Happy new year, folks!
I figure I should do an update since it's been about a year of silence. A lot has changed. I'll bullet-point it:
* I wised up and lost nearly 60 pounds. I did put some back since late fall but I've been back on a downward trajectory, recently. I took a dna analysis and found out information that snapped me into reality. Plus, I hated feeling gross most days.
* The house was the main project focus this year... roof, windows, restoring the wood sills, gable siding, the entryway needed repair, and paint. The garage got painted to match, too, AND I got a gutter along the roof where I walk to the back door at the same time we got some for the house.
*The hot rod started becoming a focus, too. The family and I brought the body out to a pal in Vallejo, toward the end of the summer, he'll be starting it soon to get the metalwork finished.
*I've done some more work on the garage, too, mostly little stuff. I did put in an opener and as mentioned a gutter and paint.
*My department was cut, where I worked and so at the end of the summer, I lost my employment.
*During that time my 90k mile Tundra decided it no longer wanted to live. Haha. That was a curveball. Things were pretty crazy for me, at that time, so I didn't get all that bothered. It sucked and was going to be a huge expense so I posted it for sale. The dealer took a look at it and all I could connect the failure to was maybe the service I had done to it prior to leaving for Cali. I think they may have run the wrong oil in it but that's speculation.
*The Tundra sold fairly fast and I picked up a little 2wd Tacoma, which got hit 30 minutes after leaving the dealership - right in the cab corner. It was in and out of the bodyshop since then and I've just gotten it back. I drove it once since I got it back and got it stuck at the end of my driveway this AM. Haha! My son has never been stuck and was confused on how this could happen. I was just like, welcome to the old days, son!
*The Taco getting hit was a turning point for me. I believe that negative thoughts do attract negative results and I was struggling with trying to figure out exactly who I am and what I want to do for employment. I wasn't even driving the truck when it got hit and I lost my cool on the gentleman who hit the truck. It was like an out-of-body experience watching me interact with that guy. He was so visibly shaken that I felt shame/embarrassment. I grew up in that moment. What's crazy is, I'm a pretty level-headed person. I may be thinking about tearing someone's head off but 99.9% of the time, my brain is in control of my emotions. From that moment, I dug back into being positive and developing myself. No job (or lack thereof), blown-up truck, stockmarket shift (seriously, lost major $$$ there), accident, dealing with an autobody shop for two months, and so on will shake me.
*Tools365.net is actually a thing, now. I've failed and learned so much over the year. For a while I gave up on it. However, after losing my job and getting back into writing, things have been steadily improving. I have a lot of content coming. It's a ton of work for one person and I have a love-hate relationship with the back-ends of websites. Really, I just hate not knowing how to do something.
*This year has been a lot of not knowing how to do things... many things... this year.
*We bought a rental property and have another in process.
*My wife and I are closer than ever. I have a renewed appreciation for our relationship.
*I missed the GJ and my pals on here.
I'll post some shop updates, soon. There's not a ton but, believe it or not, I still have a few unfinished items that were on my original list, which need to be completed. So, I'll get to those, as well.
To those who've reached out while the thread sat dormant, thanks. It's always nice to hear people are thinking about you.
All right, all right, that's all I can think of, for now.
Glad to be back!
and happy new year! 2018 hear we come!
I figured there wasn't any left! I mean, it's been a year, you've probably installed a runway, parking garage, a pool or too and maybe, for giggles, a little bird bath. 
