Farewell 2025
Full Name:
Lance HTT Newberry
Forums:
So another year down, and unlike many people, I won't curse your name.
Something that I've noticed for years, certainly in the social media era but even earlier that has always bothered me, and it seems to be bothering me more as the years go by; at the end of every year I hear so many declarations of, "GOOD RIDDANCE!", "FUCK THIS YEAR!", "I CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS YEAR TO END!", etc.
It's as if we think these years in our lives are unlimited and we can toss the current one aside like trash, and I think that's a bit sad and short-sighted.
These years we get are precious and at best we get just a tiny few, each full one is a gift that not everyone gets. Each one is filled with horror and despair but also success and joy, yet we seem to only focus on the negative.
Common' now folks, those of you who have said or thought any variation of FUCK 2025, if you reflect just a bit I'm betting you'll also recall good and great things that happened this year as well. There have absolutely been uncountable good and great things that have happened that we personally don't know about, and of course awful and horrible things as well, but that's life, and life is precious and it's fleeting.
We mark our lives by these things we call years and we only get a very few of them. IMO we shouldn't toss them aside like a bad piece of fruit, we should embrace every one, because with all the good AND the bad each one is a rare gift.
So happy new year everyone. Congratulations to all of us who made it all the way through 2025 and good luck to all of us in 2026, which is certain to have it's own horrors and joys, and I hope to see you on the other side a year from now.
So....
GOODBYE 2025!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!
HELLO 2026!!! WELCOME!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Rusty
Agreed. But also, fuck Trump.
Agreed. But also, fuck Trump.
Happy New Year !
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Lance HTT Newberry
>>>fuck Trump<<<
>>>fuck Trump<<<
Oh, well sure, I have no issue with that at all.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: donster
Very happy to be on an island
Very happy to be on an island of family and love and my first social security check in the midst of a year that history will not look kindly on.
Macro/Micro stuff
Happy Micro 2026 to all you freaks!
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: reverend
Don't Micro this year. Do
Don't Micro this year. Do yourselves a personal favor, do something Macro, and have some new stories to tell.
"The bad news is Time flies. The good news is you're the pilot."
-- Michael Altshuler
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Druba
I stayed at home and watched
I stayed at home and watched the Phish concert, really enjoyed it! Saw Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes last Saturday (Olsen Run Comedy Club), and going to "The Book of Mormon" on Friday at the Hult Center, so starting off the year with a touch of religion, lol.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaRTrbM8VbE
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: jazfish
Yep. Fuck Trump and fuck
Yep. Fuck Trump and fuck Putin.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Def. High
And the horse they rode in on
And the horse they rode in on.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: intentionally blank
I always thought the first
I always thought the first part of the first sentence of Charles Dickens' novel A Tale of Two Cities—"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way"—referred to all times. 2025 was no different, and I expect 2026 wil be much the same. How could it not be? These are the conditions of human existence, as they always have been, and always will be.
One of the things I like best about this annual turning point is it gives me a reason to drag out Robert Hunter's poem "The Boxes of Dr. Spasmodius":
Dr. Spasmodious sat at his desk,
the end of the year drawn nigh,
haunted, harried, full of gloom,
watching the seconds die.
The maid behind him sloshed her mop
in a bucket of silvery suds;
unborn children watched through a crack
in the floor of the attic above.
We were together, you and I,
with other children yet to be born,
between the ages, if not in life,
one to the other, eternally sworn.
You, frail and fair as a lily,
held my hand by light of the moon,
pale beams brightly spilling
on boxes all over the room -
boxes heavy with dust of the dead,
time and decay - all but one:
tied with a shining bit of thread
fine as a baby's hair and red.
"Tell me your prophecy, Maid of the Mop,"
said the Doctor downstairs below,
"What's simple to you is subtle to me.
What sort of year will this coming year be?"
She shook a spark from her long red hair
which flew like a star to his tree
"Spring will be damp and Summer dry
and Autumn come presently . . ."
So saying, she bound her flowing hair
with a ribbon of scarlet twine,
returned to mopping the floor away
until nothing remained but shine.
Down we came with cautious tread
you, I, and all of the others -
bearing the box tied with a thread
fine as a baby's hair and red.
The maid once more unloosed her hair,
gray now as clouds when laden with rain.
You she chose, took by the hand,
allowed, out of all, to remain.
The rest she kissed both sides of the cheek
as the chimes of the New Year dinned,
one by one sent each through the door
to dissolve in the rain and wind.
Dr. Spasmodious watched from his chair
on the point of a tear but refrained.
He smiled instead, held out his arms
to you who were spared from the rain.
