Year-end reviews are one of the low-hanging fruits of the blogging world. And, who am I to turn away a post topic that doesn’t require any imagination on my part?

My biggest goal for 2022 was to, at right about this time, be purchasing a nice chunk of middle o’ nowhere. Sadly, the stock market decided not to cooperate and as a result this particular goal is getting bumped into 2023. On the bright side, with interest rates going up dramatically, the pool of qualified buyers will be smaller, demand will drop, and hopefully prices will start to come down as well. In other words, 2023 may provide a better buying opportunity than 2022.

Gun-wise, 2022 was a fairly heavy year. What can I say, this Biden clown and whoever is pulling his strings have made no secret about their plan ro ‘ban assault weapons’. So…if what I have today may be all I have for the rest of my life, well, I better make sure what I have today is a lot.

As for the rest of the year…no blackouts, no hurricanes, no earthquakes, no Xenu, no zombies, no riots in the street, no intruders, no blue helmets….I didnt have to use my AK, it was a good year.

Gilded the lily a bit and beefed up my stockpiles of food and fuel cans. Picked up a bit more silver. Spent a lot of time keeping an eye on the news and trying to scry what sorta unpleasantness may be looming ahead.

As for 2023, well….I’ll be another year older, dang it. Other than that my big goal for 2023 is to redouble my efforts and work on getting that piece of land out in the boonies. And, if a little Serbu semi auto .50 happens to cross my path, I wouldn’t say no to that. Other than those things….not much to do for 2023 that isnt already taken care of.

Ah, ‘Tis becoming the holiday season….Chrismahanakwanzakah. Funny how all those gift-giving holidays are timed right around December, isn’t it?

Slightly dated, still on-point.

What does the Zero want for gifts this year? Well, a series of huge rallies in the stock market would be nice. Other than that, I’m fairly content with what I have. Just gild the lily a bit here and there….a little ammo to top things off, a little more freeze drieds to top things off, etc. But, by and large, I’m good with just a card or something.

However….. 😉

If you’re the generous type who thinks, “You know, that long-suffering survivalist in Montana does a fairly good job of entertaining me. Heck, I should do something for him.” Well….Im not gonna say no.

Either sign up through Patreon to kick in a couple bucks a month, or email me an Amazon gift card I can use to buy..well…pretty much anything. Esbt tabs, mag pouchs, radio cables, CR123 batts, knife sharpeners, that sort of thing.

Being Commander Zero is an often thankless task, but sometimes nice things occur. A couple times this year I got a silver dime or quarter in the mail, or someone sent a gift card or similar code for Amazon. All very thoughtful and greatly appreciated actions.

Regardless, whatever holiday you observe/celebrate/emulate/ridicule this season, try to have fun and ennjoy whats left of the American economy and civilization.

Remember, kids…we don’t celebrate the Fourth of July. We celebrate Independence Day. If you keep calling the holiday ‘the Fourth of July’ you’re basically ignoring it’s history. And, speaking of history, here’s actual photographs of the guys that were stacking bodies 246 years ago.

In the meantime, today, like Patriots Day, is a day best celebrated by taking your evil black rifle to the range and practicing the kind of shooting that would have been handy (or will be handy) in a revolution against a tyrannical .gov.

This holiday brought to you by guys with guns.

My favorite holiday. Dedicated to the notion that otherwise law-abiding citizens sometimes just need to shoot at The Man.I will argue that there is virtually no finer way to observe the holiday, short of leaving an upper decker in the executive bathroom of the British Embassy, than to go out and spend some time practicing with your freedom-rifle.

Whatever December holiday you celebrate, have a happy.

Here’s my favorite holiday music. Hit it, Placido….

So, how’d Santa treat you this year?

Oh, and before I forget, I’m trying something new. There’s a thank-you over at Patreon for those of you who have been generous this year. Nothing special, just me saying thanks and wishing you a quiet 2022.

I got, I kid you not, a Festivus card in the mail the other day. A thoughtful reader sent me a Festivus card and a thoughtful (and greatly appreciated) gift. Darn nice of him, if you ask me.

What does Zero want for Christmas?

Well, ammo anyway.

Actually, precious metals (of which ammo would count) make awesome gifts. I genuinely don’t have much I could ask for for Christmas. I did splurge and get myself another lovely Filson garment as an early Festivus gift to myself. I like their products, their style, and quality….hate the price. But..buy once, cry once.

However, were Santa to ask me if there were any preparedness related items he could have his non-union labor force whip up for me…..well…I wouldnt mind a nice ICOM transceiver with power supply and antennae, some more NATO gas cans, another EU2000, and that sort of thing. While I’m something of a sentimental fool, I have trouble with the notion of Santa encouraging children to believe that they can get toys simply because ‘they deserve them’. It seems like it would foster an attitude of entitlement. Still, not as bad as Halloween…where children are encouraged to put on disguises, head to wealthier neighborhoods, and demand treats under penalty of tricks. All thats missing from that picture is a ‘no justice no peace’ sign.

But…not everyone sees it that way.

Happy Thanksgiving, boys. Sometimes life is a swirling cesspool of despair from which no ray of hope can ever escape. (Or as I call it, “Lifes default setting”) But no matter how craptacular it is, it could often be worse. So, sure, take a moment to be grateful for what you have. But also be grateful to yourself for getting you there.  You overcame that crappy obstacle. You put yourself on the right track. You did the hard work. You made the tough choices. You fought the battles. You made the sacrifices. Sure, you may have had advice, help, and direction from others, but in the final analysis it was you who got you where you are now…good or bad. Own it. If you’re hitting bottom, slap yourself in the face a few times, grit your teeth, cowboy the F up, and do what needs to be done. If you’ve recovered from hitting bottom and are on your way to being a baller, keep your foot on the gas, amigo.

But take today to recognize what you’ve done and what still needs to be done. Then pig out, sleep it off, and get back to the plan.

To me, Independence Day is mandatory go-practice-with-guns day. Also a good day to bone up on your history and political theory. I think that Independence Day is the second most political holiday after Election Day (which, I suppose, isn’t actually a holiday.)

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust; if you don’t take it out and use it, it’s going to rust.