The New Year
It’s the first few days of 2026. What will I make of it?
December 31 means a great deal to me.
It’s the last day of the year, of course. However, it’s also my mother’s birthday and the day I lost my right eye in a freak accident.
My accident isn’t something I think about daily. I was only eight years old. When I do think about it, I only think of fleeting things like getting the wind knocked out of me, being carried to my back door, the stitches, and staying in a hospital for a bit.
I don’t think about blindness, mostly because I can see just fine out of my left.
It was a football accident, so my chance of ever playing football in high school was pretty much over. Because I lost depth perception, playing baseball was out of the question, especially when they started throwing curveballs. I found other interests and other sports.
Blindness in my right eye probably restricted my life in a few minor ways, but it wasn’t that big of a deal in reality. I certainly never allowed it to define my life. On the other hand, my mother certainly shaped me for the better.
She was of the stay-at-home variety, and I saw my Mom every day after school. She grew up as a latch-key kid, but I did not. She never wanted that for her children and didn’t go into the workforce until both of her kids were essentially out of the house.
When she married my father, she could hardly boil water. We would nearly always come down to eat at the dinner table as a family. Dinner time was family time. Over the decades, cooking became a passion, and she still loves experimenting with new recipes.
I learned most from my mother that family is the most important thing. Your family is the one to rely on when you need help. When confronted with obstacles or realized successes, my family was there.
As I reflect on the lessons taught by accidents and mothers, my goal for 2026 is to keep these ideas alive in me, not as some resolution, but as a steadfast core belief in myself.
Hello, 2026, and goodbye to 2025. Goodbye to a year of doubt and fear. Goodbye to the need to be like others or worry about how others view me. Just be me. I may be overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of what I want to accomplish, but I can’t be paralyzed by it. I can’t be fearful.
It’s hello to a restored sense of family. I will embrace what I have right in front of me and worry less about what I think I want. This is the year I find my voice and quit letting the successes of others drive me or make me try to mimic their unique achievements. I’m the star of my own life, and I need to start acting like it.
The best motivator for me is me. Do better than before. Get better. Find the next level and keep at it, in my writing, with my family and friends, and in how I approach this precious thing called life.
The adventure is just beginning.
Be seeing you.
Illinois is on the right track after another historic season
I had never been to a bowl game before, and this was a great first game to witness. It was awesome. The helmets were amazing. Here are the highlights. I was lucky enough to attend some fan events and experience what it means to be part of a big-time program. Illinois football is now a real program. I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Seven Tips for the New Year
Michael Wade’s list of seven tips should be placed somewhere one can see it every day.
How to Organise Your Life in 2026
This is an incredible list of good pieces of advice. I need to spend some time with it and really see how the ideas here can benefit me most. It’s just a guess, but I bet it would benefit you too.
The Democratic Party Is Making a Big Mistake
This is so frustrating. “Pretending, for multiple years, that the elderly Biden was fit to run for another term remains one of the great acts of political delusion and deceit in the modern era. Some Democrats knew better and looked away.” I will forever be thankful for Joe Biden’s win. Unfortunately, he should have resigned after two years and passed the torch to Harris.
Ex-KISS member Vinnie Vincent lashes out at fans ‘whining’ about $225 price of his new single
Vinnie is delusional. I can’t imagine there’s anyone who would pay that price for a single. I can’t even imagine there would be much demand at $1 price point.
Making Ben Affleck Talk About Every Film He's Ever Done
This is one of the better interviews with Affleck. He really comes across as intelligent, talented, and articulate, and is clearly winning his battle with addiction.
Somebody Needs to Tell Trump Everybody Is Laughing at Him
He’ll never get this. Never.
The Cult of Costco
Easily one of my favorite openings to an article: “Because every day is Black Friday at Costco, I choose to go on Saturday. I like to get there early. I always park in the same spot (right next to the cart return), and wait with the other die-hards. It has the thrill of a stakeout, absent any crime or danger. When the doors open, we move toward the entrance in an orderly march. There’s a small gasp upon entry—the kind of quiet awe that one feels before the most epic human achievements, as when stepping across the threshold of St. Peter’s or the Chartres Cathedral. But in this place, there is no baroque majesty, no stained glass, just abundance bathed in light. In the sweep of human history generally marked by scarcity and want, here is bounty on an unimaginable scale; here is a year’s supply of mozzarella sticks; here is a hot dog and a drink for $1.50; here is a monument of our civilization, in more than 600 locations across the United States.”
Trump-Hosted Kennedy Center Honors Ratings Drop to All-Time Low
Shocking no one, I muted the TV every time Trump was on screen. It made my viewing much more enjoyable. As for the KISS section, I thought Garth Brooks was great in the introduction, but he really should have just sung “Hard Luck Woman.” I thought the country kid who sang “Beth” was atrociously awful, and I thought it would have been nice for Rick Nielsen to actually learn the solo in “Rock and Roll All Nite.” I will never watch it again.
52 things I learned in 2025
One of my favorite end-of-year lists is Tom Whitwell’s annual record of 52 things he’s learned in the past year. A couple of favorites: 13. Most characters in the film Idiocracy wear Crocs because the film’s wardrobe director thought they were too horrible-looking to ever become popular. [Alex Kasprak] and 40. Writing is a way to escape your mind’s default setting. [Kupajo]
