Dear Readers,

It is time for my annual year in review post! As I noted in the 2023 year in review, in August of that year, I accepted a tenure track position at a community college much closer to home. January of 2024 marked the start of my second semester. I teach most of my classes off-site, meaning that rather than being on the main campus, most of my face to face classes are at local high schools. I pop in and teach dual credit courses to high school juniors. Dual credit means that they are taking the college history course from me, but it also counts as their high school history credit. It comes with unique challenges, but it also has unique rewards. Plus, only having a 25 minute drive to work versus the hour and fifteen minute trip at my previous institution is wonderful.

As a baseball fan, I start counting down the days to spring training as soon as the previous World Series ends. This year was no different. I’m a Red Sox fan, and, of course, this season left much to be desired. Sadly, it marked the end of hall of fame radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione’s career at the microphone. I won’t lie, I was getting misty eyed hearing him call the final out of the season and his career.

In early May, Cravat Cat, the feral cat that my wife and I have been taking care of for 9 years passed away. He showed up 9 years ago and he was at least 2, maybe 3 years old back then, so he was 11 or 12. We’ve fed him, given him a warm outdoor shelter for the winters, and taken care of his medical needs. He pretty much lived on/under our porch. Since he was feral, he didn’t really like people, except for my wife. Apparently, he thought that she belonged to him and I’m pretty sure that he was constantly plotting how to do me an injury. The night before he died, he had his supper as usual. The following morning, he was curled up in his shelter, dead. He died in his sleep. I like to think that we gave him a long, full life, which is rare for a feral cat.

The cat distribution network immediately went to work and a month later, this portly fellow showed up. I’m calling him Chubs and he has now taken up residence where Cravat Cat once lived.

When the spring semester ended, I was looking forward to having 12 weeks at home. I wasn’t teaching in person over the summer, just online, and so I wasn’t going to have to leave the house all summer. However, the best laid plans and all that… At 0100 on the first Monday of my break, I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. I leaned over to lift the toilet seat and then it happened. My entire back locked up. I was stuck there, unable to move, for about twenty minutes. If you’ve followed me for a while, you know that I suffered a serious back injury in 2012 and have battled chronic pain and complications ever since. Dear Readers, this was the worst pain I’ve felt since the original injury. Horrific isn’t strong enough a word.

It only got worse as the days went on. I managed to get a next day appointment to see my pain management doctor for a Toradol shot. I was so bad off that I couldn’t drive, and so my dad took me. The shot worked great for about four hours, and then it wore off and I was the same as I was before. They scheduled me for some injections into my spine, but they were three weeks out, and so I just suffered until then. The injections went okay, and they reduced the pain by about 50 percent, but even now as I write this in December, I have not returned to the baseline pain levels I was in before I lifted the toilet seat. I really, really don’t want to have another surgery, but that might be unavoidable at this point. There’s medication out there that will dull the pain, but because of the “opioid crisis,” good luck getting any. Since the government can’t (or won’t) tackle the issue of the drugs being smuggled into the country, instead, they deny badly needed medication to people with legitimate medical issues. Just do a google search and you’ll see that even patients with terminal cancer are being denied morphine. That’s like taking away your car keys because your neighbor drives drunk.

Despite the pain and limited mobility, in some ways, it was an ideal summer. I watched a ton of baseball. I played a lot of PlayStation games. I had gotten a PS 5 in March, and this was the first chance I’d had to really enjoy it. As an added plus, in July, the first college football game in over a decade got released. I logged 100 hours in the first week! I even managed to get some writing done. I had gone into the summer with the intention of losing 30 pounds, as I had gotten a bit portly. Thankfully, that is the one part of the summer that went according to plan. I was in so much pain and also taking medication that made me a bit queasy, so eating wasn’t a priority. I managed to get back down to 200 pounds (I’m 6’4). I’d still like to lose another 10, but I’ve been holding steady at 200 ever since.

Mother Nature came calling in July. We found ourselves at Ground Zero for Hurricane Beryl. Not to brag, but I predicted it would hit here even when the weather guessers on TV were insisting it would hit 600 miles away. They were wrong. This was more of a wind event than a surge event. At my house, we were getting gusts in the low 70s. Thankfully, the roof we had replaced four years ago held up just fine. The big issue was the power. The storm knocked out power to most of the Greater Houston area and, in some places, it was out for two weeks. By some miracle, the four blocks around my house never lost power! This was great because after the storm, the heat index was 105. It actually wasn’t a miracle, really. There’s a nursing home two blocks away and we are on the same grid as them. Last year, they replaced the wooden transmission lines with metal ones and raised the wires above the level of the trees.

In August, I was gearing up to go back to school for the fall semester. I needed to go and see my spine surgeon, but first I needed a referral (the joys of having an HMO). I called my GP and I was told that I couldn’t do a telehealth appointment because I hadn’t been in to see him in person for over a year. I’m not sure what one has to do with the other, but they insisted I had to go in for an in person visit. So, I did. I’m in the high-risk category for bad outcomes if I get Covid, which is why I’m one of maybe 4 people in the country who still wears a mask in public. That had helped me avoid Covid thus far. I got to the doctor’s office in my N95, and the place was full of coughing, sneezing people. Half of the staff were visibly ill. No one was wearing a mask. One thing I’ve always liked about this GP is that I am in and out quickly. Not so on this day. I was there for an hour and a half.

