Truth is I celebrated New Years Eve 2026 and the closing hours of the year with a classic basically Trumpian rant about how I was justified to push him into early retirement, and no I don’t want to spend all my money on a plastic house in suburbs even if it does smell like cow shit and that I should by myself that ginormousFord SuperDuty so I can still see the country before I get elderly and are stuck at home feeding goats and shoveling hog manure.I work hard for my shit, buying in New York sucks, land is too expensive, neighbors too close, can’t legally burn my garbage, gun restrictions and fees. Truth is if you can smell your neighbor’s crap burning or hear his gun fire, he’s too close.Yeap, that fluid flim is going to stink like sheep shit when I coat my SuperDuty but whatever beats the fucking rust bucket I was driving until last evening.
So yeah, on that note, Happy New Year. We made it to 2026, and I didn’t think last year was the worse year ever, the economy was good, my investments done good, I worked hard and improved and developed the systems at Assembly Data Services. Road my bike to work many days, smoked some shit and good weed, burned most of my trash up in the woods, had some great adventures with Big Red until he was done, towards the end I could really feel the frame starting to give way and wobble, especially as I rode along the twists of Tan Hollow, Hillson Road, and Hunt Road out to my parents place in Dormansville as I went for one last little drive with Big Red before the year came to a close. It made it to it’s destination, the frame did not crack but maybe I should have taken the advice of the shop to stay safe, but whatever it was fun. But whatever, that was 2025 and it’s a new year now – and that ol’ Gram Parson record reminds me of those days past riding mountain bike in the rain stoned out of my brain smelling like wood smoke on those logging roads in the Conifer Easement last autumn. Days gone by! A new year, no more Big Red!
Truth is I am going to miss those drives out in the country, but I know the whole situation is kind of temporary, and truth is I don’t drive that much in the winter months, as the roads are shit and city and it’s hard to get to the back country with the snow and ice much of the winter. Life without a car will have it’s inconveniences, especially when it’s mostly the impoverished and seriously disabled who don’t drive, but I’ll figure out how to make it work, especially if it end up with me owning a new ginormous pickup truck, a trip out to the woods of the Upper Peninsula, lots of bonfires and weed up in woods, and maybe some more hunting and foraging this year. Maybe because I’m leaning so much on the 25 lbs of kidney beans and 10 lbs of rice I have at home to make it through my time without owning a truck this winter, I’ll want to eat more meat and plants not wrapped in plastic from the woods this year. Beats buying and burning all that toxic, smelly plastic shit. Or landfilling and maybe storing it until I get a new truck.
Left work at 1 PM yesterday, picked up a few necessary supplies at Walmart, and did a quick wash down of the truck at the car wash, noting how bad the frame has gotten. Unpacked things at home, spend a bit of time sitting behind the wheel of Big Red, getting out most of the things I’ll need for winter at home. I left most of my camping gear in the now retired truck, I will move things over once I get my next truck in April. Then I decided to go for a little drive out and up over Cass Hill and Reidsville, then back over through Tan Hollow. Saw more burn barrels then I expected, kind of put a smile on my face. That one house I briefly studied on Zillow with the weird lot and neighbors too close has sold. Had to think that circa-1800 house I just saw on Zillow in Coeymans must have issues and that’s why the past three sales fell through on it, but also it’s kind of pricey but I do wish now that I could have looked at it lest my truck, but still New York State sucks except for the money, the woods, and the weed. Amazing how priorities change when you reach your mid-40s. Maybe I’m stupid about the truck and the homestead – just buy the 20-year old Honda Civic and plastic house like everybody else in the suburbs – but that shit stinks when you burn it.
Spent the night over with Mom and Dad at this their homestead, celebrating New Years Eve with cheese fondue. 🫕Truth is not having cooked any beans up since I used up the last I had cooked on Monday, so it was good to have some delicious dairy fat and protein. I have so little cheese these days at home as I know it’s junk food but it was good to spend some time together, as I don’t know if this will be our last fondue together as a family. Maybe or maybe not, but much like my truck, time lasts forever until it’s done. I keep going back to how blessed that at least I had a date when I knew Red would be retired. Plus realistically, I know this is the year to travel with my new rig, as I don’t know how long this will be an option in the future.
We made it to 2026, and I didn’t think last year was the worse year ever, the economy was good, my investments done good, I worked hard and improved and developed the systems at Assembly Data Services. Road my bike to work many days, smoked some shit and good weed, burned most of my trash up in the woods, had some great adventures with Big Red until he was done, towards the end I could really feel the frame starting to give way and wobble, especially as I rode along the twists of Tan Hollow, Hillson Road, and Hunt Road out to my parents place in Dormansville as I went for one last little drive with Big Red before the year came to a close. It made it to it’s destination, the frame did not crack but maybe I should have taken the advice of the shop to stay safe, but whatever it was fun. But whatever, that was 2025 and it’s a new year now – and that ol’ Gram Parson record reminds me of those days past riding mountain bike in the rain stoned out of my brain smelling like wood smoke on those logging roads in the Conifer Easement last autumn. Days gone by! A new year, no more Big Red!
but I know the whole situation is kind of temporary, and truth is I don’t drive that much in the winter months, as the roads are shit and city 
and it’s hard to get to the back country with the snow and ice much of the winter. Life without a car will have it’s inconveniences, especially when it’s mostly the impoverished and seriously disabled who don’t drive, 
but I’ll figure out how to make it work, especially if it end up with me owning a new ginormous pickup truck, a trip out to the woods of the Upper Peninsula, lots of bonfires and weed up in woods, 
and maybe some more hunting and foraging this year. 
Maybe because I’m leaning so much on the 25 lbs of kidney beans and 10 lbs of rice I have at home to make it through my time without owning a truck this winter, 
Or landfilling and maybe storing it until I get a new truck.
and did a quick wash down of the truck at the car wash, noting how bad the frame has gotten. Unpacked things at home, spend a bit of time sitting behind the wheel of Big Red, getting out most of the things I’ll need for winter at home. 
I will move things over once I get my next truck in April. Then I decided to go for a little drive out and up over Cass Hill and Reidsville, then back over through Tan Hollow. 
Saw more burn barrels then I expected, kind of put a smile on my face. That one house I briefly studied on Zillow with the weird lot and neighbors too close has sold. 
Had to think that circa-1800 house I just saw on Zillow in Coeymans must have issues and that’s why the past three sales fell through on it, but also it’s kind of pricey but I do wish now that I could have looked at it lest my truck, but still New York State sucks except for the money, the woods, and the weed. Amazing how priorities change when you reach your mid-40s. Maybe I’m stupid about the truck and the homestead – just buy the 20-year old Honda Civic and plastic house like everybody else in the suburbs – but that shit stinks when you burn it. 
I have so little cheese these days at home as I know it’s junk food but it was good to spend some time together, as I don’t know if this will be our last fondue together as a family. Maybe or maybe not, but much like my truck, time lasts forever until it’s done. I keep going back to how blessed that at least I had a date when I knew Red would be retired. Plus realistically, I know this is the year to travel with my new rig, as I don’t know how long this will be an option in the future. 