Every so often, NASCAR like to introduce a set of specified upgrades to their standard fleet of Cup Series cars, updating both the design and performance of their cars for all competitors. While the current generation of cars was introduced back in 2013, NASCAR is now ready once more to leap forward with some radical changes.

Last week, I received one of the more interesting emails I’ve read this year. It was an email from Jenny Gross, a reporter for The New York Times who is currently based in London. She reached out because she came across something I had tweeted back in March about a noticeable trend that is taking many of us unvaccinated people by surprise. It’s called vaccine envy.

While I haven’t put together a journal entry here in a little while now, it’s not for a lack of effort. I’ve been quite busy since the start of the new year working on various writing projects, which will hopefully open the door to some exciting opportunities.

If you’re a fan of David Bowie like myself, this is a particularly poignant time of year for you. A few days ago, on January 8th, it was his birthday. He would have been 74 years old, a reminder that he was taken from us much sooner than the world would have allowed if it were up to us. In all honesty, our world could use a little more Bowie in it right now.

It’s been a hectic stretch for all of us as we try to get to the end of the year. For myself, I decided to make it even more crazy by moving to a new house. As many close to me can attest, I absolutely hate moving, so I’ve been carrying some stress because of it. I’m happy that we’re settling in now, though, as the boxes are mostly unpacked, the Christmas decorations are up (even the fake tree we ordered from Canadian Tire), and Christmas itself is finally here.

I’ve always heard famous people say in interviews that regardless of what they accomplished in their lives, the most difficult thing they ever did was write a book, and I always found that hard to believe. Could writing a book really be more difficult than, say, going to the moon, being the heavyweight champion of the world, or reaching the summit of the tallest mountain?