In the twenty years since I started this blog, I’ve been collecting ideas and inspirations and occurrences I thought I might write about — making little mountains of post-its, and scribbling in chalk on a big blackboard in my home office, and starting a few evernote notes. But around 2009 (that’s also the year I joined facebook…), I have looked at my piles of notes once in a while, and shuffled them around into new piles — and then mostly put them back down.

Now, in this New Year of the Yin Wood Snake, maybe there is the possibility of shedding — social media? and renewal — of blogging here on my own site? (I will learn more about the Yin Wood Snake from a webinar tomorrow with teacher and practitioner of the Taoist divinatory arts, Yu Hua Meng, author of the long fascinating forecast linked right above.)

Speaking of shedding: here is Chris Corrigan — as always, super smart, thoughtful, and clear-eyed — on why it’s high time to “leave the enclosures” of FB, of so-called X, and the rest. Chris was one of my main early blogging inspirations, but he never got distracted away from it like I did, and has been sharing what he’s learning, and other beautiful things, for 22+ years!

And speaking of renewal: I’m remembering, I think, that it wasn’t considered good blogging practice to go back and edit old entries — but if I’m even remembering that right, I don’t care anyway. So I’ve started at the beginning of here, Nov. 2004, revising and updating formatting and photos, and replacing some of the now-defunct links. It is slow going, but very satisfying and nostalgic.

And, speaking of slow: when I mentioned to Meng that I’m healing from ankle surgery (more about that another time), she pointed out that being forced off my feet, having to go slow, is well-attuned with the Qi of the Snake. So…yay?

Here is a tiny bit from that 2025 Snake forecast, which I hope you’ll take your time reading:

2025 has a great potential for reflection, ripening, maturity, and awakening…Beware of preemptively lunging into anything this year because the chances of miscalculation are very high.

…Invest more in the stillness quality of the Snake and be very wary of sudden advances and reactivity…Reluctance is a quality that will actually become accessible this year. Reluctance is how we shift out of the hot qualities of growth, expansionism and aggression.

…The transition from Dragon to Snake is an invitation to mystery.