Friends report they have “heard this one before”
Local resident Kevin Dreiling, 43, has officially announced that 2026 will be “his year,” sources confirmed Tuesday evening, marking the 11th consecutive December 31st on which he has made an identical declaration to a steadily shrinking audience.
“This is it,” Dreiling reportedly told the seven remaining attendees at his New Year’s Eve gathering, down from a peak of twenty-three in 2019. “I can feel it. Something’s different this time. 2026 is going to be the year everything clicks.”
Pattern Emerges From Sources
According to multiple witnesses who asked to remain anonymous because they “just don’t want to get into it with him,” Dreiling has declared each year from 2016 through 2025 to be definitively “his year,” with explanations ranging from “the energy is right” to “I’ve been doing a lot of inner work.”
Records obtained by Newswax indicate that outcomes following previous declarations have included two layoffs, one divorce, one failed podcast, and what Dreiling describes as “a learning experience in cryptocurrency.”
“He said 2024 was his year because he turned 42 and that’s ‘the answer to everything,'” recalled longtime acquaintance Marcus Webb. “Then he said 2025 was his year because it was a ‘prime number year.’ I don’t think that’s even a thing.”
Declaration Met With Familiar Response
Guests at Tuesday’s gathering reported the familiar sequence of events: Dreiling clinking his glass for attention, a 4-minute preamble about “everything he’s been through,” followed by the announcement that the upcoming year would mark his “breakthrough moment.”
“I’ve watched this happen every year since 2018,” said Webb’s wife, Danielle, who was photographed checking her phone during the speech. “The wording is almost identical. He always says ‘something’s different this time.’ That sentence is never different.”
Dreiling’s ex-wife, reached by phone, declined to comment but could be heard laughing for approximately fifteen seconds before hanging up.
2026 Shows Early Promise, Subject Claims
When pressed on what specifically would make 2026 different from the previous decade of declared breakthrough years, Dreiling cited “a new morning routine,” “finally reading that book,” and “just a vibe.”
“People don’t understand—I’ve grown,” Dreiling said, echoing statements he made in interviews with friends in 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2023. “This isn’t the same Kevin. I’ve done the work. Well, I’m about to do the work. Starting January 2nd. January 1st is a Thursday, which is just weird.”
The gathering dispersed at 12:07 AM after Dreiling attempted to initiate a group discussion about everyone’s “word for the year.”
Developing.