Looking back at 2025, there are two things I’m proud of.
First, I’ve read the most books in one year since…high school?
Replacing TV time and doom scrolling with books had a huge impact. Keeping track of books I’ve read pushed me to find time to read. Unsurprisingly, there is plenty if you stay away from screens. Who would have thunk it?!?
More than half of books were part of a series. Eleven Mistborn books. Phew. It’s going to be a few years before I pick up any Cosmere books again.
The Murderbot Diaries is excellent. I haven’t watched the Apple TV series yet only because I’m afraid of being disappointed. Maybe I’ll watch it once the series is over (or cacnelled).
Project Hail Mary is my favorite book of the year. There is supposed to be a movie coming out.
The second thing…I’ve been doing more eBay shopping and selling. Mainly, electronics. I tend to keep hardware for a long time. For what I do day to day, I never need the latest and greatest. I held on to my iPhone X for 7 years. That’s why I don’t mind buying equipment one or two generations old. One man’s trash is…
At the moment I’m buying and testing used shoes off eBay. I know, I know, It’s really hard to get a sense of shoes till they are broken in, but you can’t return shoes, if you don’t like them, when you have broken them in. Plus good shoes are pricey. So far, I’ve gotten a few shoes for ~40 each, that retail for 200, and found I don’t like them. It sounds more expensive overall and it is. But I know when I find shoes I like, I really like them and don’t wonder if there is a better shoe out there.
Every now and then, I post items to sell, meaning I’m not trying to make any real proft, because I would have trashed them otherwise. Better they find a second home (or more likely get bought by a reseller and then resold at higher prices) than end up in a landfill.
My selling strategy is pretty simple. Research recent product prices, average out the 5 most recent sales, add ~10%, allow buyers to offer their prices, and then set an ad rate at ~7%. Usually the items sell within 3 or 4 days. One man’s trash is…
For 2026, this eBay thing, will I keep doing? It will depend on what I want to get rid of and what I want to buy.
I certainly do hope I keep up with the reading!