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30 Years of Blogging

Author: Chris ODonnell From https://odonnellweb.com/pelican/ • Dec 31st, 2025
Category: Blog Entries.Local

30 years of blogging. I don't even know what to do with that. The word blog had not been invented in 1995 when I launched this site, but from the early days I recognized the utility of giving people a reason to come back. So I was posting regular essays from day 1. I also used to redesign the site regularly, as that was a thing we did in the 1990s when all sites were hand coded. Meanwhile, this site hasn't changed since I launched this version 8 years ago.

2025 certainly did not turn out as I expected. I started the year with a new job with one of the old-school A-list Drupal shops. Or so I thought. It turns out I was working for the smoldering shell of a flamed-out A-list Drupal shop that would cease to exist as a functioning entity by mid-year. 2 weeks into my summer job search, I had a lot of feedback from companies that would like my help, but not full-time. So I dusted off my freelance business plan, ran some projections, and went FT freelance in late June. I hit my 2025 projections, and if not for the fascists in Congress raising my health insurance premium 157%, I'd be feeling fantastic about 2026.

Last year I had the following plans in my EOY post.

More creating, less consuming.
More hiking.
Probably less camping, reality of starting a new job.
More birding.
The Marvelous 3 Halloween show in Atlanta.

So how did I do?

I created my own company, so I'd call that one a win. I did not do more hiking, but that is directly related to starting a company. We only camped 20 nights, which is by far the least we've done since buying the camper. I think I'm going to have to work from the camper or a nearby library or coffee shop while camping if I want to camp more this year. We definitely did more birding, as documented by my eBird list submissions. Finances would have cost me the Marv 3 show if I hadn't bailed earlier. It was an outdoor show, and driving 8 hours for a late afternoon show in late summer in Atlanta is just asking for it to be canceled due to a thunderstorm.

Given all the changes in my life in 2025, that's not a bad end-of-the-year result.

So, the actual numbers.

Camping: Only 20 nights :(
Blog posts: 109, counting this one!
Books: 50 on the books page, several of which are DNFs.
I have no idea how many albums I bought this year. I did something to screw up the last modified dates in my music directory. I bought 15 last year, and I'm going to guess it's below 10 this year.
I logged 185 bird species across 60 checklists. I'm surprised at the number of checklists, as I expected it to be higher. But we did see significantly more species this year, so maybe we are just better at birding.

So, what is coming in 2026?

I'll be starting the year very busy taking classes for my Virginia Master Naturalist certification. That will keep me busy through the winter.
As mentioned above, I want to experiment with working from the road. Perhaps we'll do a short trip of up to a week this summer to test it out.
We didn't take any sort of extended vacation this year, so I definitely want to get a camping road trip planned, probably for the fall.
I got 185 bird species this year, so I'm going to aim for 200 next year.
Hopefully I can increase my income to offset the $1300/month increase in my health insurance premium.

Some sanity in the US government would be nice in 2026, but that is likely too much to wish for.

If you are celebrating the New Year tonight, please do so safely. The odds of me even being awake at midnight are slim.

30 Years of Blogging

Author: 30 Years of Blogging From https://blog.odonnellweb.com • Dec 31st, 2025
Category: Blog Entries.Local

30 years of blogging. I don’t even know what to do with that. The word blog had not been invented in 1995 when I launched this site, but from the early days I recognized the utility of giving people a reason to come back. So I was posting regular essays from day 1. I also used to redesign the site regularly, as that was a thing we did in the 1990s when all sites were hand coded. Meanwhile, this site hasn’t changed since I launched this version 8 years ago.

2025 certainly did not turn out as I expected. I started the year with a new job with one of the old-school A-list Drupal shops. Or so I thought. It turns out I was working for the smoldering shell of a flamed-out A-list Drupal shop that would cease to exist as a functioning entity by mid-year. 2 weeks into my summer job search, I had a lot of feedback from companies that would like my help, but not full-time. So I dusted off my freelance business plan, ran some projections, and went FT freelance in late June. I hit my 2025 projections, and if not for the fascists in Congress raising my health insurance premium 157%, I’d be feeling fantastic about 2026.

Last year I had the following plans in my EOY post.

More creating, less consuming.
More hiking.
Probably less camping, reality of starting a new job.
More birding.
The Marvelous 3 Halloween show in Atlanta.

So how did I do?

I created my own company, so I’d call that one a win. I did not do more hiking, but that is directly related to starting a company. We only camped 20 nights, which is by far the least we’ve done since buying the camper. I think I’m going to have to work from the camper or a nearby library or coffee shop while camping if I want to camp more this year. We definitely did more birding, as documented by my eBird list submissions. Finances would have cost me the Marv 3 show if I hadn’t bailed earlier. It was an outdoor show, and driving 8 hours for a late afternoon show in late summer in Atlanta is just asking for it to be canceled due to a thunderstorm.

Given all the changes in my life in 2025, that’s not a bad end-of-the-year result.

So, the actual numbers.

