Gerald Haslhofer 
2023 in Review
How do you capture a year’s worth lived experiences with one word?
I’ve been enamored with Pantone’s “color of the year” concept - attempting to capture the spirit of the time in one hue. What word best describes the spirit of my 2023?
For this year, I’ve settled on “endurance”.
Admittedly, it’s not an a naturally inspiring word. Just like the achromatic shade of gray chosen by Pantone in 2021 reflected the spirit of resilience of a year that was not about aspirational ambitions, but rather about essentials like strength and persistence.
2023, naturally, started with an endurance race that pushed me to my physical limits. I had committed to run the 2023 LA marathon with a good friend of mine. I thoroughly regretted that decision at least once a week leading into the race because the training schedule required yet another 10k, 15k, 20k, 25k to get ready. Try that during gloomy Seattle winters. Two weeks before the race I was so worried that I’d get sick or something would prevent me from running, with literally nothing to show for months of training. So I decided to check the box on a Saturday and started running alone from our vacation home heading east. Once the GPS showed 42.2km completed, I called Rachel to pick me up at a vegetable stand close to the freeway. Two weeks later, I completed LA in a satisfying 3:38 hours, admittedly with medical attention needed after the finish line.
Medical tent in Los Angeles after the finish line. You got this!
So two marathons down. But it took me more than 4 months to even put my running shoes on again. That’s why I did not choose “balance” as my 2023 word of the year…
Running has turned into a shared experience between Sophia and me. A year ago, I had to slow down when running with her, but she’s the one now who easily outpaces me in sprints. I’m so proud of her resilience, tenacity, smarts and kind spirit. We’re planning for a race together in 2024. I’m beyond excited about that!
Sophia during a race
Luca has turned from a Minecraft endurance professional into a voracious reading machine. And he is such a natural athlete - the many goals he scored in soccer were just such a joy to watch. He is fast, with unlimited energy, pushing him and the team he plays with to do better with every game. His smile and adventurous spirit so positively affect everyone around him.
School event
Isabel’s maturity continues to amaze me. She’s 99.9% like her mother. Sometimes I call her “Mini-Rachel”. I believe she’s read more this year than I have in the last 10 years. I love watching her play basketball and soccer with her teams. My heart melts when she plays the cello - she is so well rounded, mature in her interactions with people around her. She’s the one who always asks first “How was day at work?”.
Nutcracker. Gerald was jet lagged in bed
Rachel’s life has been exceptionally busy - I admire how she concurrently keeps juggling 20 balls in the air while I am barely able to keep one or two afloat. We switched from going out on evening dates (impossible with our schedule) to getting coffee together on weekend mornings. It’s always such a special time to reconnect, reminiscent of the time we had pre-kids when the only thing between us and hikes in the mountains was a good cup of coffee in the neighborhood coffee shop in Wallingford. Rachel completed the remodel (ok, rebuild) of our house in Minnesota remotely from Seattle - an unbelievable feat, with an amazing outcome. Her ability to go from developing a vision of what a house could be to the house actually being that vision just blew me away. Within a year, the house literally was transformed from a derelict dwelling held together by duct tape into a beautiful, tasteful oasis at the lake. In running speak, this transformation was Rachel’s “ultra-marathon” experience. And of course, she’s a finisher. And just like me after my marathon, I doubt she’ll be a general cotractor of a remodel any time soon. If ever.
The love and life we share fills me with gratitude. I’m so glad she chose me to spend her life with.
Holidays
Endurance also was the motto of the professional side of my life. Post-Covid corporate travel resumed, with trips to China, Taiwan, and multiple trips to India. Jetlag reared its ugly head. But work at Microsoft was exciting - my work on AI in the mobile space continues to be exhilarating. I’m blessed with a great team and a manager that makes me grow and learn every day. Keeping up is challenging - 14hr days are not uncommon, and a feeling of constantly falling behind is - I believe - widely shared between people around me. This AI transformation is pushing us to our professional limits.
To add to a busy year, we bought a house in Europe. On the beautiful Greek island of Corfu.
With interest rates soaring and real estate being a comparatively unattractive investment this likely was not a great financial idea. But projecting forward, I know Europe will be more front and center for the Haslhofer’s. Just like our kids have dual citizenship, it feels like that step reflects a bit of who we want to be longer term.
We navigated difficult circumstances with people around us, health problems, things that tested our resilience and resolve. And we’ve been blessed with so many good things.
I might also have chosen “Autobahn” as the word of year. Going at 130 miles per hour, with emergency breaks along the way, then again accelerating, racing through days, weeks, months. But we were blessed with rest stops along the way - unforgettable experiences on our first family sailboat trip along the Italian Amalfi coast, precious days with our kids’ grandmas in Mexico to celebrate their birthdays (my mom turned 80!), spending family time with friends biking, hiking, and kids climbing.
Off to 2024!