Best of luck, flea

So glad you are still with us, dcp

I can definitely relate to Mr. Flea as a 57-year old who suffered a DOGE-related job loss in 2025. My therapist suggested not looking for a job for a bit which helped my guilt (also we’re very fortunate that Bob’s job has been steady and pays well enough to support us). I did get one freelance job that, while it didn’t pan out to be as fruitful as it initially seemed like it could be, lasted a couple of months & helped me bring a little income in. I’m committed to actually getting my shit together and looking for work for real in 2026.

Aside from work, 2025 for me was about getting kind of serious about yoga including starting yoga teacher training. I’m still not sure if I really wants to teach but it’s been a great opportunity to learn more about the practice and has given me more motivation to Keep it Moving! Even when my knees and lower back / hips are being assholes.

Calli I really like Elinor Wylie Elinor Wylie | The Poetry Foundation [link]

Her poem Pretty Words was in a volume of Childcraft books my grandmother had Pretty Words by Elinor Wylie - Famous poems, famous poets. - All Poetry [link]

Flea and Calli and lisah the job losses suck. I hope that 2026 brings something kick ass for everyone.

Best of luck flea. I can imagine where you live is very expensive without two incomes.

It's been such a hard year for everyone. I almost feel like I shouldn't be complaining: I still have a job, most of my coworkers are still with us, we are not at risk, even if we lost our alternate work schedules and telework. But the fog of trauma over the country and the federal government in particular has really tainted everything. And the workload has basically doubled in the last six months, with no help from HQ on how to prioritize or triage it.

I've gained a bunch of weight and lost a lot of conditioning, although I'm running again (sort of), because my mental health suffers when I don't.

My family's ok, for the most part, and I took a great trip to England over the summer, but I cannot say it's been a good year. It's just been ... hard. I fantasize about retiring and then worry about not having the resources to do it. I'm not getting as much socialization as I need, either.

So like Pix I'm very happy to be involved in dog sports -- although for me it's agility.

And yet things could be so much worse. Bah.

Having 2 parents working full-time, with 2 kids, and no family nearby is fucking HARD, y'all.

Large Son is in 1st grade, and doing well. He does seem to be struggling with self-regulation, but teacher doesn't see anything concerning. He's writing a lot (loves to make signs that tell people what to do. In detail. With 1st grader spelling), which is cool.

Small Son is 2 now, and likes to do everything his brother does. He's started telling little autobigraphical stories, which is adorable. He's still shorter than his 2 friends who are the same age, but also still significantly denser. He loves anything musical, and can sometimes sing recognizable songs. So, dwarf bard.

I am hoping to have a new work situation by the middle of this year, but it's being complicated by at home stuff, as DH has transitioned to an Actual Full-Time Employee Again, rather than a contractor, but this is not coming with an increase in The Monies (with fun bonus "No One Has Time To Do House Things Anymore"). But work sucks, and I'd like to be able to take Christmas Break off more than once every 5 years, so...

DH is home from the hospital. Happy New Year, 2006! You get a second stroke! Two days in the hospital, many tests, and the sum is minimum deficits on the left side (woo! matched pair!) this time, and a long grouchy time until he's cleared to drive again. Having a grandson in the house is a lucky thing. His car is very comfy and the chaufferage is excellent. Also having a person not me (he is Very Large and also A Man) to counter the grouchy is splendid. We all look forward to improvements in 2006's presentation.

{{{Beverly and fam}}} Glad you have the grandson handy!

Oh geez Bev. Glad it’s not worse but sorry it is at all!

Gotta say 2026 is not impressing me so far (*cough*Venezuela*cough*).

2025 sucked a lot for me and mine.

My mom passing is a major reason. Mr. S being at the RTC all year is another. Perimenopause is hitting hard, between the hot flashes and the interrupted sleep every night.

Of course there's all the crap the government has pulled. I did not lose my job due to DOGE shenanigans, but two of my labmates did. Also having to work without pay for over a month was no fun.

There were a couple of good things in 2025. We got to Worldcon in Seattle, and that was fun. We also adopted two kittens in February. They turned 1 in August, and are still very high energy, and very entertaining.

Not liking the way 2026 is going so far...