Camping: Only 20 nights :(
Blog posts: 109, counting this one!
Books: 50 on the books page, several of which are DNFs.
I have no idea how many albums I bought this year. I did something to screw up the last modified dates in my music directory. I bought 15 last year, and I’m going to guess it’s below 10 this year.
I logged 185 bird species across 60 checklists. I’m surprised at the number of checklists, as I expected it to be higher. But we did see significantly more species this year, so maybe we are just better at birding.

So, what is coming in 2026?

I’ll be starting the year very busy taking classes for my Virginia Master Naturalist certification. That will keep me busy through the winter.
As mentioned above, I want to experiment with working from the road. Perhaps we’ll do a short trip of up to a week this summer to test it out.
We didn’t take any sort of extended vacation this year, so I definitely want to get a camping road trip planned, probably for the fall.
I got 185 bird species this year, so I’m going to aim for 200 next year.
Hopefully I can increase my income to offset the $1300/month increase in my health insurance premium.

Some sanity in the US government would be nice in 2026, but that is likely too much to wish for.

If you are celebrating the New Year tonight, please do so safely. The odds of me even being awake at midnight are slim.

A Post-Christmas IDPA Match

Author: David From http://www.musingsoverabarrel.com/ • Dec 30th, 2025
Category: Blog Entries.Local

I’m not getting to the range nearly as often as I’d like. Even so, deciding to shoot the Cavalier IDPA match just two days after Christmas wasn’t an easy call. With family visiting for the holidays, it would have been easy to stay home — but instead I headed out early Saturday morning to spend the day shooting with friends.

Realizing I hadn’t fired a single live round since October’s IDPA match gave me some pause. A sore back, creaky knees, and “old man eyes” don’t help either. Still, the point is really the fun of the sport and the camaraderie — not the score. That was the mantra I repeated to myself during the morning drive.

Our squad was on the large side, and the match staff clearly set out to increase the round count. Four of the five stages featured multiple strings, which naturally extended the time required to complete each course of fire.

The first stage we shot was a straightforward “stand and shoot” skills test. Eight paper targets and four steel were arranged symmetrically. One string had us engage four paper and two steel on one side, followed by a second, separately timed string on the opposite side. As a twist, starting magazines for each string were downloaded to just five rounds.

The next challenge was the dreaded two-string, one-handed shooting stage. Standing in a shooting box, we completed the first string shooting strong-hand only (SHO), engaging four targets. The second string required weak-hand-only (WHO) shooting. One of the four targets was hung upside down, which caught more than a few shooters — myself included — sending rounds a bit too high for the -0 circle.

A not-quite-traditional IDPA stage followed. Six targets were positioned around barrel stacks — two on each side and two in the center — with three tables placed across the stage. All magazines were downloaded to just four rounds, with a maximum of four magazines allowed. One magazine was placed on each table, with the final table allowing an optional fourth. The firearm started empty and holstered.

This stage was also shot in two strings and felt distinctly USPSA-inspired. Starting a few feet behind the first table, we loaded at the table, engaged the associated target array, then moved to the center table to reload and engage the center targets, repeating the process at the final table. The second string reversed the direction of travel. The unconventional format brought plenty of smiles, laughter, and good-natured ribbing — especially as shooters hurriedly reloaded magazines off the clock between strings.

The next-to-last stage was a “sit and shoot” course. The loaded firearm and all magazines were placed on a table and all shots were from a seated position. A tall table and low chair made for some awkward positioning. Again shot in two strings, the first required engaging four targets with two body shots each. The second string required one head shot on each of five targets. A couple of overlaid non-threats added an extra layer of difficulty.

My final stage of the day was a full movement course. Fourteen targets were arranged along a curving path behind a mix of low and upright walls. All targets were oriented sideways, representing a pack of attacking animals. They presented varying amounts of exposed head and body, with occasional non-threats mixed in. Unfortunately, I neglected to grab a photo of the setup.

The stage brief required each target to be neutralized with either one head shot or two body shots — shooter’s choice. I opted for the body-shot option, reasoning that more rounds but faster shooting would benefit in the end, though a fair number of shooters chose the 14-shot head-only route. I really enjoyed this stage, particularly the opportunity to shoot on the move.

Overall, I was pleased with how I shot. Though I no longer consider myself competitive, I still enjoy the activity. I had a few misses, but I’ll gladly take the small victories: no non-threat hits and no procedural errors. Best of all, I got to reconnect with some old friends, including a few I hadn’t seen or chatted with in many years.

Normally, this is where I’d say I’m already looking forward to the next match. Unfortunately, the host club announced that the monthly match is moving to a different weekend, one that conflicts with another long-standing commitment. As a result, opportunities to shoot this particular match will likely be few and far between.

Though longer-than-expected, the day was thoroughly enjoyable. Despite a late-afternoon return home, there was still time for dinner, a couple of football games on the TV, and the continuation of holiday time with family. All in all, it was a good way to spend a winter Saturday.

Cheers!

A Post-Christmas IDPA Match