MrMuleMan
@mrmuleman.bsky.social
Husband, step-dad, dog dad, book lover, cocktail enthusiast, traveler
Starting 2026 with a solid month with some great titles😎
January 31, 2026 at 6:26 PM
Starting 2026 with a solid month with some great titles😎
1 of 4 🧵
I tend not to like to hierarchically rate books, but I do like to highlight some of the books that made huge, strong impressions on me personally.
So in that vein, I present to you the following set of fifteen books (in no particular order) that encompassed my favorite reads of this year.
I tend not to like to hierarchically rate books, but I do like to highlight some of the books that made huge, strong impressions on me personally.
So in that vein, I present to you the following set of fifteen books (in no particular order) that encompassed my favorite reads of this year.
December 31, 2025 at 9:46 PM
1 of 4 🧵
I tend not to like to hierarchically rate books, but I do like to highlight some of the books that made huge, strong impressions on me personally.
So in that vein, I present to you the following set of fifteen books (in no particular order) that encompassed my favorite reads of this year.
I tend not to like to hierarchically rate books, but I do like to highlight some of the books that made huge, strong impressions on me personally.
So in that vein, I present to you the following set of fifteen books (in no particular order) that encompassed my favorite reads of this year.
#ssac2025 Day 25:
Year: 2022
Day: 25
“A Present For Big Saint Nick” by Kurt Vonnegut
5⭐️
‘Big Nick was said to be the most recent heir to the power of Al Capone.’
A perfect Christmas short story😎🎄🎅
Year: 2022
Day: 25
“A Present For Big Saint Nick” by Kurt Vonnegut
5⭐️
‘Big Nick was said to be the most recent heir to the power of Al Capone.’
A perfect Christmas short story😎🎄🎅
December 26, 2025 at 1:56 AM
#ssac2025 Day 25:
Year: 2022
Day: 25
“A Present For Big Saint Nick” by Kurt Vonnegut
5⭐️
‘Big Nick was said to be the most recent heir to the power of Al Capone.’
A perfect Christmas short story😎🎄🎅
Year: 2022
Day: 25
“A Present For Big Saint Nick” by Kurt Vonnegut
5⭐️
‘Big Nick was said to be the most recent heir to the power of Al Capone.’
A perfect Christmas short story😎🎄🎅
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 24 / Story 12
A Very Mario Lopez Christmas by Megan Giddings
3⭐️
‘Can we spend the rest of our lives kidnapping each other? But isn’t that what love is? A series of being whisked away by someone your dumb heart has decided is right for you?’
Quirky last story (cont…)
Day 24 / Story 12
A Very Mario Lopez Christmas by Megan Giddings
3⭐️
‘Can we spend the rest of our lives kidnapping each other? But isn’t that what love is? A series of being whisked away by someone your dumb heart has decided is right for you?’
Quirky last story (cont…)
December 24, 2025 at 4:19 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 24 / Story 12
A Very Mario Lopez Christmas by Megan Giddings
3⭐️
‘Can we spend the rest of our lives kidnapping each other? But isn’t that what love is? A series of being whisked away by someone your dumb heart has decided is right for you?’
Quirky last story (cont…)
Day 24 / Story 12
A Very Mario Lopez Christmas by Megan Giddings
3⭐️
‘Can we spend the rest of our lives kidnapping each other? But isn’t that what love is? A series of being whisked away by someone your dumb heart has decided is right for you?’
Quirky last story (cont…)
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 23 / Story 11
When You Were Here by Claire Lombardo
4⭐️
‘…her children have always known and targeted the parts of her that incite the most pain.’
A Christmas Eve and morning full of re-opened wounds and unrequited desire for connection.
Day 23 / Story 11
When You Were Here by Claire Lombardo
4⭐️
‘…her children have always known and targeted the parts of her that incite the most pain.’
A Christmas Eve and morning full of re-opened wounds and unrequited desire for connection.
December 23, 2025 at 9:00 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 23 / Story 11
When You Were Here by Claire Lombardo
4⭐️
‘…her children have always known and targeted the parts of her that incite the most pain.’
A Christmas Eve and morning full of re-opened wounds and unrequited desire for connection.
Day 23 / Story 11
When You Were Here by Claire Lombardo
4⭐️
‘…her children have always known and targeted the parts of her that incite the most pain.’
A Christmas Eve and morning full of re-opened wounds and unrequited desire for connection.
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 22 / Story 10
A Nativity Scene by Amilear Scott
4⭐️
‘The feeling of overwhelm that sneaks into your mind to nourish the idea that you are no longer capable of anything but numb existence may seem all powerful, but it’s not.’
Feared the ending, was relieved!!
