Category: General

Sorry to be offline for so long, but life has been busy and even a little interesting. I was a small part of multiple different services Christmas Eve including our “midnight” service that runs into Christmas Day (old calendar). We’ve had a number of weekday services as well (‘Tis the Season) and they have kept me busy.

I’ve also started back into (hopefully) regular workouts and even took advantage of a free session with a personal trainer to tweak and add to the workout. My goal is to try to meet with them twice a month to get the most out of my time in the gym.

Unfortunately, I’ve also been reminded not to eat casseroles without double-checking the ingredients. It was only a bite, but that was enough to make yesterday (and even today) not particularly pleasant. If I didn’t mention it before, I’m one of a growing number of people who have developed an issue with a protein in garbanzo beans. Enough of a problem to have sent me to the hospital before.

Yes, I do have more thoughts on Iran and more. It is amazing how Venezuela, Iran, China (and Russia), and the paid protests here are all linked. If the mad mullahs fall (and I hope they do), it knocks the legs out from under more than one country and a large number of not-nice groups. More on this later, but you really need to look at all the work being done by DataRepublican (link in upper right) in that regard.

China may well be the biggest loser out of all as changes come to the world. Their much vaunted military tech failed spectacularly in Venezuela (as did the Russian, which was older); their oil shenanigans have taken quite a hit; and, there is more including some interesting reporting on their true demographics. All of which is having a very negative effect on their Belt and Bend Over initiative (they secure their partners with the belt, which makes it much easier to then bend them over). Add in all that is coming out about their funding of the anti-ICE and other protests, manipulation efforts via Tik-Tok, and other delights, and it is clear why it is good that Trump and company are moving to deal with them, even if indirectly.

BTW, did anyone notice any corporate media coverage of the fact that one of the tankers we seized headed to Venezuela was full of Iranian drones that could hit the Panama Canal, Guantánamo Bay, and other military bases? Long way to go with Venezuela, but taking it out of the equation just made us exponentially safer. I strongly suspect a lot of C&C for various terror cells and terrorists sent into the U.S. over the southern border ran through there, and I hope we can get some good intel as part of the process.

Finally, be careful out there. The idiots are back pushing for a civil war and it would be best for all if we could avoid it. Many thoughts on that, hope to be able to get to them soon.

For now, be prepared and be safe. Keep your friends and family close, and your things where you can find them in the dark. I see a LOT of cause for optimism, and unfortunately a lot of chances for idiots to mess things up in their grasping, gasping, corruption. Let’s push on the optimism and do what we can for that better future.

Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.

A new day has dawned along with a new year, and I hope all of you came through the night relatively unscathed. I have to admit that for the first time in about a decade I went out for a bit. Nothing too crazy, some friends had a small group of people over after the prayer service for the. new year at our Church. I was home well before midnight and the only mistake I made was upon getting home I sat down and decided I would read for just a few minutes…

Unlike a number of pundits and such, I don’t regard 2025 as a dumpster fire or all that horrible. It was, in fact, a year with a lot of positive changes. I will admit that “positive” does not always equal “pleasant.” That said, let’s step outside the box and look at 2025 from a different perspective.

One of the first things to look at is that in 2025 the process of starting to save the Republic truly got off the ground and we avoided a civil war. Note that I said “starting to save” as there is still a LOT of work to do to turn things around, and things can still go south on us in a heartbeat; and, that we avoided a civil war then. We are still, in my opinion, tap dancing on the edge of the razor, but the edge is a little thicker now which starts to provide more options and flexibility of you will.

Yes, a lot of horrible corruption was exposed last year, from USAID to daycare centers, and I suspect more is to come. Fact is, sunlight has indeed hit on the festering mess and despite corporate media and politicians/bureaucrats (of all stripes) being in on it and trying desperately to keep it out of the public eye, the average citizen is starting to be aware. Where corporate media won’t go, intrepid independent journalists are there and the work they are doing is amazing. It will take years for all the investigations and yes some are likely to skate; but, faucets are getting turned off and that may keep us from bleeding out financially.

Along those lines, the corruption of federal law enforcement is getting some sunlight as well. Things can still reset to Biden Regency levels of corruption in a heartbeat, but enough changes are in process that I see hope there. I still think the FBI too damaged for rehabilitation, but the process there is underway as well. Again, it will take time as you have to identify, fire, and then replace. Quite a few at the FBI and DOJ have taken themselves out, which is good. Finding good replacements for them does take time however. For just one example, the changes Harmeet Dhillon is making in the civil rights division are much needed and long overdue. The real bottleneck now, for her and most offices, is finding and hiring GOOD people.

Another positive sign is that race cards and similar are being declined in record numbers for being overdrawn. The public is tired of it and not putting up with it in ways large and small. A lot of groups are finding out that when they block streets and such that the public is quite willing to deal more directly with things when LE and local politicians won’t act. Be aware though that this is a mixed bag, as there are still those (especially overseas) who would love to help push us into a civil war.

