The mighty Mississippi was at it again, and Shamus had found religion. As he sat calmly on the porch of his now river-side house, some men floated by in a boat and said, “Come on Shamus! Get in the boat! We’ll take you to safety!”
“You boys jest be movin’ on,” said ol’ Shamus. “The LORD will protect me.”
As the waters rose, Shamus ascended to his upstairs bedroom. Again, another rescue boat drifted by and saw him looking out his window. “We’re here to rescue you,” they shouted at Shamus. “Climb out your window and into the boat, and we’ll take you to safety!”
But Shamus wasn’t moved. “I’m stayin’ put,” ol’ Shamus snorted. “The LORD will protect me!”
As time went on, the waters rose higher and Shamus had made his way onto his roof. The helicopter descended from above and dropped a rope. Over the loudspeaker they instructed, “Tie this rope around you. We’ll take you to safety!”
Shamus shouted back with all his might, “Leave me be! The LORD will protect me!!!”
And then the foundation of the house cracked, the structure collapsed, and Shamus was drown in the currents.
As his soul approached the pearly gates he saw St. Peter before him. He was a little sad and confused, “I’ve been a good Christian. I was sure the LORD would protect me.”
“What were you expecting? He sent you two boats and a helicopter,” scolded St. Peter.
Gail’s Sunday Pic
Sunday, December 21, 2025
2025 Year in Review
So it's been kind of a mixed bag this year. Sadly, my Aunt Pam passed away back in February, then my cat, Alex, died in June. On the plus side, I got Murphy in August, and I finally managed to pay off what was left of my old revolving credit card debt that I've had hanging over me for 40 years.
Born on June 22, 2025, Murphy is about 6 months old as of this post. I picked him up off Craig's List for $10 when he was about 7 weeks old. Since then I've spent about $1300 over 5 vet visits to make sure he got all his shots and yes that includes neutering. Where Alex merely tolerated Gail, Murphy adores her. and the two are regularly seen snuggling up to one another. Those photos aren't staged. These two are really that close.
In spite of everything, I'm still gainfully employed. it's highly doubtful AI is going to take my job anytime soon, so I guess I can be thankful for that. On the other hand I recently found out I have chronic kidney disease, so that's no beuno. I won't find out until January if lifestyle and medication changes are going to be enough to keep it from progressing. Fingers crossed.
On a lighter note, I've started occasionally live-streaming Tarot card readings on Twitch. No, I don't actually believe in magical mumbo-jumbo, but there is an art to the craft. I look at Tarot as basically being psychology with flashcards. There are 78 cards, and each card can have different and multiple meanings depending on its context. When you know what you're doing you can ALWAYS match randomly dealt cards to the context. Form a coherent narrative around the cards and you can actually gain an altered perspective on your situation that may give you more confidence in facing your problems.
So that's about it for 2025. Not gonna lie: While it wasn't all bad, this year sucked pretty hard. I can't make any promises, but I fully intend on putting out more than 2 comics in 2026, and I might even include a few more jokes and rants.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everybody!
Pax,
-f2x
