If you are anything like us, you were very happy to see the end of 2020. Obviously, we didn't think that things would magically get back to normal in 2021 but we came into the New Year with some more optimism and hope. Unfortunately, we've already had our fair share of drama in the first couple months of 2021. Advances on the vaccine front have been tremendous but getting those vaccines to people has been a lot harder to do, especially in some countries (including our own). I never thought I'd live to see an angry mob attack the White House so that was something to see in early January. We watched that unfold with our girls and used it as an opportunity to talk about freedom, democracy and researching claims.
While some were calling for the Stock Market to crash after the US election, the opposite of that happened. We had a fantastic rally and hit new record highs in both Canada and the USA in February. It has been strange to see the market so strong when the economy has been so weak. That's really been how the last twelve months have played out though. Many businesses have been hit extremely hard during the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. Others have thrived. The same thing has happened on the Stock Market with companies in Technology, Healthcare and Sustainability thriving while other companies are struggling to stay afloat. Anyone who has had a meeting with me over the last few months has undoubtedly heard me talk about the "K-shaped" recovery. We continue to see that out there.
I wanted to do a deeper dive into things as so much has happened over the last year, but I'll admit, I am absolutely swamped right now. I'm writing this with only two business days left in the RRSP Season. That's meant starting work at 6:30am and wrapping up after 8:30pm for a couple weeks in a row. On top of that, we also lost our cat, Rudiger, on Feb. 19th this year. I had him in my life for over 18 years and he really was a part of the family. We honestly thought that with him being such an old cat, we would handle it better; We didn't. Both Natalie and I were a wreck after that. It was super emotional and we miss that little guy.
I will try to do a longer update next month when I have more time and am a little more rested! That being said, I do want to pay tribute to the 500,000 plus Americans who have passed away due to COVID-19 since March of last year1. We've faired better here in Canada but have lost over 20,000 lives since last year2. Once again, we send out our condolences to all of you who have lost a friend or family member this year. I know several of you who have and a lot more who have dealt with sick loved ones. Stay safe out there everyone.
Bryce A. Borden
1Johns Hopkins University & Medicine: - https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
2CTV News: - https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/canada-surpasses-20-000-deaths-due-to-covid-19-1.5289681