Along those lines, X courtesy of Elon Musk, has been not only allowing relatively free speech (still some issues IMO) but has unmasked a huge amount of information operations including an amazing amount of foreign interference. I’m not just talking the goose-stepping bureaucrats of the EU, but when X exposed all the alleged MAGA/AF/ETC accounts that turned out to be foreign it was delightful. Thing is, we need to keep the lights on and extend their reach to keep them running and not thinking of coming back anytime soon.

2025 also saw some very positive steps towards taking humanity to the stars. With the removal of the Biden Regency, Space X was able to push Starship’s testing schedule to something reasonable. This has led to a number of improvements and puts Starship on a good trajectory for use. Also, if you are one of those low-synapse people out there, what Elon and Space X are doing is condensing the equivalent of the rocketry development of the late 1940s and 1950s into roughly a three year program. In all seriousness, by deliberately sacrificing these early Starship designs (and finding out how far you can break them and still have them work) they are skipping a decade or more of development. Also, if you think we didn’t lose rockets back then, you’ve never seen any of the Nevergo (Navajo) and other launch failures.

Despite a setback, NASA finally got a new administrator and we are fortunate it is “Rookie” Jared Isaacman. The man has a plan, and if he is able/allowed to implement it both NASA and America will be much better off. If you’ve read me over the years, you might have gotten a hint (cough, choke, wheeze) that I think NASA has lost its way and needs some serious reform. For all that certain elements of Congress and the military/space industrial complex have been screaming and fighting against Isaacman from the moment his name was first floated, the bloat needs to go. NASA has been the largest bottleneck to space commercialization, space exploitation, and even space exploration for far too long. If the “Rookie” can start to return NASA to it’s charter mission rather than it’s non-mandated expansion, I’d be willing to bet we go further and get more done in the next ten years than we have in the last fifty.

There are a host of similar changes, but the world is not just politics. 2025 also saw a growing number of people return to Faith, particularly in traditional Christian Churches. There have been a number of amazing medical breakthroughs, and a number of blockages to effective research have been removed. There were a number of scientific discoveries that not only will change our understanding of this world, but may help improve the quality of life within it. There is more, but I’m getting tired and hopefully you are getting the point.

On a personal note, 2025 saw changes to health, Faith, and more. There are some things that happened in my past that were not pleasant. Healing from them has not been fun or easy, and in fact it was somewhat debilitating at times this year. Worth it though for the progress made. My physical health, along with mobility, balance, and such, has improved as well. Do I wish I had gotten the physical and massage therapy sooner? Yep. Sure do. Thing is, glad I got it now as I can again ride a bike and am starting to do some serious workouts.

The idea of a pilgrimage for spiritual growth and discernment moved from a crazy dream to practical reality in 2025. The original plans have pretty much been scrapped, and that is a very good thing. What has been developed instead will be much more immersive and hopefully illuminating. Yes, I am still going to get to do the cooking lessons, but they are now part of a much richer opportunity. I’ll be sharing more details soon I hope.

I’m doing more at Church, and getting taught how to do even more. I start my first online seminary course later this month. Well, first formal as I have been doing the “fun” course the last few weeks.

Looking at 2025 from this angle, I’d say it was a year of many needed positive changes. The changes and what they revealed, or require in response, may have not always been pleasant. However, growth of any type — mental, physical, or spiritual — is rarely painless. Growth spurts in children leave them aching, tired, and often grumpy. Yet, that growth spurt takes them to a new stage of life.

Just as a child can’t go back to where they were before a growth spurt, we can’t return to where things used to be. What we can do is try to take the opportunities presented and make the world better on as many levels and in as many ways as we can. Won’t always be pleasant, but growth — particularly positive growth — rarely is so. The best we can do is run with the positive change and make it as pleasant as possible, long-term, for as many as possible. Strikes me as a worthy goal for 2026.

So, let’s keep dancing and see if we can move beyond the razor’s edge to more solid footing. May 2026 be not just a year of continuing positive change, but good year for us all.

Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, and to start a truly new life, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. If you want to know some of what it is going for, read here. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.

May your day be Blessed and filled with light, love, and all the things that truly matter. May the kids/grandkids/yourselves be delighted with what awaits under the tree, while not forgetting the birth that is the reason for the season.

I have Vespers this evening, and a service tomorrow morning though not a Christmas service. Our Church is Old Calendar, so Christmas for us will be on January 7, which is December 25th on the Old Calendar. Interestingly enough, January 7 and December 25th were the two dates debated by the early Church for the Birth of Jesus, which was less an argument about the date of birth as it was about the date of conception.

Me, I will enjoy tomorrow and hope to do my usual Christmas call with my Uncle who is about the last immediate family left. He’s 90 now and I do need to get down to visit one day soon. On the 7th I can focus on the spiritual, which is a good thing.

Be safe, enjoy, and make the most of the day.