Although 2010 was a fascinating year, Id bet most of us would not care to relive it. On Self-Storage Talk and from the news posts on the ISS website, self-storage operators experienced fires, floods, snowstorms, hurricanes, burglaries, downturns and failures, but also giving, sharing, caring, compassion and successes, plus the outrageous, incredible, awesome, outlandish, puzzling and uplifting. Just a few of the words that barely scratch the surface of describing the year weve had in our industry.

Take the most recent PR related to TVs Storage Wars, the fires several facilities suffered, the devastating flooding in Nashville, the tinder dry-fire season in the West or the blizzard of 2010. Next toss in topics such as staffing, search-engine optimization, wages, social-media marketing, legal issues, imminent domain, foreclosures and record unemployment and you can see 2010 has been quite eventful.

We saw occupancies continue to plummet, while delinquencies climbed. Some storage facilities failed, others thrived, most simply survived. Together weve experienced triumphs and tragedies, but through it all, the self-storage industry still ranks high among the most recession-proof industries.

On Self-Storage Talk, there have been passionate discussions, some tears and a lot of laughter. Weve seen our humble forum grow by leaps and bounds in 2010. No matter what your favorite memory of 2010, Im sure you probably remember a few of the topics below:   

I spent several days re-reading the 2010 threads on SST, browsing through the news items on ISS and generally speed reading through so much I had surprisingly already forgotten. Many of the posts brought tears to my eyes; weve all been through so much together this past year. At the end of 2009, we wished for a brighter 2010. While there have been hints of light on the horizon, 2010 has still been a rough year for most of us.

All I can say with certainty about 2011 is this: on a day when a pick-me-up is needed, youll all be here with wit and humor, or sympathy and compassion as is needed. When things are going great, youll be here to share in each others' accomplishments. We've lauded each others successes and helped fallen comrades pick themselves back up with a renewed heart, and I have no doubt this compassionate group will continue in this vein.

I can't think of a finer group of people to be associated with than you, the members, readers and staff of Inside Self Storage and SelfStorageTalk.com. Thank you for all youve contributed to my growing and learning, and for the support you've shown me. I know that along the way we each have had a positive impact on someone else based on the caring and compassion Ive just re-read. With a track record like ours, 2011 will continue to shine, at least in our little corner of the world. May the New Year find you safe, warm, happy and full of lifes blessings.

Gina Six Kudo is the general manager of Cochrane Road Self Storage in Morgan Hill, Calif. She has more than 15 years of self-storage experience, and a strong customer-service and sales background.