a long and difficult year, we discuss what we are most looking forward to in 2021 below.  

Anjini Venugopal, Editor-in-Chief

After the rollercoaster of last year, I naively thought that writing about what I was looking forward to in 2021 would be a somewhat easy task—I was mistaken. But while I definitely have concerns about what this year holds, there are many things that I am eagerly anticipating should they be possible. In 2020, I missed my annual tradition of watching the Perseids meteor shower with my best friend. This year should provide great viewing conditions and I can’t wait to stare into space with her. I have many long-planned road trips that have never been taken; perhaps this is the year I can follow through. I am impatiently waiting for the eventual in-person Editorial Board meeting in our new office—it will undoubtedly be chaotic but a grand old time nonetheless. I hope this year is full of picnics in the Arboretum, walks in the rain and hopefully some new hobbies that spark joy. So long as we all remember that the pandemic isn’t over and all that happened in 2020 doesn’t just get wiped out by a new calendar year, 2021 has the potential to be a good year.

Margo Rosenbaum, Managing Editor

I have always been an outdoorsy individual; I spent much of my childhood digging up worms, mucking horse stalls and chasing dogs down muddy trails. But being in nature took on a new meaning for me in 2020, as the outdoors was one of the few safe places to be. I spent even more time in nature as a way to escape my Zoom classes and the quiet of my home. While following safety guidelines, I found myself hiking with those in my bubble, camping in Utah, walking my dogs and overall appreciating the opportunity to be outside. No matter what 2021 brings, I plan to continue spending time outside by myself and with those I love. I will continue hiking and riding my horse—activities I have loved since childhood. This year, however, I plan to go on new outdoorsy adventures—like backpacking, birding and rock climbing—or any other socially-distanced nature-related activity that comes my way. This year, I look forward to trying new things and continuing to find peace in the natural world around me. 

Sabrina Habchi, Campus News Editor

I think we can all agree that last year was not unlike a dumpster fire. Although the pandemic still exists and “normal” is still not in the near future, I am excited for a year filled with pickleball games, mile-a-day runs (hopefully this ages well) and meaningful time with my loved ones. In six short months, I will be a college graduate and while that is terrifying, I am hopeful for where I will end up when I leave the place I have been lucky to call home for the last four years. Most of all, I am grateful that transitioning to an online format means that I am now technically competent enough to easily create Zoom meetings (recurring ones, of course) in order to keep in touch with all the lovely people I have had the honor to meet at Davis and my best friends from my hometown.

Eden Winniford, City News Editor

Even though vaccine rollout hasn’t been perfect, it’s allowed me to feel hopeful about the later months of 2021. I’m looking forward to being able to hug my family and see them without masks on, and I’m hoping to safely show them around Davis—taking them to my favorite restaurants and to the Arboretum are the first activities on my list. Diving for abalone should also be permitted again in Northern California after years of being closed due to dwindling populations. Growing up, my dad and grandpa would always bring home abalone, and it was a dinner staple when I was younger. My dad and I go scuba diving together, but I’m excited to continue the family tradition and learn about freediving. Abalone play an important role in our ocean’s ecosystem and they bring countless divers to Northern California’s small coastal towns, and I’m incredibly hopeful that their populations will bounce back in the coming year. 

Calvin Coffee, Opinion Editor

I can’t wait to see how 2021 surprises us. Coming in hot off of the worst year of many of our lives, I see no where to go but up. More than anything, I look forward to the incremental steps of progress we all take this year. I’m excited to see how President-elect Joe Biden steers the country into a new era of liberal politics. I hope that we can all take steps of progress ourselves to be better, our ability to reflect on our own faults can only help each other. I also look forward to the new games, stories and foods that I’m going to experience this year and that will challenge my limits and opinions. I can’t wait to find out how we change for the better and all make an effort to try new, impactful things. 

Sophie Dewees, Features Editor

While it’s been difficult to stay positive these past few months, when I think about little moments in my life such as banter with my roommates, FaceTime calls with friends and family and joking with other members of the Editorial Board I can’t help but feel grateful. And I can honestly say that Ed Board meetings are very often the highlight of my day. After hours of online classes, I’m usually feeling completely exhausted and rundown. But seeing members of Ed Board (even though it’s over Zoom) never fails to make me feel better. While it’s definitely a small thing, I’m greatly looking forward to two more quarters with the other Aggie editors this year. I’m sure they will be filled with many laughs, memes, playlists, wall quotes and more. 

Allie Bailey, Arts & Culture Editor

Going into a new year, I try not to be too set on changing my life. After years of failed resolutions, I have come to the conclusion that writing a new number at the end of the date doesn’t mean all that much to me. But this new year is different than previous ones; rather than looking forward to new experiences and opportunities, most of us are hoping to return to the ways of the past, the life we knew at the beginning of 2020. What I am hopeful for in 2021 is to hug everyone I love again, to interact with people on campus that I would never see otherwise and to be squashed between people at a concert, uncomfortable because my hair is being pulled, not out of fear of a virus. Looking forward to things I never considered particularly special is a reminder that just living life is a privilege in and of itself. And so in 2021, I am set on a new year’s resolution after all—appreciating the simplest parts of my day and seeking fulfillment from what I once found mundane, but what I now know invigorates my life. 

Omar Navarro, Sports Editor

There’s no doubt that last year was one of the hardest years for everyone, in a variety of ways. Remaining positive has been a tough task, as more negativity seemed to come up. While it’s not exactly clear if or when we’ll be able to return to campus, I’m excited about the possibility of returning to Davis this fall. It seems like that’s the plan as it stands, and I really hope it comes to fruition. I realized that I took even the simplest things on campus, like walking around or even going to the gym, for granted. I hope I can make new memories with everyone once again and get back to being on my own as well. Obviously, we’ll have to wait and see how it turns out, but I’m excited that that is a possibility and I am looking forward to it.

Madeleine Payne, Science Editor

While celebrating the end of 2020 has been refreshing in so many ways, it has reminded me just how close we are to nearing the anniversary of the California shutdown. Leading up to this week, I was dreading the first day of Winter Quarter, knowing I would spend it watching recorded lectures in my parents house and barely interacting with anyone outside of a screen. I miss meeting professors in person, biking across campus within a 10-minute passing period and scrambling to find the right room before class—aspects of school that were never particularly exciting in past years. So for 2021, as every day we get closer and closer to the end of this pandemic, I hope to spend at least one of my first days of school surrounded by classmates and strangers on campus, appreciating all the aspects of in-person learning I’ve learned to be so grateful for in the last few months.

Written by: The Editorial Board

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here