Mon. Dec. 5, 2026 – school starting soon, but not today

By on January 5th, 2026 in culture, decline and fall, march to war

Cooler, damper, winter? Maybe. Still supposed to be clear though, so if it’s a bit cold, then warmer, like yesterday, that will be fine.

I did a bunch of little stuff yesterday, and I’m starting to build a bit of momentum. Of course something will derail that but I’ll deal with it when it comes. Until then, slow but steady, chipping away at low priority but necessary stuff I’ve put off too long.

I am clearing piles of stuff in my office. One of the piles included receipts going back to 2018… so I did find a few things to keep. Some purchases should really be documented, since they come with other paperwork anyway. And sometimes it’s good to be reminded how much you paid for something- either as a ‘score’ or as an object lesson in what not to do.

I also got some piles of stuff sorted. At the moment I’ve got a bin of “parts or craft”, “fix this stuff”, and “working small electronics or gadgets.” Found a bunch of stuff I’d forgotten or misplaced. Nice watch. Handy talkie. Repair parts I’d ordered. I’m vacuuming as I clear parts of the floor. There is a shocking amount of hair that isn’t mine, and little bits of debris everywhere.

I like to be surrounded by ‘stuff’ but it’s getting out of hand. So I’m poking at it. We’ll see how much progress I make before getting pulled off to something else.

Today though, D2 has her school activity ‘work day’ followed by a party. W has a doctor appointment in the morning, and I have one in the afternoon. It’ll almost be like a regular school day, and I won’t have had enough sleep.

What doesn’t kill us leaves marks…

Stack something!

nick

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Sun. Jan. 4, 2026 – feels weird typing ‘2026’

By on January 4th, 2026 in culture, decline and fall, march to war

Cooler today, at least to start. Then warmer. Still supposed to be clear for a few days. It got chilly last night. This is the time of year in Houston where we run A/C during the day and heat at night…

Did a bunch of small things yesterday, including laundry and cutting my hair. Shaved too. Spent a fair amount of time sorting paperwork and various other things into bins. I am making a little progress on cleaning and organizing my office, but it’s slow going. Stuff does tend to pile up.

Today will be a continuation of yesterday’s tasks. A bit of network change, a bit of Christmas decor coming down, a bit of sorting and organizing. Some cleaning. Some cooking too, if I get to it. We’ve been eating mostly leftovers and quick to make food. W is cleaning up her computers and fully moving into the macbook.

D2 starts up school activities on Monday, although class doesn’t start until Wednesday. I’ve got an appointment Monday afternoon, and maybe a pickup, so anything I get done today is something I don’t have to find time for on Monday.

Baby steps are still steps, right? Right.

Still gotta stack though, as the changes and instability in the world don’t seem to be decreasing.

nick

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Sat. Jan. 3, 2026 – huh, a weekend. Guess I’ll work.

By on January 3rd, 2026 in culture, decline and fall

Cool, but warmer than lately. It really warmed up yesterday and that carried through to today. Or it should have, we’ll see when I wake up. In fact it got hot and sweaty by late afternoon. I guess our little cold front has passed.

I did a few things yesterday. Costco, gas, pickup. Cooked dinner. I need to do some domestic bliss today though.

Haircut, laundry, cleaning… if not today then soon. I’ll probably get the rest of the lights and decor down too. I usually want to leave them up as long as possible, but for some reason I’m not feeling it right now. Maybe it’s the artificial tree? First year we don’t have a [formerly] live tree, and I miss the smell and the hassle of filling the water. It’s a pretty good fake, expensive and real looking, but still a fake. Does that have an effect?

Or it could be the kids being a bit older. Dunno. Magic is missing a little bit. Or it could just be me.

In any case, the list is long and my patience and motivation are short.

Stack it up.

nick

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Fri. Jan. 2, 2026 – back at it

By on January 2nd, 2026 in culture, decline and fall

Cool again, but warmer later. Yesterday was nice too. We’re supposed to have clear weather for a few days and increasingly warmer temps. Nice.

Didn’t do a lot yesterday. Still in holiday work avoidance mode. Did some small things like moving stuff around in my office. Took down some lights. Sorted some stuff. Not much, but every bit helps. I’m eating the elephant a bite at a time, but sometimes I think the elephant is still growing.

Today I’ll do a bit more. I’ve got a pickup to do, I think, and a trip to the post office. I’m sure more will make itself known as the day goes on. This mid week holiday messes with my head and the rhythm of my life. I’ll get over it, I’m sure.

This is a good time to do a bit of reflecting, inventorying, and possibly recalibrating. Needs and wants and even capabilities change with time and circumstances. It’s always a good idea to make sure your efforts align with them.

Stack what you need now that you have taken a good look around.

nick

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Jan. 1, 2026 – New Year’s Day. Welcome to 2026!

By on January 1st, 2026 in culture, decline and fall, march to war

Cold and clear, warming later. Should be a nice day. Yesterday was surprisingly warm, and even stayed reasonable until about 11pm when temps started to drop. With the dampness, it was downright chilly. Of course, that makes sense for New Year’s Eve.

Didn’t do much during the day. Did one pickup of two invoices– mostly stuff for the house. Did some other piddly things around the house too.

Not gonna do much today either. I’m thinking that I’ll cook something nice though. It won’t be a traditional New Year’s Day big meal. Maybe a nice beef roast…

It’s traditional to make some resolutions to change, and some predictions for the year, but I just expect more of the same, only worse. At some point, we’ll turn a corner, and there will be optimism and hope but not this year. I think we’ll see more assassinations. More crime. More unrest and political violence. There will be a whole lot of pushback from those exposed and much grasping at straws and attempts to maintain the status quo.