Three days later, I woke up with a fever. I took a test, and it was positive immediately. Now, you might be tempted to say that there is no way I could know for sure that I got it at the doctor’s office. Well, I do know. I had not left my house or seen anyone apart from my wife for the two weeks prior to this. And my wife tested negative. Obviously, I had avoided Covid up to this point. The first three or four days I was tired and had a fever, but that was about it. By Day 5, I thought I was over it. Then, on Day 7, I developed tachycardia (my hear rate was in the 130s when I was laying down) and was short of breath. So, off to the hospital I went for several days. I ended up missing the first week of classes. Even now, in December, I’m still having some lingering cardiac and lung issues. And, yes, I’m still wearing a mask. If the first infection did that to me, the next could kill me.

My alma mater, Sam Houston State, was competing at the FBS level for their second season this year, and it was their first season of bowl eligibility. Behind a solid defense, they put together a 9-3 record, made it to a bowl game, and won! The first bowl victory since 1964! It was definitely exciting to watch the season unfold.

In October, the first licensed boxing game in 15 years came out on the PlayStation! I’ve been waiting for it ever since it was announced a few years ago! It hasn’t disappointed. I’m having a ton of fun playing it off and on. It is the kind of game you can play for a while, set aside, and come back to. I don’t really play against other people online. I prefer the offline career mode.

I’ve saved the biggest news for the end. First of all, Molly’s Song got a new cover! There’s a long story as to why, but basically the original publisher closed. I had to find the book a new home to keep it in print. I like this cover so much better than the original one. If you haven’t read it yet, now would be a good time to do so!

The second big piece of news is that I have started back to school myself….as a student. I am working on a PHD in History. I don’t really need a PhD in anything. I have an MA in History and an MS in Criminal Justice. I have a tenure track position at a community college, and I’ll be retiring in 10 years. I’m doing it to prove to myself that I can. It is true that having one will get me a 14K raise, which will kick my salary average up for retirement calculation purposes, but I’m really doing it to prove something to myself. I’m torn as to a dissertation topic. Part of me wants to go with my first love, the Civil War, but the other wants to combine my criminal justice background with history and do something regarding organized crime in Louisiana in the 1950s. There’s still time to sort all that out though. I’ve completed the first two courses and got an A in each!

And for the final piece of news, and this one will excite you if you are a true crime person. For several years, I’ve low key wanted to start a crime history podcast. After much thought and preparation, I’ve done it! It is called Homicidal History. The Spotify link is here, but you can also find it on Amazon. And, you can follow the podcast socials on Instagram and the Twitter. Season One is currently airing, with new episodes on Tuesdays. The third episode comes out on New Year’s Eve. Each season will have 10 episodes. Season One runs from late December through mid February. Season Two will start in mid May. It is a short form podcast, and episodes will range from 10-30 minutes. I’m also on the Blue Sky now, and while the podcast doesn’t have its own account, you can find episode links on my personal account. I’m Lee Hutch on there.

On that note, if there is a pre-1975 unsolved murder, missing person, or bizarre crime that you are particularly knowledgeable and passionate about, let me know. I’m planning the Season Two episodes now. And, if you’ like, I’d love to have you on to talk about it. You can guest host an episode with me! And no, it doesn’t mean you have to come sit in my bedroom where I record. We can do it over the internets. Just shoot me an email. If you don’t have a case you’d like to talk about, please consider listening/following the podcast on the podcast app of your choice. And if you really, really like it, a review would be great.

The cats are all doing well. Over the summer, and we aren’t sure exactly how this happened, but Harvey got an abscess on his taint. A couple of vet visits, 1K dollars, and a week in isolation later, and he was fine. Yes, Harvey now has a thousand dollar taint. Dickens, our oldest, just turned 17 this month. Anastasia turned 11 in November, and my little girls, Olga and Aksinia are 4 this month.

My wife is still recovering from the stroke she had in May of 2023. She’s back at work now, but it is still a difficult journey and some of the lingering issues will most likely be permanent. But she wasn’t too bad off to be standing on the porch waiting for the firemen to come by with Santa Claus.

I belong to the Eastern Orthodox Church, and so my Christmas isn’t until January 7^th, since we are on the old calendar, but for those of you who celebrated Christmas, or anything else, in December, I hope it was enjoyable for you. I also hope that you have a 2025 filled with health, wealth, and happiness.

Honestly, I’d be happy with just the health part, though for me, that ship sailed a long time ago.

I’m ringing in the new year with my usual tradition, that is, my tradition since I retired from public safety and no longer have to work holidays. That’s right, friends, I’m enjoying the Twilight Zone marathon on the SyFy Channel. I’ve seen every episode multiple times, but I look forward to the marathon all year long. It’s one of the few things I do look forward to anymore. Though I quit smoking, I also allow myself to enjoy a fine maduro cigar on New Year’s Eve as well.

Until next time, friends, take care of yourselves.

And each other.

L.H.