Busy Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Got a Zoom at 11, and lots of other things to do today.
One goal is to shoot my next video talking about the last time I fought the AZ Bar and won. This isn’t really my favorite topic to discuss, but I feel it’s necessary to counter the fake “breaking news” JFC was spreading yesterday. And yes, I’ll explain what’s going on there.
In the meantime, just wanted to say my dispute with the Arizona bar is NOT the only reason I plan to leave Arizona in 2026. The truth is, I grew up in San Francisco. I am used to fog, cool air, and the ocean. We have none of that in Arizona.
The last two summers here have been the worst I’ve experienced. It’s been so hot, we lost tons of plants in the back yard, including cactus/agaves which are meant to withstand the hottest summers. Watching desert plants die is sad.
The heat has been so bad, my power bill over the last few summer months was over $800/mo. I can afford this, but still, it feels like we’re killing the planet living like this.
This reminded me of a funny thing that happened in 2023 – someone posted a comment on Twitter about how high their power bill was. I responded with my $800 bill, and a reporter reached out to ask if she could interview me about this.
Always DESPERATE for fame, I said sure….come on over! So she did.
Looking back at this video (which includes a cameo appearance by a certain famous cat), I’m really shocked at how FAT I was. Bloated. Unhealthy. I look at this guy and don’t even recognize him. And trust me – being overweight and sweating through a 119° Phoenix summer is no fun.
That’s why I FINALLY made the decision to change my life and get back in shape. I haven’t reached my goal yet, but I’m getting there. And I’m proud of the progress. My haters say I’m “spiraling”. Really? I haven’t felt this good in 20 years.
As proof, here’s a selfie I took last week while waiting for a Zoom court hearing. Certainly getting older, but 30 pounds lighter feels damn good. And I still have solid hair and a reasonably intact moral compass.
I have just one question: was it worth it? Hitching your wagon to Laura Owens, was it worth it?
I wish you well.
My fight was to support the rule of law. That was worth it. As for Laura – I absolutely have her back. I always have and always will. But I am not going to talk about her story because the ethical rules limit what I can say. But I am Team Laura 100% until the end.
More Aurora please! She should have her own Instagram!
I agree. 🐈
Don’t know if you’ve ever said, but what took you to Arizona in the first place? Having lived my entire life in Texas I can confidently say that I do love Texas, but I hate the heat and humidity. If I had ever moved and had a choice of location, I certainly would select something a little cooler!
Such a good question! And I will give you my best answer…
I grew up in San Francisco. I dated a girl in high school who I thought I wanted to marry. She ended up going to the University of Colorado at Boulder. I applied to that school, but didn’t get in. Plus our relationship was, uh, very complicated. So our parents felt we should go to different schools. Arizona State University was a fallback school. So that is where I ended up. I don’t regret that choice (Arizona was more temperate 35 years ago). But this is not my home and isn’t my natural environment. AZ has been a great place to live for the last few decades but it is now time to move on. Where next? Not sure. But the world is my oyster. I’ll figure it out.
If you were able to work from any location and the choice was yours and yours alone (it may be that way) where would you choose to go and if it had to be one of the 50 states, what would you choose.. Although I can’t imagine living anywhere but Texas, especially now that I’m retired,, I’m not sure where I’d go. Anyway thank you for answering my question.
Great question, and I will start by saying I considered this same idea back in 2013 when I bought my current house. I got married in late 2008, and if you remember, that was the start of the “great recession”, so real estate values were in the toilet, especially in Arizona. Because things were so bad, we stayed in the house I owned back then, even though my wife wanted to move somewhere new. The market finally started to thaw in 2013, so that’s when I bought the house I currently live in. While house shopping, my wife and I looked at moving to other states. Virtually all my work was done online, so I could have worked from literally anywhere. So we literally considered all 50 states. Came very close to moving to Denver (which I still love), but after weighing all the pros and cons, we decided Arizona was still the best option for us. That was almost 13 years ago, and times have changed. I’m now 100% ready to leave Arizona….but the question is – WHERE? My wife (who is British) has temporarily moved back to England to take care of her mom after she fell and broke her leg. She feels (and I agree) that the English lifestyle offers a much better fit for this period of life. But I’m not 100% sure that England is the best option. I LOVE the South of France, and I’ve spent tons of time there (also helpful since my last name is French-Canadian). I somehow feel extremely at home with the French. Mexico is another option (I speak Spanish). Both of my parents are still alive, but getting older (my dad is 84), so I’ve considered moving to be closer to one of them….my dad is in far Northern California near the border with Oregon, while my mom lives in Sarasota, Florida. Both of those places would be good, but it’s a tough call. Fun trivia fact – my parents divorced when I was 14. At the time, my dad was very unhappy about the marriage ending, so he decided to give himself some “space”….by moving to Africa. My dad lived in Africa for 3+ years, and I spent one summer visiting him (he lived in Zimbabwe, of all places). While this was strange, it ended up being the best move he could have made, as the change allowed him to completely reset his life. That’s sort of the path I need to follow….but the only question is which way should I head? I guess we will find out in 2026.
This is kind of where I’m at. Parents older and ailing but both in the state we currently live in. We want to leave so badly but when you’re an only child, it all up to you to take care of them. We’d love to move to WA St. We really despise the heat in the summer where we are currently. It’s not AZ or TX hot, but it’s bad enough. Given a choice to go internationally, I’d love to move to Ireland!
Is this your not so subtle way of saying your wife is divorcing you?
Nope.
Why does it matter if his wife is/is not divorcing him? Like many of you I could list a million things this guy has done wrong but divorcing is his business. 50% of marriages end in divorce…..half of JFC cult is probably divorced or have divorced parents. If he was, it’s burdensome enough he doesn’t need it rubbed on his face? Ugh ….I agree with so much of JFC except when they are a holes for no reason.
Anyways – I haven’t paid too much attention but I my understanding was part of the reason you are planning on retiring is you will be receiving a large inheritance. Would you ever consider doing pro bono work? Like homeless court?