it’s been a year. a rough year in places, a good year in others. i’ve reconnected with hobbies i hadn’t participated in for years prior (crochet, looking at you). i drew a lot of stuff i can’t share here, but iykyk where to find it. i drew some stuff i have shared and some stuff i need to share here. i started a DND game. i wrote a one-shot that still needs playtesting. i got a tattoo and a piercing.

we had a tree fall on our house. we had several trees come down around the house, but one actually hit the roof. the parents’ car needed a lot of work. my car needs some work. the parents caught COVID. Gana and i are still clear. we lost Quill to cancer.

i’m still crocheting, just not a feverishly as i was a few months ago. it’s definitely calmed. back to a hobby, and not a hyperfixation. just something i do to keep my hands occupied.

i’ve definitely leveled up my drawing skills in the past few months. i drew a lot of Jul. so much that i improved drawing faces/headshots. i can tell i’m getting better at side/profile view and posing. i’ve gotten really comfortable with my workflow in Procreate. so much that i’ve kinda forgotten how to use Clip Studio. i need to teach myself again. i don’t want to lose a skillset.

we’re 25 sessions into our campaign. i have no idea how long this storyline lasts, but i feel like we’re not even close to done. i wonder what the ending level will be. will we make it all the way to 20? i’m excited to find out. we’re playing as much as we can every weekend.

i wrote a Clue/Cluedo based one-shot. the game board is used as the map, and the object is still to find who killed Mr. Boddy, where, and how. i’ve given all the suspects in the game jobs and motives why they may have committed the murder. i’m really proud of how it’s come together, but it definitely needs playtesting before i share it anywhere.

i want more tattoos. i still want the snakebites. just need the monies.

the tree on the house was removed. it was expensive. everything is expensive right now. the other trees that came down are still hazards, but they’ll require more money to be removed. money we don’t have.

mom’s car had something go very wrong. she was able to drive home, but it was a terrifying experience. it’s fixed now, but it was expensive.

my car needs the windshield replaced. it’s needed that for a year, but i’d like to be able to use the defrost in winter.

COVID thankfully passed over half the house with no long-term issue. Gana and i stayed clear, and we have plenty of tests to make sure that when we start feeling like shit, it isn’t COVID.

losing Quill was painful, it still is. i’m really glad we took him in when we did, because he got as much care as he could with the time he had left. knowing what happened after we left him at the hospital, i’m glad he was there and not home. i don’t know that i could’ve handled finding him in that state.

as with all years, there were ups and downs. i think it came out pretty even. we had a lot of good this year, and a heaping mess of bad right here at the end. but even the longest night yields to the dawn. tomorrow is another day.