Day 22 / Story 10
A Nativity Scene by Amilear Scott
4⭐️
‘The feeling of overwhelm that sneaks into your mind to nourish the idea that you are no longer capable of anything but numb existence may seem all powerful, but it’s not.’
Feared the ending, was relieved!!
December 22, 2025 at 4:55 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 22 / Story 10
A Nativity Scene by Amilear Scott
4⭐️
‘The feeling of overwhelm that sneaks into your mind to nourish the idea that you are no longer capable of anything but numb existence may seem all powerful, but it’s not.’
Feared the ending, was relieved!!
Day 22 / Story 10
A Nativity Scene by Amilear Scott
4⭐️
‘The feeling of overwhelm that sneaks into your mind to nourish the idea that you are no longer capable of anything but numb existence may seem all powerful, but it’s not.’
Feared the ending, was relieved!!
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 21 / Story 9
The Rent Controlled Ghost by Lee Cornell
4⭐️
‘It was not servitude, if she had done what Cooper had asked. It was love. Or if it [was] not love, then at least some cousin to love.’
‘The rooms he inhabited were Halina’s rooms.’
Day 21 / Story 9
The Rent Controlled Ghost by Lee Cornell
4⭐️
‘It was not servitude, if she had done what Cooper had asked. It was love. Or if it [was] not love, then at least some cousin to love.’
‘The rooms he inhabited were Halina’s rooms.’
December 22, 2025 at 1:01 AM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 21 / Story 9
The Rent Controlled Ghost by Lee Cornell
4⭐️
‘It was not servitude, if she had done what Cooper had asked. It was love. Or if it [was] not love, then at least some cousin to love.’
‘The rooms he inhabited were Halina’s rooms.’
Day 21 / Story 9
The Rent Controlled Ghost by Lee Cornell
4⭐️
‘It was not servitude, if she had done what Cooper had asked. It was love. Or if it [was] not love, then at least some cousin to love.’
‘The rooms he inhabited were Halina’s rooms.’
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 20 / Story 8
The Old Ways by Silas House
3.5⭐️
‘That’s how it has always been, growing up in a house full of women. They decide something and they just go forward.’
Day 20 / Story 8
The Old Ways by Silas House
3.5⭐️
‘That’s how it has always been, growing up in a house full of women. They decide something and they just go forward.’
December 20, 2025 at 11:55 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 20 / Story 8
The Old Ways by Silas House
3.5⭐️
‘That’s how it has always been, growing up in a house full of women. They decide something and they just go forward.’
Day 20 / Story 8
The Old Ways by Silas House
3.5⭐️
‘That’s how it has always been, growing up in a house full of women. They decide something and they just go forward.’
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 19 / Story 7
Beneath the Softness of Snow by Chanel Sutherland
5⭐️
‘The night you left home, you begged your mother not to let your daughters forget.’
Heart shattering story of a woman who emigrates to care for someone else’s child to support her own children.
Day 19 / Story 7
Beneath the Softness of Snow by Chanel Sutherland
5⭐️
‘The night you left home, you begged your mother not to let your daughters forget.’
Heart shattering story of a woman who emigrates to care for someone else’s child to support her own children.
December 19, 2025 at 6:59 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 19 / Story 7
Beneath the Softness of Snow by Chanel Sutherland
5⭐️
‘The night you left home, you begged your mother not to let your daughters forget.’
Heart shattering story of a woman who emigrates to care for someone else’s child to support her own children.
Day 19 / Story 7
Beneath the Softness of Snow by Chanel Sutherland
5⭐️
‘The night you left home, you begged your mother not to let your daughters forget.’
Heart shattering story of a woman who emigrates to care for someone else’s child to support her own children.
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 18 / Story 6
How To Milk a Sheep by Stephanie Dennee
4⭐️
“…you are the same as the antique tractor they bought at auction and placed at the turn onto the rural highway. Looks authentic, doesn’t work for shit.”
Loved this story😎
Day 18 / Story 6
How To Milk a Sheep by Stephanie Dennee
4⭐️
“…you are the same as the antique tractor they bought at auction and placed at the turn onto the rural highway. Looks authentic, doesn’t work for shit.”
Loved this story😎
December 18, 2025 at 8:05 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 18 / Story 6
How To Milk a Sheep by Stephanie Dennee
4⭐️
“…you are the same as the antique tractor they bought at auction and placed at the turn onto the rural highway. Looks authentic, doesn’t work for shit.”
Loved this story😎
Day 18 / Story 6
How To Milk a Sheep by Stephanie Dennee
4⭐️
“…you are the same as the antique tractor they bought at auction and placed at the turn onto the rural highway. Looks authentic, doesn’t work for shit.”
Loved this story😎
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 17 / Story 5
Protection by Paola Peroni
4⭐️
“Love is grief: love we have, love we lack, love we we give, and love we miss.”
