2025
I wasn’t going to start doing the monthly blog posts until 2026, but recent events, recent thoughts, and just that known feeling of “WTF” made me decided to do.... this.
I would like to start to say that I am not the type to use any personal tragedy as a marketing tool; it’s not my style. I don’t want people to buy books because they feel sorry for me, but because I write good books. I am hoping I can balance this post so in the end, you feel that by keeping your chin up and “put one foot in front of the other” -holiday pun you can get through anything.
2025 has been a flipping roller coaster of a year. It started out on the heels of me launching Red in the Morning. I sold 250 books in the first two months of the year. One hell of a way to start a year!
The rest of the year just seemed it couldn’t decide what it was doing, health scares from family members, followed by one of the best book launches in Boothbay Harbor history.
As Autumn came and my annual battle with the leaves began we got hit with another health tragedy. my father had a stroke, glass half full I got to see the lobstering community circle their wag..... boats and take care of his gear, calling, emailing, texting my brother and I asking, “what can we do for Fred.” He is improving his condition increasingly every day.
Normally we get just a dusting of snow, a little flurry or two in the beginning to remind us that it’s coming. This year it seemed to hit without a warning. 6 to 8 inches of snow starting in the early afternoon.
I went out after dinner, while it was still snowing and started snow blowing the driveway, within an hour I managed to break 3 shear pins in the snowblowers auger, requiring me to lay in the wet snow, in the dark trying to remove the rock that got wedged, bend the blades back, and replace the shear pins. So, I did what everyone else would do upon completion.... I vented on Facebook!
Shortly after posting my tyrannical tirade, my phone beeped showing a message. I figured it would be one of my southern friends or family, thumbing their nose at our Maine weather. Nope, it was a reader that said her and her husband had a plow truck they no longer needed, and were already thinking about donating to a veteran... well needless to say, I now have a nice plow truck in my driveway, that will soon be my daily driver while I make repairs on my Jeep.
2025 still had one more curve ball to throw, my dad’s girlfriend of many years passed away. Some say “lost a battle to cancer” which I don’t believe she did. She looked cancer in the eye and dared it to take the smile from her face; she didn’t die in fear, or sadness. She left with grace and a positive energy that cancer couldn’t take, even in her final hour.
2025 also brought me to church, which I am thankful for, in the darkest times of this year it’s like I have had a solid oak post to hold me up.
Thank you, readers, for all the love and support this year. A special heart felt thank you goes out to my beta readers, advisors and support crew. None of this happens without you. A big shout out to Brady’s and Jeannie Mitchell, thank you for all you do for Maine’s Blue-Collar Author.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
