So, I'm back, for now, just to do the year in review memes and my January-December Draw This Again Challenge as a yearly tradition of mine, a time for self-reflection that I simply must do because it is fun, at the same time insightful, to look back on who I was when the year began and then to compare that bloke to who I am today.
Truth be told, I probably will not be around again for much longer. I'm 25, and at that point in life when adult responsibilities take over. A lot of stuff has been going on that I could not really take my time to create content worth submitting here. Even my Reddit account I made for r/Daily3D died down with my account's recent [in]activity.
So, yeah. That would leave me with almost no time to create content worth uploading to DeviantArt, Fanfiction.net, and all the other sites I usually upload stuff in. And with the little time I can carve out, I would not be able to finish my artworks and stories to a point I deem them to be worth uploading. And sometimes, I simply want to do something else, like work out, play video games, or study just for the sake of learning.
However...
I did manage to find some time during this holiday season to go back to my Wacom tablet and Photoshop, and draw something again. It really has been a long time since I drew anything at all by hand/stylus, with most of my creative work being digital 3D modelling, CAD, and V-ray rendering, so I'm quite rusty.
Usually, I would upload this redraw on the 31st of December, but since the holidays are also keeping me busy, I will not be around for the end of the year.
And Without Further Ado, the Meme.
This year I have...
Gotten a new piercing.
Dyed my hair. [Medium brown on some strands.]
Ended a relationship.
Started a new relationship. [Nope. Still single.]
Been on a long car journey.Passed an exam.
Cried on someone's shoulder.Had a massive fight with a boyfriend/girlfriend. [Nope. I'm still single.]
Received flowers. [Ditto.]
Had a valentine. [Ditto.]
Written a letter using pen and paper.
Gone to see a therapist.
Been prescribed medication by a doctor.Read a really good book. [A fanfic, rather. It's a Miles/Waylon Outlast fanfic called Shadow Engines.]
Gone to the zoo.
Spent too much money on unnecessary things. [Always been frugal with money.]
Traveled by train.
Cried over someone.
Spent a day out in the sun getting a tan. [Nope. Rather be pale.]
Slammed a door out of frustrationHad an anxiety/panic attack. [Too often.]
Had a BBQ.
Gone to the fair.
Gone bowling.
Seen a film at the cinema in 3D.
Gone on a date. [Nope.]
Helped someone home after they’d had too much to drink.Stayed up all night. [This is ordinary fare for an architect and/or someone who worries a whole lot.]
Talked on the phone for over 2 hours.
Supported someone who’d received bad news. [Helped mom and dad cope with the stress of having my brother undergo surgery.]
Watched some kind of live sporting event.
Read an entire book in one day. [An entire serial fanfic, rather.]
Bought a DVD the day it was released.
Eaten McDonald’s more than four times in a single week. [Nope. Shit's not good for ya.]
Cried as a result of exam stress.
Met some incredible new people. [The people I'm training for the rendering team.]
Fallen backwards off a chair.
Broken my glasses. [No glasses.]
Cried over someone in my past.
Spent hours aimlessly browsing the internet.Cried over a film. [Not really a film, but another heartwarming gaming moment, this time in Fallout 4, when I got the Prevent medicine for MacCready and chose him as my Sole Survivor's romantic partner.]
Gone out of my way to avoid an ex-significant other. [We're still okay. Just not romantically anymore.]
Been in a relationship for a year or longer. [Been out of one, rather.]
Been ice skating.
Seen a musical or play.
Traveled out of my state or country.Swam (in a pool).
Swam (in the ocean).
Been in a hospital.Fallen down the stairs.
Discovered something new about myself. [That I can actually do this 'leadership' thing okay, although with much challenge. Also, that I have become a vocel due to prioritizing my work first.]
1. Was 2017 a good year for you? Why?
Kinda... Had its own ups and downs. Below average, and too much life-changing stuff happened. My creative work[outside of my job] has been dampened. The promotion was almost my only solace. I just wish I had more time to do all the things I planned to. Or that I managed my time better.
2. What was your favorite moment of the year?
Getting the promotion.
