On Doing it for a Year

Sometimes a year feels like forever. Sometimes a year feels like you spaced out for a second, staring off into nothingness, and bam it’s already over. Sometimes a year feels like 52 weeks. That isn’t really a joke, although it’s kinda a meta joke about setups and punchlines, but, in all honesty, it’s how this last year has felt to me. If you’re reading this then you’re part of the reason why! I try not to be too self-congratulatory but a few weeks ago I published my 52nd weekly essay, and I wanted to take this opportunity to write about how this journey has felt. So, if that sounds boring or stupid, fret not dear reader, I’ll be back next week griping about how spoons are too big now or why my new hobby is forging authentic medieval swords out of stolen “Stop” signs or some dumb shit like that.

I started writing these weekly essays because I was feeling lost. We were like 9 months into the pandemic and my work prospects had all but disappeared thanks to Covid. I was pondering what I could do that would give me some kind of fulfillment, something to do, something that wouldn’t require people reading 59-page screenplays about a dark and brooding male protagonist just trying to find his way in the…YAWN.

I thought about starting a YouTube channel, but realized I’d have to learn to edit. I thought about starting a TikTok but realized I’d basically be the Steve Buscemi “How do you do fellow kids” meme. I thought about walking off into the wilderness and never coming back, but then I realized I’d need to get better hiking shoes. So, I started writing essays.

I didn’t really have a goal when I started. I just wanted something that would prove I exist, something tangible (well, as tangible as a digital collection of words can be). I told myself that I didn’t care if a single person (besides my mom and dad, because they’re wonderful and would read any dreck I write) read it, I was just doing it for me.

And here we are, 55 essays later, I wanted to thank all of you that have read, commented, liked, subscribed, shared, and just generally supported me through this endeavor. I can’t tell you all how much it means to me when someone tells me that they’ve actually read some of these (anyone who tells me they’ve read all of them is either a liar or a saint because there were a few stinkers in the middle, thank God they’re short though, right?) AND enjoyed them.

So, thank you all for being with me so far in this journey, and I hope you’ll stick with me as I keep trying to dig all the crap out of the recesses of my dumb brain.

My question for you all this week is: are there any weird topics you’d like to read about, suggestions of things I should write about? Anything you’d like to know my dumb opinions on? Let me know, please! Coming up with topics is the most stressful part of this whole thing!