MOSTLY TRUE

Qoui de neuf, people of earth? It’s been quite a long time since I’ve blogged my personal stories. I started a long time ago in a web far, far away, around 2000, when we all used Blogger and some WordPress a bit back then.

Over time, my blogging started to be replaced by social media — though, of course, the indie blogger scene never ended. Like my peers, I left it for Myspace, Facebook, and Instagram. It was easier to post and read on these platforms.

I started blogging again during the digital nomad life, ten years ago or so. It was a fun way to share pictures and stories with friends and family. But one year, I settled down to work more on programming and music. I left travel blogging behind too.

Now, I have simply become tired of doom-scrolling. I see far too many ads on Good Ol’ Zuck’s platforms and get addicted to my phone. I still like Bluesky, but that’s so far from Twitter it’s hard to think of it in the same terms.

These days Github has become more fun social media than anything.

And here I am again, trying a different angle. Most people don’t know about my childhood or teens. My New Mexico friends don’t know about growing up in Missouri. The Swiss have never heard about my days home schooling. My Algerian friends know little of my teen years. And… some people I like to keep guessing. I have groups of close communities that barely overlap. No one knows all these stories.

As I’ve retold and polished the stories, through years of mountain IPAs and fishing spots, they’ve turned into fun bar stories. Tall tales of running up mountains and hitchhiking and begging for food. Tales of Asia, Latin America, Africa, and Europe. Tales from almost every state in the US. I thought: It’s time to start telling them, and see who enjoys it!

And each story is 100% guaranteed to be about 83% to 92% true.

So pull up glass of your favorite beverage, and have I got a story for you tonight!