3. What was your least favorite moment of the year?
Christmas Day. I went home to Manila for the holidays, as well as to continue working on the house renovation architectural plans, only to spend it hearing my dad worry about post-retirement finances over breakfast. On Christmas Day. Gimme a break.
4. Where were you when 2017 began?
At my home in Manila
5. Who were you with?
Family.
6. Where will you be when 2017 ends?
At my home in Manila, doing some more work on the house's floor plans.
7. Who will you be with when 2017 ends?
Family.
8. Did you keep your New Year's Resolutions of 2017?
To make more time for myself so that I can complete more of the stuff I have on my checklist of ways to better myself.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Nope.
9. Do you have New Year's Resolution(s) for 2018?
To just become better at something. To learn a new skill, even if I end up still being a noob at that new skill by the end of the year. At least learn the basics.
10. Did you fall in love in 2017?
Nope. Lost interest in romance [and in turn, marriage and starting a family] along the way; got too busy with work to even think about falling in love. I am a vocel now.
11. If yes, with who?
Nah...
12. If yes, do they know?
Nah...
13. Are you still in love with them?
Nah...
15. Did you break up with anyone in 2017?
Nope.
16. Did you make any new friends in 2017?
Sure.
17. Who are your favorite new friends?
Nope.
18. What was your favorite month of 2017?
None. This year was meh for me. [As was last year.]
19. Did you travel outside of your country of residence in 2017?
Yep. I'm in Manila right now. New Year is about to begin soon.
20. How many different states / provinces did you travel to in 2017?
Three.
21. Did you lose anybody close to you in 2017?
Not really.
22. Did you miss anybody in the past year?
An old friend of mine.
23. What was your favorite movie that you saw in 2017?
Didn't see any movies this year.
24. What was your favorite song from 2017?
I can't really decide.
25. What was your favorite record from 2017?
Again, can't decide. Any of the new rock, metal, and post-hardcore songs, really.
Cold Like War, that new We Came as Romans album, is pretty awesome though.
26. How many concerts did you see in 2017?
None, been too busy adulting.
27. Did you have a favorite concert in 2017?
Ditto.
28. Did you drink a lot of alcohol in 2017?
Yep. I needed to.
29. Did you do a lot of drugs in 2017?
Nope. I'll never do drugs.
30. How many people did you sleep with in 2017?
None. Vocel mode got activated at some point.
31. Did you do anything you are ashamed of this year?
My long hiatus.
33. What was the worst lie someone told you in 2017?
That I'll have enough time to do all the things I plan to do. A lie from myself. [Same shit as last year.]
35. Did somebody treat you badly in 2017?
...again, probably the people who voted Trump into office. Not exactly good news for some middle class, immigrant bisexual dude who looks like a lady. But on a more personal level, none.
36. How much money did you spend in 2017?
Average. I'm a pretty frugal guy. But I still end up broke-ass at some points.
37. What was your proudest moment of 2017?
Promotion
38. What was your most embarrassing moment of 2017?
When I published chapter 1 of my Chris Raven/Jake Conway smutfic and never followed up with it. I will, though. Eventually. After I finish cringing at my godawful smut writing.
39. If you could go back in time to any moment of 2017 and change
Well, no matter where/when I go back, I'll always be preoccupied with responsibilities that I will need to deal with, so none. No good, pivotal time to go back. I'll probably just do the same tedious adult responsibilities anyway and end up on the most boring groundhog day loop ever.
40. What are your plans for 2018?Ideally, to have more time to do creative work [other than those required of my job] and pursue my other passions.
[The following bullet list of specific plans is mostly copy-pasted from the 2016 version of this meme]
- actually do ten pull-ups
- learn basic parkour
- continue Image, and hopefully complete it by the end of 2018
- continue the One Less Lonely Gurl remake
- rewrite Plankton's Eye View
- continue Ride to Raven's Cry
- improve at basically everything
- learn 3D character modeling
- work on getting my V-line to become more defined. ;)
But realistically, I will not be here as often as I would like to, because I will pursue my career, my home renovation, and other things I would like to improve about myself that will reduce my time to create content worth uploading. And that is why social media is not really my thing. The pressure to upload stuff every day and make your life seem awesomer than it is, is real- the only real thing about social media.