2012 was a bad year. 2013 was a grind, but it was OK. 2014 was good. It wasn't a great, breakthrough year per se, but the good outweighed the bad by a significant margin. It's an interesting position to be in, because for the first time in my life, I feel like I'm in a position to build a head of steam for a better future. I'm in a good place. I haven't reached a perfect balance in my life, but I no longer feel like it's not doable.
So what happened to me in 2014?
- Josie, AT and I visited 9 cities of Turkey in 16 days.
- I've joined Zelmer Pulp
- I've published twice as many stories as I did in 2013, and one of them was actually written this year. I have also been sollicited for several exciting writing/editing projects.
- I've taken my distances with martial arts, and have been thinking of letting go of all involvement for a while.
- I've earnestly invested myself at work, maybe a little too much. But I have learned a lot from my bosses and my colleagues, about things that don't have anything to do with work at all.
A good year can feel uneventful, like everything has been going according to plan. Everything is going like it's supposed to, so days bleed into one another and life is a blur. For better or worse, adversity is a way better teacher when it's time to push yourself and I think the worst patch of adversity I've hit in 2014 was Scarlett getting attacked by another dog in October. It got me a couple headaches, but she turned the corner like a champ. So what have I learned this year?
- Prioritizing is like having a super power. It's not always easy, it takes discipline and dedication, but it clears the ''I don't have enough time to follow my dreams'' bullshit excuse. There is time. Every day.
- If interesting people keep revolving around me, maybe that I'm a little bit lucky, but for the first time in 2014, I dared to think I was a little bit interesting too.
- Dumb people don't always look dumb. Sometime they look (and are) very nice, but it doesn't change the fact that they are dumb.
- The first step to fostering a healthy relationship to your favourite social media platform is to substract yourself to other people's discussions and not the other way around. Everybody thinks they are entitled to shit in one another's backyard on Facebook. Keep your opinions to your own wall, life will be more manageable.
- I have a fascination for extreme things, and sometimes it makes people uneasy.
2015 is less than 24h away. Resolutions are for bums, but real men have projects. What are my projects for the following year?
On Dead End Follies
- Get a new, lighter and more flexible template that'll allow a more conventional, yet smoother reading experience.
- I'm planning to read (and review) 115 books. My record is 112, so let's aim high.
- There will be more reviews of non-fiction books, this year. This is a pop culture blog first and foremost and I feel like I don't exploit this aspect to its fullest. I'm establishing a floor number at 20 non-fiction reviews. There will be sports books, but they will be discussed with a cultural angle.
- I'd like to write at least 26 pieces on pop culture, two a month.
In Writing
- Start the evanescent-novel-project in early January and have a shoppable manuscript by December. It's time now.
- Wrap-up that screenplay project I've been working on by June and maybe start another.
- Having the discipline and willpower to not say yes to every short story contribution I'm offered and focusing on the greater picture.
- Find a basketball writing gig somewhere else than on my own Facebook timeline.
I'd like to thank Handsome Ryan Sayles for riding me since 2013, and helping me to write regularly again. You've helped so much, man. I am forever in your debt, BRO.
In Life
- Buy a home.
- Make Josie happy and proud.
- Keep Scarlett happy and healthy.
When life is stable a strong like this, it feels good to have ambition to chase after. I wish your year was as good as mine, internet or that next year will. It's a good time, folks. I'm in a good place.