I am Thankful

There is much to be said about the United States' incredible ability to export culture and history throughout the world. Despite being Singaporean and not an American, every Thanksgiving I indulge in watching Youtube videos about the President of the United States pardoning a turkey. I also indulge in some shopping, taking advantage of the Black Friday / Cyber Monday shopping weekend. This year, I picked up some replacement bartape, inner tubes, chain lube and tyres. They should last me for a season.

I digress.

This year's Thanksgiving is different. We are in the middle of the first global pandemic in living memory. While this is bad, it isn't as awful as other terrible 4th Thursdays in November from history. November 1940 for example was particularly awful for Londoners during the Blitz. Perspective gives pause for thought.

This Thanksgiving, I have plenty to be thankful for. 

I am thankful that RedWhite Apparel has survived this pandemic (so far). In early 2020, I made the decision to close down the commercial office space I was using and move operations into my home. I also trimmed down RedWhite's product line to focus on my core long-distance bibshorts. This decision was well timed as COVID-19 soon hit Singapore and a months long lockdown started. The lower fixed cost structure of this business gave me endurance.

I am thankful that science has progressed so quickly that we now are on the cusp of having 3 potential vaccines for COVID-19. One of them (Moderna's) can be stored in a fridge for 30 days and left at room temperature for 12 hours. This is much easier to store & distribute than dairy products. This is nothing short of astonishing - that we have potential vaccines ready in less than a year.

I am thankful that none of my family members and friends have contracted COVID-19. I am fortunate. Many aren't as lucky. My sincere well wishes and thoughts go to you if you have a family member or a friend who has contracted the disease.

I am thankful to all the frontline health workers who have been working without respite since the pandemic started. While I am safely cocooned at home and can afford to stay away from crowds, they don their PPE gear daily and go to war against an enemy that is faceless, is everywhere and is merciless.

Finally, I am thankful to live in 2020 where humanity has progressed to an extent where life is generally good for the vast majority of the planet. It is easy to get caught up in the negative things happening in the world today, but all in all, things are always getting better for humans.

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and a wonderful week.

PS : In case you missed the email notice, RedWhite Apparel will not be running a sale this year. Here's the explanation.

**If you have anything to be Thankful for, do take a moment to write about it in the comment section below**