So, it’s been a while. I know. I often have the best of intentions when writing a post, but then I become distracted and I invariably don’t post it.
To be fair though, life has been EXTRA of late. For reasons I can’t go into, both of us have been working more than we should, and that’s left us a little more drained than usual. Add in some determination to work out most days, and… sitting down to write a post hasn’t been at the top of my list.
A lot’s happened. Summer came and went, and this year’s harvest was pretty spectacular. We had a MONSTER apple harvest, and we also had a pretty impressive vegetable haul. Tomatoes were hugely successful this year, and the Parsnips? They’re still growing (but the ones I’ve had have been really tasty). I’ll not bore you with details here, but if you head over to Transport Evolved Take 2, you’ll see some of my garden updates for the year thus far.
I also returned to two wheels. Back in October, I got my hands on a Vectrix VX-1, and I’ve been getting it ready for some future upgrades. I’m not going to go into it in-depth here, but hey, you can see this video on YouTube to see some updates there.
It’s really lovely to be able to head out and ride, and it’s lovely being back on two wheels. Obviously, I’ve bene riding my bicycles (yes, plural, not at the same time) for the summer, but the Vectrix gives me an ability to nip out and run an errand without taking a large vehicle. The batteries in this thing are shot, but it’s certainly better than it could be. I have plans. Lots of plans.
Meanwhile, the 3D printer is still broken. I enter into the weekend with good intentions, and plans to make it work, but I never end up getting the time I need to fully program it and get it working. Maybe This weekend will be the weekend I change that (although, very much unlikely).
Why? Well, I’ve been pretty depressed of late. I’m not going to lie. I’ve thought about quitting this job more times than I care to admit. I’m kind of done with the whole “Change The World” thing. It’s clear by now that most people don’t give a flying f*** about the planet, our future, or our kids’ future. Some people maliciously don’t care, driven by greed and hate. The majority don’t care not because they aren’t interested, but because they don’t have the spare cycles. If you’re so busy just surviving you’re less likely to feel able to do anything to change the way you live to protect the future. That stuff is hard.
I guess I’ve been suffering that too. I keep going because I have an amazing team who make amazing stuff, and I’m glad that’s the case because they keep me honest, focused, and able to make smarter choices. At the same time, however, it can be a curse, because let me tell you, there are days when I’d happily run off into the forest, hide behind some trees, and never see another human. I don’t feel in touch with the industry I was part of building. I don’t feel like I have a valid voice, and I’m more and more being ignored or sidelined by companies that once talked to me. I suspect it’s because I’m either a horrid person, or too difficult to manipulate.
Next week, an old friend is visiting, and we’re going to go out for a meal or something. I’m so looking forward to seeing them, but I’m also riddled with social anxiety about going out and interacting with normal people. And by that, I mean I’m actually dreading it on some levels, which is terrible. I shouldn’t hate going out with friends. But the process of doing it, of thinking about doing it, really overwhelms me, especially when I have to force myself to be ‘on’ and ‘active’ every single day of the week.
I’m going to be brave. I’ll make it happen. I will enjoy myself.
On a more personal note? We acquired a lovely Grandfather Clock yesterday. It’s from the 1970s as far as I can tell, and is fitted with a mechanism made by Franz Hermle from West Germany. It’s gorgeous, and chimes every 1/4 hour. The chimes are loud enough to hear in the room you’re in, but not so loud that it overwhelms conversation or keeps you up at night. For $100, I think it was quite the steal.
Anyway, if you’ll excuse me, I am going to head out on the bike. I have some vegetables to buy from a local Dinosaur.
(Oh, wait, I should probably explain this. At the height of the pandemic, I did VO for a video about a child and her parents saying goodnight. I played the doctor mom, and the voices she did for her daughter in the bedtime story. It’s the best VO I’ve ever done, and I’d love to become a professional VO artist. And yes, I’m “Queenie Deerhart”).