Desperate people do desperate things. Don’t be there if you can avoid it.

And of course, see to your preps and bolster your relationships.

Stack.

nick

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Wed. Dec. 31, 2025 – New Year’s Eve

By on December 31st, 2025 in culture, decline and fall

Still cold, still damp. Low in the mid 30s, high in the mid 50sF if the weather liars are right. We’ll see. It was 39F when I went to bed, but still, so I thought about a tiny little fire… then opted for a warm bed.

I mostly did piddlefarting around stuff yesterday. I did epoxy the leak in the bathtub. I’m hoping this product and this application last a bit. The previous attempt was not successful due to expired product. Since the tub is scheduled for demo and replacement, stopgap measures were approved.

There was also some present wrapping for my sibling, who we’ll get together with later.

Some other small things got done too.

Today, youngest will get home from her friend’s lakehouse, host some other friends for a couple of hours, then she’ll get ready for a party tonight. Her first high school party. Oh my. That means one of us will have to be awake to get her afterwards. Probably me as I don’t drink alcohol… but I might have a tiny little fire.

The years pass and time flies. Don’t miss it. Stack the present so you can remember it later.

nick

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Tues. Dec. 30, 2025 – Mid week holidays mess me up

By on December 30th, 2025 in culture, decline and fall, march to war

Cold. Cold and damp. The front moved in, and now I’m waiting for it to move out. Working outdoors when your hands hurt is less than appealing. 30-40F is cold.

Slept in yesterday. Then did my ‘leaving the BOL’ stuff, and did the ‘taking down the Christmas stuff’. Also spent about a half hour talking to my neighbor and his wife, and about an hour to the father of another more distant neighbor. I’m a people person. Kid asked me why I talk to so many other people, and I told her “How can you learn anything if you don’t ask?”

Today we’ll play it by ear, but the list is long and my motivation is short… but I know I need to start hacking the list down. So we’ll see what the weather is like and go from there.

I can always do indoor things. I can sit at my computer and do auction stuff, or year end business/household stuff, or even networking stuff. But I should do some big, easy physical things so there is visible progress.

Fake it til you make it? Or a lifehack…

Stacking is easy.

nick

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Mon. Dec. 29, 2025 – interregnum … sorta

The cold front got here right on schedule. Temps yesterday started falling and the wind started howling, and it was only 45F when I went to bed. So I expect it to be cold today. Windy too. Pretty much the definition of a blustery day.

I did nothing of note yesterday. Wife read. Kids did their thing. I worked on a puzzle. And read. We ate leftovers all day. No fires, big or tiny. Too much wind.

Today W and the kids are headed home. I’m staying later, like usual, and will do some ‘wrap up’ things. We got the tree down last night, but I have lights to take down and put away. At home I’ll leave the lights and decor up until after New Year’s Day, but I don’t want them up here without knowing when we’ll be back up.

We’ll have a few more days of “between time” and then we’ll get into the new year and the rush to summer. But for now, it’s time to relax and reflect and recharge.

And stack of course.

nick

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Sun. Dec. 28, 2025 – another day ‘between the years’

Cool, but warming, and humid. Possibly getting cold tonight. Yesterday was just like Friday- other than being moist, it was a beautiful day. It’s a mild end to a mild year for us.

I arose late, somewhat sore and stiff, ate and did very little. I spent several hours working on a puzzle while W put Thompson’s Water Seal on the teak furniture. She sanded the top surfaces last visit. They look much better. Teak is pretty sturdy but it does benefit from maintenance.

I did manage some other very small tasks, and made dinner, so it was a pretty relaxed day.

We still haven’t decided if we’re headed home today, or tomorrow. I’ve got more small stuff I can do, and W wants to just do relaxing things and enjoy the place a bit. The only real reason to head home is D2’s plans and it might be easier to drop her where she wants to go on the way home tomorrow. (She wants to visit a friend who has a lakehouse on another sorta nearby lake.)

I’ve been pretty good about not thinking of all the things piling up on my lists. Mostly. Still, it niggles.

I have been taking notes about some stuff that needs to be bolstered here, or replaced. I let that slack off for a bit, but some basic stuff needs refinement. I really really need some secure storage here… and to sort out the networking.

But that’s for another day. Stack what you can, while you can. And stay frosty.

nick

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Sat. Dec. 27, 2025 – now we’re counting down the year…

By on December 27th, 2025 in culture, decline and fall, lakehouse

Cool and wet. REALLY damp. The sun does dry things out by about 4pm, but before and after that, it’s wet. On the plus side, it’s mid 70s to low 80sF during the day, and the sun is hot when it pokes through. In other words, pretty dang nice weather.

I spent yesterday trying not to do too much. Working on networking seemed like ‘too much’. Ate, played games, ate. Did some piddlefarting around. Split some firewood. Did some very small tasks on the dock and in the dockhouse.

Took the boat out for a spin with W driving. Pleasantly, it started right up. W changed out the fabric of the bimini top and I looked at some future small tweaks.

There is corrosion on some of the electrical system, I should install the isolation battery switch, a nav light wasn’t working (and now I need spare bulbs and fuses), and other small things.

Boats and boat related stuff are a whole ‘nother pile of stacks, tasks, maintenance, and knowledge. Yes, pretty much every aspect of life and prepping is, and here we went and added this whole new branch to the tree labeled “Boat stuff”. There is some overlap with “dock stuff” and “fishing stuff” as well as the more general “property on a lake” stuff. It adds capability too, and fits with the dual use nature of my prepping. Anything I do can’t negatively impact our everyday lives, and should have a dual use- normal life and prepper life.

I don’t always get it 100% right.

But I try.

Stack the usual, but try something new too.

n

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