What a strange year it has been, so far. Last year was tough, escorting my mother through the world following her cancer diagnosis, conquering my fear of learning to drive, and going on a wild emotional rollercoaster. But, this year has been very weird, purely for the fact that some things that I didn’t think could happen to me, happened.

It can happen to anyone.

First things first, I got hacked, not the usual financial hack, or losing an account, but full blown closing of bank accounts, spending an entire week changing details, making phone calls to companies, and changing every saved password that I have saved for more than a decade.

I didn’t sleep for days, and when I did manage to catch forty winks, I would literally have nightmares over what the hacker(s) were going to do next. It was insane.

I’ve been doing some soul searching.

I started streaming on Twitch again, which I do enjoy, but I struggle to keep up a schedule, especially with these insane heatwaves that have been battering the UK making my office too hot to even go in. As much as I enjoying playing games to an audience, and I’m grateful to every single viewer that follows me, I need to change up my format, because I simply can’t only play games. I need to do some creative work, be that painting, drawing, or my rediscovered love for wood carving/whittling.

I haven’t managed to take many photos this year, which is effecting me in some strange ways. My main camera is currently hooked in to my computer, acting as a very expensive webcam for my livestreams. Yeah. I have been out for 3 days out of the 230 days of the year so far, and it has required tearing apart my office to remove my camera. I need to change how I do all of this stuff, because I need my camera to be easily accessible.

Something that has also come back into my life is making small versions of props from movies and video games. When I was into mini-painting, I would make super small-scale of things to fit into the same scale as a Space Marine. I don’t paint minis any more, in fact, I don’t paint anything any more. I recently pulled my painting kit out of storage, and every paint has dried up, my wet pallet has also cracked from heat, and I can’t find my paintbrushes. I need spaces for each of my hobbies, and my house isn’t big enough to facilitate everything that I do. I have the idea of getting large plastic storage boxes to store each hobby, but it’s where those boxes go that take over the fact that these hobbies are taking up space.

Boots

I have recently experienced a revelation, after spending a stupid amount of money on trying to find footwear that work with my stupid feet, but, I bought some cheap Chelsea style boots. What a life changing experience these boots have been. The only downside is that I can’t wear my boots with shorts, but I have Sketchers running shoes that help with that. But, back to the Chelsea boots. I never expected to find a pair of boots to be so comfortable and compatible with my feet. I’m even considering buying a higher-end set of boots.

Four months.

There are four months left of the year, and I need to figure some stuff out. I want to take more photos, I want to continue live streaming, and I would love to also record some videos of my more ‘maker’ ventures, such as my current project of refinishing and upgrading of my garden furniture, or my ventures in to prop making.

I’m not sure if I will manage to get out and take any photos this year. Things are still very turbulent in my life, and I don’t know whether I’m coming or going.

Thank you.

I want to thank everyone for the continued likes on my photos on Instagram, despite my lack of uploads this year. Your support means the world to me, and I will eventually get back on the horse again. I even considered deleting this website, but there has been an uptick of engagement, again, despite lack of uploads, and I am considering continuing things here.

I hope that this year has been better for you, that you have stepped further towards your goal, and that you are safe and happy.

Stay shiny.

I cancelled my Grammarly subscription, so hopefully this post is coherent enough for you to read. I haven’t proofread this, and essentially spewed words into my keyboard, so I apologise if it’s a mess.