I've always been drawn to this sentiment—the understanding that success isn't determined by the cards you're dealt, but by how you play them. Everyone loves an underdog story, and in a year that has been challenging for many, there's comfort in viewing it as part of a larger narrative arc. Some stories unfold across years or even decades, making it difficult to know where you are in your narrative arc.

The end of the year serves as a natural checkpoint, prompting reflection on past resolutions. As someone who thrives on goal-setting, I love the satisfaction of achievement—pursuing something, reaching it, and checking off that box.

This year, my goal was to "do something" with all my accumulated food content. In October, I realized that if I remained inactive for the final three months, this goal would simply roll over to January 2025. Then it hit me: why does the starting line need to be in January? Why not begin where I am and commit to publishing two issues by Christmas? That way, when New Year's Eve arrives, I'll feel a bit more accomplished rather than resenting about never having started.

So I turn this reflection to you, reader: looking ahead to 2025, what cards have you been dealt, and how do you plan to play them? 

I discovered pomegranates symbolized everlasting life until I Googled it while taste  tasting my Pomegranate Braised Short Ribs—a fitting symbol for a dish that takes hours to braise.

The colder weather calls for meatier dishes as our bodies crave more sustaining fare. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, beef is supposed to build blood and life energy (qi) in your body, and I can attest to feeling deeply nourished after finishing a bowl of these tender braised ribs.

Rather than following one specific recipe, I combined elements from the top three recipes I found online. The key discovery was the braising time: while some recipes recommend just 1.5 hours, I found the magic happens at the 3+ hour mark. At 1.5 hours, the meat fibers remained tough, but after three hours, they surrendered into that coveted fall-off-the-bone texture.

I opted for store-bought pomegranate juice instead of juicing my own—because let's be real, who has time for that? The acidity of the juice perfectly balanced the ribs' richness. This tang is crucial in fatty dishes, cutting through the richness to prevent that heavy, oily mouthfeel. For a Christmasy vibe, garnish with fresh pomegranate seeds.

It's fun, it's festive, it's Christmas in a pot.

I love California. As a native Californian, listening to the entirety of GNX felt like a sonic representation of everything Cali embodies. "Hey Now" with its hyphy beats could be an E-40 song straight from my NorCal high school prom, while the mariachi vibes in "Gloria" brings me back to waiting in line for those famed Mission burritos in San Francisco.

During a recent flight back to the US, I found a three-and-a-half-hour podcast diving deep into the Drake/Kendrick feud and its implications for hip-hop's past, present, and future. After listening to that and then GNX in its entirety, I will say it was the most engaging in-flight entertainment I've ever experienced.

I've always valued the practice of double-listening to music. The first time, you approach with virgin ears and no expectations, allowing yourself to be surprised and taken to wherever the artist wants to take you. The second listen comes after research, hearing the music within its larger context, which reveals layers of complexity and deeper meaning. It becomes an appreciation of the thought behind the production.

While today's kids might never experience Tupac, Biggie, Dre, Snoop, or DMX in their prime, if GNX becomes their 'childhood memory' album—their introduction to hip-hop—I think the kids are going to be Alright.

Junior year of college, I joined Theta Tau, a co-ed engineering fraternity. At the time, we weren't truly established—just a group of Berkeley students who occasionally studied and frequently partied. Though barely an organization, we were determined to create something that would outlast our four years on campus.

In our quest for legitimacy, we reached out to Bay Area alumni to build our network. Enter R (name withheld), who graciously attended our recruitment events. He had attended Berkeley years before, participating in the original Theta Tau chapter before it became inactive.

Even then, R was remarkably fit, completing Spartan Races and collecting medals while managing a worldwide sales department for a Silicon Valley semiconductor company. I often wondered, "How does this man do it all AND be an adult?"

Fourteen years later, we still keep in touch, and without doubt, R remains my role model for aging well and maintaining physical vitality. During our most recent catch-up, he shared his training plans for the Boston Marathon (!) —a race he qualified for earlier this year. While our conversations once centered on building professional networks and navigating first internships, they now revolve around recovery runs, endurance nutrition, and proper stretching techniques.

R is one of just three people who consistently gives me Kudos on Strava after every run, and like Pavlov's dog, I've grown to appreciate these small gestures of support. So this is my extended kudos to R, who showed me that if he can do it, so can I—or at least I can try.

Happy Holidays , 

Kevin L