2025 Was Tough

Big ups. Big downs. Took some risks. Continued to go with the flow... Thinking. Learning. Growing.

The year ended with the heartbreaking loss of our "nephew," Elias... which is part of the reason its taken so long to write this retrospective. He was an incredibly special kid with an incomprehensible diagnosis that he and his family fought as hard as possible to overcome... The loss has taken a while to settle in.

Last year, my first boss and one of my classmates were also taken too early by cancer.

2025 was unkind but time kept moving.

Work

The year started off strong at Panther, the cybersecurity startup I was working at. Then it took an unexpected turn when I got a call from my former Venmo leader and friend, Papanii. Shortly after, I found myself in calls with a recruiter, several VPs and accepted a gig as a principal software engineer at Rocket.

I wasn’t immediately excited about joining a big corporate mortgage company, but became quickly convinced by the culture, opportunity, and mission. It kicked off a wild ride where I once again got in over my head. It’s been really awesome and I love that it gives me an excuse to visit Detroit.

Love

Kari and I celebrated TWENTY years of marriage. I had my first custom suit made and we bought out our favorite restaurant to throw a little party. It felt great to celebrate life with such an amazing partner.

Health

On top of my skin continuing to revolt, I discovered that I have higher arterial plaque than like 90% of people my age. wtf. To address both of these things, I did tons of tests, diet experiments, started some new meds, and decided to start allergy shots again. Annoying.

I also started to notice myself holding things further from my eyes and needing more light to see. Goddammit. I refuse to be that guy with the flashlight in the dimly lit restaurants though, haha.

For fun and movement, I continue golf, hockey, yoga, and walking the pup... but I think I need more.

The biggest health learnings last year were:

1. Dry January was no sweat, but also kinda dumb.
2. Vitamin D is a miracle supplement. I started taking that shit after my seasonal depression kicked in and my motivation almost immediately returned. It's wild. I really wasn't expecting it to be so effective. I love it.
3. Gluten does not seem to be affecting me in the way that I believed.
4. Exercise and diet are becoming more important.
5. Getting old is lame af.

Travel

We didn't leave the continent, but still did some pretty good exploring...

• Banff was beautiful
• Mesa Dogsitting was funny and Innings Fest was rad
• Sedona with Panther was special
• Off-roading in Moab to Monument Valley with Jeff and Teresa
• New Ulm for Bock Fest and Oktoberfest
• Omaha with Trent and Maurizio
• Tampa Bay for NIN, art, and hangs with Kevi
• Northern Wisconsin to visit my mom and Rod
• Georgia to visit my sister and her family
• Camping in Tigerton, Clear Lake, Okoboji, and White Rock Conservancy.
• Chicago for Cowboy Carter and to be with family after Elias's passing
• Detroit 4 times for work

I'm really, really itching to travel across an ocean in 2026.

Shows

• Innings Fest (feat Fall Out Boy, The Black Keys, Incubus, All-American Rejects, Slightly Stoopid) was fun
• The Faint was incredible
• Beyoncé was great
• Wiz Khalifa kinda sucked
• Beck and the Des Moines Symphony was special
• NIN and Boys Noize were insanely good
• Prof was fun as always

Building

I tinkered on some projects and built...

• walnut speaker stands for my desk
• a custom 3rd brake light / chase light mount for my Bronco
• drawers for the camper
• key trays for the kitchen
• Also added some locking latches to my custom Bronco platform

Anyway... it was a weird year and I'm kind of stretching to try to find things to talk about.

2026 is unfortunately off to a sad start with all that's going on in our country, but I'm hopeful that we can get back on track.

Gonna do the best I can with what I can.