The Waning Moments of a Troubled Month

It is almost 10:00 at night, as I start to write this. We are in the final hours of the first month of 2026, which has also turned out to be a pretty horrible month... in so many ways.

We are often "instructed" — by our peers; our family; greater society — to keep a positive attitude and be grateful for the good things.

Sage advice, perhaps, but sometimes I prefer to just have the freedom to honestly complain about the way things turned out. Pretending that disappointment doesn't happen, and glossing over our feelings by putting on a veneer of positivity is not good for the soul!

It's ironic that I spent a lot of time being grateful that 2025 ended, because it was a pretty challenging bad year. And how could 2026 be any WORSE?

My bad, for tempting fate!

Not impressed with 2026, so far. I can but hope that things get better.

Find things to be grateful for!

I'm very grateful for getting an excellent deal on pork chops at the supermarket today! That was unexpected... and very welcome, given how the food budget seems to buy a little bit less, every month.

I'm very grateful that the howling wind that has been with us most of this past week has finally stopped blowing. I'm hopeful that tomorrow will be dry so I can go to the beach and find interesting things I can hopefully turn around and sell on eBay.

I'm very grateful that my computer is still running, even though it did suddenly shut itself down this afternoon. Sadly, there's not going to be any "selling some crypto to buy a new computer" anytime soon!

I'm very grateful — and feel a sense of accomplishment — because I managed to sort and organize 10 years of "mess" relating to my artwork... this past week. Now I can at least find things when I need them!

On the other hand, now I have absolutely no excuse for not taking on some of my creativity-related goals and projects for 2026!

That said, I do have a high level of what I call "background anxiety," relating to the state of affairs in the greater world.

There's much wisdom out there, suggesting that it's a waste of energy to worry about things that are outside our control. But how do you just turn off such feelings of concern?

It seems like the whole world the people in charge of this country have gone crazy and are no longer doing things in a sound and rational fashion. I'm not into politics, and generally keep a low profile... but enough is enough!

When I was a kid, we lived in the Spain of nationalist dictator Francisco Franco, and I am having more and more memories of that... when I watch what is happening around us.

For now, I am just grateful we don't live in a large city.

Let's hope some semblance of sanity can creep in, in February.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great remainder of your weekend!

How about YOU? How was YOUR January? Do you feel concerned about the state of the world? Leave a comment if you feel so inclined — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

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Created at 2026.01.31 23:48 PST
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