Love that quote, but I can’t stop thinking about the omission of “love we lost”…do we not lose love? We only have it or lack it??
Day 17 / Story 5
Protection by Paola Peroni
4⭐️
“Love is grief: love we have, love we lack, love we we give, and love we miss.”
Love that quote, but I can’t stop thinking about the omission of “love we lost”…do we not lose love? We only have it or lack it??
December 17, 2025 at 8:34 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 17 / Story 5
Protection by Paola Peroni
4⭐️
“Love is grief: love we have, love we lack, love we we give, and love we miss.”
Love that quote, but I can’t stop thinking about the omission of “love we lost”…do we not lose love? We only have it or lack it??
Day 17 / Story 5
Protection by Paola Peroni
4⭐️
“Love is grief: love we have, love we lack, love we we give, and love we miss.”
Love that quote, but I can’t stop thinking about the omission of “love we lost”…do we not lose love? We only have it or lack it??
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 16 / Story 4
Storm Windows by Charles Haverty
5⭐️
“But shame, like prayer, is a solitary pursuit.”
Loved this dark and broody story about family, the secrets that can be approached but never broached, and the how often what is unsaid is what is important.
Day 16 / Story 4
Storm Windows by Charles Haverty
5⭐️
“But shame, like prayer, is a solitary pursuit.”
Loved this dark and broody story about family, the secrets that can be approached but never broached, and the how often what is unsaid is what is important.
December 16, 2025 at 10:36 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 16 / Story 4
Storm Windows by Charles Haverty
5⭐️
“But shame, like prayer, is a solitary pursuit.”
Loved this dark and broody story about family, the secrets that can be approached but never broached, and the how often what is unsaid is what is important.
Day 16 / Story 4
Storm Windows by Charles Haverty
5⭐️
“But shame, like prayer, is a solitary pursuit.”
Loved this dark and broody story about family, the secrets that can be approached but never broached, and the how often what is unsaid is what is important.
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 15 / Story 3
The Idler by Tyler Barton
3.5 ⭐️
“South Dakota stretches out like a cold, brown, made bed. It’s been two years, but I still can’t find comfort here.”
Great opening line to this story about feeling stuck.
Day 15 / Story 3
The Idler by Tyler Barton
3.5 ⭐️
“South Dakota stretches out like a cold, brown, made bed. It’s been two years, but I still can’t find comfort here.”
Great opening line to this story about feeling stuck.
December 15, 2025 at 5:29 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 15 / Story 3
The Idler by Tyler Barton
3.5 ⭐️
“South Dakota stretches out like a cold, brown, made bed. It’s been two years, but I still can’t find comfort here.”
Great opening line to this story about feeling stuck.
Day 15 / Story 3
The Idler by Tyler Barton
3.5 ⭐️
“South Dakota stretches out like a cold, brown, made bed. It’s been two years, but I still can’t find comfort here.”
Great opening line to this story about feeling stuck.
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 14 / Story 2
Remedies by Kali Fajardo-Antone
5 ⭐️
“That man and his choices are behind you now.”
Perfection…descriptive, emotional, empathetic, with a tinge of mysticism…plucked all right heart notes for me…a classic🏆
Day 14 / Story 2
Remedies by Kali Fajardo-Antone
5 ⭐️
“That man and his choices are behind you now.”
Perfection…descriptive, emotional, empathetic, with a tinge of mysticism…plucked all right heart notes for me…a classic🏆
December 14, 2025 at 4:34 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 14 / Story 2
Remedies by Kali Fajardo-Antone
5 ⭐️
“That man and his choices are behind you now.”
Perfection…descriptive, emotional, empathetic, with a tinge of mysticism…plucked all right heart notes for me…a classic🏆
Day 14 / Story 2
Remedies by Kali Fajardo-Antone
5 ⭐️
“That man and his choices are behind you now.”
Perfection…descriptive, emotional, empathetic, with a tinge of mysticism…plucked all right heart notes for me…a classic🏆
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 13 / Story 1
Two Man Luge: A Love Story by Claire Battershill
4.5 ⭐️
A gem of a story to start this year’s edition…loved all the different ‘love stories’ within these 20 pages…love of a sport, love of exercise and exertion, love of focus, and romantic love of a crush.
Day 13 / Story 1
Two Man Luge: A Love Story by Claire Battershill
4.5 ⭐️
A gem of a story to start this year’s edition…loved all the different ‘love stories’ within these 20 pages…love of a sport, love of exercise and exertion, love of focus, and romantic love of a crush.
December 13, 2025 at 6:34 PM
#12DoS2025 #ssac2025
Day 13 / Story 1
Two Man Luge: A Love Story by Claire Battershill
4.5 ⭐️
A gem of a story to start this year’s edition…loved all the different ‘love stories’ within these 20 pages…love of a sport, love of exercise and exertion, love of focus, and romantic love of a crush.