"Welcome my child to life again,
to the kingdom of hope and pain.
Ring in the New, [we're still alive]
May grace prevail and we survive!"
https://whitegum.com/introjs.htm?/songfile/BOXESDRS.HTM
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: MarkD
Yeah. I'm sure there were
Yeah. I'm sure there were many good times in the last yr. Gatherings with friends good/great shows.
But right now, I only remember that I lost my Nellie, three very good friends and a handful of musical heroes. And then there was trump and the horrible downturn our country has taken in the past yr(actually many yrs, but this last one shines above)
So, I am just hoping that this coming yr is a little easier to take.
FUCK 2025!!
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Capt. Optissimo 24/7
Funky year for me, especially
Funky year for me, especially from August on. Had to drop four friends, well, I thought they were friends, might be more accurate. So I signed up for therapy to the tune of 16k starting Sunday. There are some things sex, drugs, and rock & roll can't fix!
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Roarshock
Goodbye 2025 and Good Damn
Goodbye 2025 and Good Damn Riddance!
It certainly wasn't all bad, but way more than bad enough ("Don't make it worse, it's Badenov!" ~ Rocky and His Friends).
I survived 2025. It was anything but easy.
Happy New Year 2026. A chance to reset and have hope of better days ahead.
Hey, we have got this zoners. More than enough work and play still to do. Let's continue to meet up where the music happens and here on the black screen.
"Welcome my child to life again,
to the kingdom of hope and pain.
Ring in the New, [we're still alive]
May grace prevail and we survive!"
~ Robert Hunter
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: donster
Highlights of 2025?????
Highlights of 2025?????
What was your macro?
I own my 5th SAAB - a 2011 with 236K on it made in the final year that the company was in biz. Bought it 5 hours away in Maine - cause it had a sunroof, a stick shift and low mileage. My final SAAB thought I.
Early in 2025, Lisa & I went to out to lunch and found ourselves parked next to a 20 year old SAAB convertible in mint condition and 100K on the odometer with a For Sale sign in the window. We bought that bad girl.
2-3 nights in 5 beach towns NJ > DE > MD> VA > NJ with the top down. Like Dead tour with no shows and lots of love. Summer in the SAAB and the sand
Epic times amidst: Fuck Trump and the limo he rode in on.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: treat island
Perspective, eh? It's hard to
Perspective, eh? It's hard to know if it was the year or just the time spent ducking harshness and cruelty from the administration.
And a lot of loss.
My creativity continues to crawl back, especially brought out by time I spend with my grand kids. Grandson (10) is learning to play chess (on Duolingo) but I didn't have a chess set. I asked him if he'd like to make one with me and off we went. The first one was actually a fail, but the second one is playable and fun. Granddaughter (12) and I are having long talks, and we're embarking on embroidery projects together. It doesn't much matter what we do, they spark me and I spark them.
One of my sisters got sick in late November and died tonight. You haven't met this sister, I think the only Zoners she met were Be Nice and Bart. She was a sweet and loving woman with a heart as big as all outdoors.
Mark, I'm sorry, I didn't know about Nellie. That's sad.
I will wish you all a gentle 2026, and hope for the best. ❤️
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: MarkD
Very sorry to hear about your
Very sorry to hear about your sister, Judit. Much love. Much loss.
Yes, I lost Nellie just before Thanksgiving. Miss her alot.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: reverend
My macro was getting to see a
My macro was getting to see a 15 month endeavor come to fruition when I finally got my son into a small, intimate, 3 night ayahuasca ceremony weekend with me and my two master teachers last March. The frosting on the cake was listening to my teacher from Peru sing The Sound of Silence in Shipibo. We found out at the end of that ceremony that his father, who passed on when he was 17, sang that song to him when he was a child. He hadn't sang it in many years and broke it out just for us.
The candle on the frosting was spending some very unique time with 3 people i love and admire, seeing the smile of contentment on my son's face on the long dive home, seeing how much happier he and his family are, and helping him to finally get off of antidepressants. Thank you, Mother Aya!
Sorry to read of your loss, judit and Mark.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: treat island
Actually, my sister Lyz came
Actually, my sister Lyz came with me to the gathering honoring Bart/Henry. Mark, weren't you there? and Mylar was there, and I can't remember who else. Anyway, you may have met her.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: MarkD
I was and I did, Judit. I
I was and I did, Judit. I thought I had met her but could not remember where.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: reverend
Dear judit, when I posted, I
Dear judit, when I posted, I didn't realize it was your blood sister who passed.
I'm so sorry for your loss.
Lots of Love to you
and with the good memories, for peace in your heart and mind.