THIS IS RANDOM, BUT...

Happy New Year, friends.

Like many of you, I find myself starting 2026 with organizational goals. For me, that begins with my digital devices. I'm trying more and more to spend less time on my phone. All the research says I should. The problem is, my phone is my camera, my research tool, my planner, my flashlight, and my avoidance technique when I see someone in a grocery line... Oddly enough, the thing I use my phone for the least is to make calls.

But of all the apps on my phone, the one I use the most - by far - is Notes. Every random thought, list, plan, and itinerary I have is in Notes. So periodically, I have to go through and clear out the clutter and outdated entries. This is random, but I thought we could go through some of them together to make it easier for me? Thanks.

Let’s scroll through here. Oh, here’s one that says, “The song 'We Wish You a Merry Christmas' is the 'Welp' of Christmas carols.” I don’t know if you remember, but a few issues ago, I told you that at family events, we’ve started to employ a not-so-inconspicuous signal that it’s time for everyone to move on. It goes like this: You’ve been together for an extended period of time (or extended enough, as the case may be). Maybe you’re sitting around the kitchen table or standing in the front yard, and there is a slight pause in the conversation. Maybe it’s a place that naturally falls on you to respond, and so you offer the “Welp…” And that’s the signal—this has been fun, but it’s time to move on. Well, that’s what the song “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” says. No one sings "We Wish You" and then jumps back into "Jingle Bells." "We Wish You" IS the closer. There’s no coming back from “We Wish You”… so it’s the Welp of Christmas Carols. Aren’t you glad you asked?

Let’s see…what else is in here?

Oh, this note just says “Infested.” My daughter Evanjalyn and I often wonder why reporters refer to coastal waters as “Shark-Infested.” It’s the ocean. That’s where sharks live. If anything, it’s “human-infested.” That’s usually how the conflict starts. The shark is just in the kitchen eating lunch, and someone drives a jet ski into its home. The shark then reacts to the home invasion. If a bear showed up at your front porch looking for food, they wouldn’t report a bear was found in a “human-infested” suburban home. I think the term reporters are looking for is “inhabited.”

Here’s another one that says “Chagrinery,” as in the state of experiencing chagrin. Example: “Jeff found himself in full chagrinery when blank stares met him after misusing the term “lowkey” in the board meeting.”

Here are a few random ones, not like the jewels I've already shared… “Love will strike at the heart of control.” “Whatever we plant grows.” “She wore her sadness like a uniform.” “Hate is not sustainable in the long run.” “Never let the facts get in the way of a good conspiracy.” “It sounded like the second song by a one-hit wonder.”

Here’s a note that simply asks: “Is my prayer in the queue?”

And then this one just says: “Scarcity.” It refers to the scarcity of money. Often, we are told there simply isn’t enough money. Not enough money for health care, to solve the homeless problem, or to pay for education. There is a money scarcity or shortage. It’s as if we haven’t mined enough of it yet, or it’s a limited resource. Which, in the broadest sense, might be true. But practically, it is anything but true.

Let’s consider the homeless issue as an example. The rough estimate of what it would cost to house the homeless population in the U.S. through Rapid Re-Housing or Permanent Supportive Housing is just under 10 BILLION dollars. That’s a lot of money. (It’s likely much more than what’s needed to prevent most homelessness through education, counseling, rehabilitation, and support groups, but that’s a separate issue.) So, 10 billion dollars may seem like an astronomical amount until you realize that Americans spend nearly 13 BILLION dollars each year just on candy and costumes for Halloween. We spend roughly 28 BILLION dollars annually on Valentine's Day. With that kind of budget, we could house everyone twice over and still have enough left to send our lovers candied hearts and handmade cards.

From that perspective, there isn’t really a money shortage; it’s a money allocation problem.

Here’s another way to look at it: In 2024, America added a thousand new MILLIONAIRES a day. Think about that. We now have 40 percent of the world’s millionaires, even though we only have 4 percent of the global population. But hold on to your Monopoly Guy monocle... there’s more…because being a millionaire is yesterday's rich person. In 2025, we saw almost a 20 percent jump (in just ONE year) of BILLIONAIRES. We now have over 900 billionaires in America alone. There is no money shortage.  There is plenty of it. Does it sometimes get dammed up? Yes. Could just one percent of that new wealth transform healthcare, education, and homelessness in this country? Yes. It’s an interesting perspective. Is that likely to happen? No. But it can start with us. Because even in our smaller-than-billion-dollar bank accounts, it’s not a matter of scarcity; it's a matter of allocation. We can use what we have to do the good we can.

Man, you guys really got hung up there. Let’s see if there are any other noteworthy Notes in here to share.

Here’s a note with an idea for a coffee mug that just reads, “Coming in hot.” That was followed by the entry, “He looked like a fashion terrorist.” And, “His underwear could journey no further.” And finally, “He smelled like a truck stop. Like disappointment and regret mixed with cheese and aggressive pine cleaner.”

Are your Notes this random?

To be clear, I also have shopping lists along with all the imaginary things I need to get done this weekendm in here. There are the start of essential emails and social media posts I had to write, but will never publish. There are brilliant inventions, world-changing aspirations, and relationship-healing missives. There are exercises and stretches I should start doing before bed, promotional tools to implement so I become “more,” and people I really should reach out to. There are a couple of prayers here, a lot of wants, and more than a few confessions.

Anyway, I appreciate you helping me with all this. Sometimes these big projects can feel impossible to tackle alone.

It's a new year, and that’s when many of us make resolutions. I don’t usually do that, so I’ll stick to the one we typically mention at this time. There’s so much good we can do—let’s go out and do it. Otherwise, you might find yourself facing intense chagrinery.