Day 13 / Story 1
Two Man Luge: A Love Story by Claire Battershill
4.5 ⭐️
A gem of a story to start this year’s edition…loved all the different ‘love stories’ within these 20 pages…love of a sport, love of exercise and exertion, love of focus, and romantic love of a crush.
#ssac2025 Day 12:
Year: 2018
Day: 8
“Festive” by George Saunders
4⭐️
“This Xmas must be modest. We always say, never do. This year: do.”
The eternal annual struggle, this story feels timeless.
Year: 2018
Day: 8
“Festive” by George Saunders
4⭐️
“This Xmas must be modest. We always say, never do. This year: do.”
The eternal annual struggle, this story feels timeless.
December 12, 2025 at 10:26 PM
#ssac2025 Day 12:
Year: 2018
Day: 8
“Festive” by George Saunders
4⭐️
“This Xmas must be modest. We always say, never do. This year: do.”
The eternal annual struggle, this story feels timeless.
Year: 2018
Day: 8
“Festive” by George Saunders
4⭐️
“This Xmas must be modest. We always say, never do. This year: do.”
The eternal annual struggle, this story feels timeless.
#ssac2025 Day 11:
Year: 2023
Day: 9
“Cosmic Cul de Sac” by Jade Song
4⭐️
Suburban landscaping equipment vigilante creates an unexpected urban Shangri-la that facilitates her escape from this mortal coil….a tale as old as time😂. Great story.
Year: 2023
Day: 9
“Cosmic Cul de Sac” by Jade Song
4⭐️
Suburban landscaping equipment vigilante creates an unexpected urban Shangri-la that facilitates her escape from this mortal coil….a tale as old as time😂. Great story.
December 11, 2025 at 5:24 PM
#ssac2025 Day 11:
Year: 2023
Day: 9
“Cosmic Cul de Sac” by Jade Song
4⭐️
Suburban landscaping equipment vigilante creates an unexpected urban Shangri-la that facilitates her escape from this mortal coil….a tale as old as time😂. Great story.
Year: 2023
Day: 9
“Cosmic Cul de Sac” by Jade Song
4⭐️
Suburban landscaping equipment vigilante creates an unexpected urban Shangri-la that facilitates her escape from this mortal coil….a tale as old as time😂. Great story.
#ssac2025 Day 10:
Year: 2020
Day: 13
“Our Humans” by Meng Jin
4⭐️
Black Mirror meets literary Twilight Zone in this sci-fi short story that tantalizes the reader with a perfect balance of imagery, ideas, and unsolved mysteries. Agree with the love for the crumbling West in the future.
Year: 2020
Day: 13
“Our Humans” by Meng Jin
4⭐️
Black Mirror meets literary Twilight Zone in this sci-fi short story that tantalizes the reader with a perfect balance of imagery, ideas, and unsolved mysteries. Agree with the love for the crumbling West in the future.
December 10, 2025 at 6:52 PM
#ssac2025 Day 10:
Year: 2020
Day: 13
“Our Humans” by Meng Jin
4⭐️
Black Mirror meets literary Twilight Zone in this sci-fi short story that tantalizes the reader with a perfect balance of imagery, ideas, and unsolved mysteries. Agree with the love for the crumbling West in the future.
Year: 2020
Day: 13
“Our Humans” by Meng Jin
4⭐️
Black Mirror meets literary Twilight Zone in this sci-fi short story that tantalizes the reader with a perfect balance of imagery, ideas, and unsolved mysteries. Agree with the love for the crumbling West in the future.
#ssac2025 Day 9:
Year: 2022
Day: 19
“Reindeer” by Cynan Jones
4.5⭐️
Loved this horror tinged story both times I’ve read it.
A hunt for a rogue bear gives a Northman the shock of his life…
Gem of a story and a master class in leaving details out to spark your imagination.
Year: 2022
Day: 19
“Reindeer” by Cynan Jones
4.5⭐️
Loved this horror tinged story both times I’ve read it.
A hunt for a rogue bear gives a Northman the shock of his life…
Gem of a story and a master class in leaving details out to spark your imagination.
December 9, 2025 at 5:56 PM
#ssac2025 Day 9:
Year: 2022
Day: 19
“Reindeer” by Cynan Jones
4.5⭐️
Loved this horror tinged story both times I’ve read it.
A hunt for a rogue bear gives a Northman the shock of his life…
Gem of a story and a master class in leaving details out to spark your imagination.
Year: 2022
Day: 19
“Reindeer” by Cynan Jones
4.5⭐️
Loved this horror tinged story both times I’ve read it.
A hunt for a rogue bear gives a Northman the shock of his life…
Gem of a story and a master class in leaving details out to spark your imagination.