@archer72
It wasn't freeBSD but netBSD. Free{} uses an abysmal filesystem by default and now that I've tried Net{}, I can't imagine ever touching Free{} again.
I chose; netBSD for this latest install because 0) pkgsrc was fresh on my mind, 1) NetBSD had a dd-and-go pi image, and I was short on time, and 2) I'd been meaning to try NetBSD in earnest for years now.
I've run slackware on a pi in the past, and thoroughly enjoyed it.