The Final Day

Looks like we’ve made it to 2026. Congrats!

I don’t want to celebrate too early, but it’s time to step out of those soaked galoshes, put on your party clothes, dig into a plate of nachos, and get busy.

2025 had plenty of ups and downs. The year zipped by at an astonishingly fast rate, so much that I had to scroll through old phone pics to remember what happened. As we get older, our bodies move slower while time goes faster. What’s with that?

I tried to keep up, but if my coveted to-do list from the beginning of the year is any indication, I failed to make a real dent. As always, extenuating circumstances took precedence and robbed me of the precious time needed to write, draw, make music, and search for ancient artifacts.

All remaining items on my list will be carried over to 2026, where I’m sure I’ll have all the time in the world to make things happen. Right?

Life Coach Wanted

New Year’s resolutions are always a lark, striving for self-improvement through promises to lose weight, get fit, eat healthier, save money, pay off debts, and spend more time with loved ones.

Is there something wrong with betting on horse races while downing cheap whiskey from a hidden flask in an oversized trench coat? Do tell, Mother Teresa.

Every New Year arrives with the sinking, agonizing realization that the holidays have ended and normal routines are returning. But if every day was as gratifying as the holidays, we’d never know the difference. Such special times would lose all meaning.

I’d like to enter the New Year with grace and humility, eager to embrace and overcome all life’s challenges.

No more yelling at cars that cut me off on the highway. No more stressing about the collapsing world around us. The future is bright, and good things are just around the corner.

You might win the lottery or meet a movie star outside a gas station. Anything can happen.

Best/Worst of 2025

I’m seeing a lot of “best of” compilation lists out there for movies, shows, music, and books. Those things probably used to mean something before our shared culture was shattered into a million different streaming sites and offshoots.

I don’t even know if we’re watching, listening, or reading the same things anymore. For instance, the top 5 grossing films of 2025 were A Minecraft Movie, the live-action Lilo & Stich movie, Superman, Jurassic World Rebirth, and Wicked: For Good. I haven’t seen a more pitiful assemblage of films in my life.

What other year could deliver two Predator films, the animated Killer of Killers and the live-action, CGI-heavy Badlands, that were equally awful? I may be in the minority but I will always speak out against such wanton destruction of the franchise.

As a kid of the ’80s and ’90s, I hold the RoboCop, Predator, Alien, and Terminator films as sacred.

2025 began with the devastating Palisades Fire, which Southern CA residents are still rebuilding from, despite millions in aid funding unaccounted for. We witnessed the swearing in of President Donald J. Trump, the second U.S. President since Grover Cleveland to serve two non-consecutive terms.

We also witnessed the horrific assassination of Turning Point USA co-founder and conservative activist Charlie Kirk on a college campus in front of thousands.

A lot of terrible things happened this year–mass shootings, terror attacks, natural disasters, political unrest–but the same can be said for any year. The good far outweighs the bad. Just look around and see.

RIP to all the greats we lost this year, including Ozzy Osbourne, David Lynch, Gene Hackman, Diane Keaton, Hulk Hogan, Rob Reiner, and many more. It saddens me to think of those we’ll lose in 2026.

In the end, I’m thankful to have a roof over my head and the opportunity to live my life to its fullest each day (even if I don’t always follow through).

The year went hard and fast. The biggest news came toward the end, when my wife of four years and I announced her pregnancy earlier this month. We’re very excited, blessed, and hopeful for the year ahead. A baby blog is inevitable at this point.

Thank you for reading, and best wishes for a safe and happy New Year!