So, it’s 2023, but it won’t be for long. Time zones are a funny thing, but by the time I post this it should be the last day of 2023. I’ll be off to Yasaka Shrine to ring in the new year, like I did at Hokoku Shrine last year. And as I look back on my plans for New Years, I start to wonder just how much I’ve accomplished this year.

I started this blog. I finished Project Shenmue. But the publisher who initially asked me for it no longer wants it. Student loan repayment came back, which means I can no longer save any money. And I can’t help but feel like I’m wasting my 20s. I’ve spent so many years like this one, where so little happens, it’s difficult to not think this is just going to be how it always is.

Still, I can’t just sit around and mope, feeling sorry for myself. One of the advantages of living so many years in this state is that even if I can’t convince myself anything will come of it, I can still put my nose to the grindstone and put things out. Whether it be writing for other publications, writing for this blog, or writing my own stuff, no matter how bad things get, I know I have the ability to sit in front of the keyboard and start typing. Even if it always feels like pulling teeth.

So who knows what will happen next year? Maybe Project Shenmue will get picked up by another publisher, an even better one. Maybe I’ll finally take the first step to being able to make some decent income from writing. Who can say? It all has yet to be determined.

An internet pal of mine, Michal (he helped with my Witcher vid way back when), put out a little Year in Review thing like the Let’s Fight a Boss Podcast used to do (I loved that podcast). I think I’d like to do something like that come 2024. Maybe it’ll happen. Who knows?

In the meantime, I hope you all have a Happy New Year. Take care.