simpleek

The year 2017 has been a crazy one both on a more obvious, wider scale and maybe on a personal one for some. The year has affected me on a personal level, mostly good, and let’s be honest here—we all need to take some good away from the year. I don’t think I need to spell out why 2017 is effectively worse than years past. Because of my own personal whirlwind year, I completely forgot about my blog’s birthday or anniversary. To remedy that, I decided to make my annual post a celebration and reflection of another year of maintaining my blog. Better late than never, right?

The blog officially went live on November 1, 2011. I remember it being a time of teaching myself how to use WordPress, figuring out what I want to write and how often, and finding my voice in the process. In the six years I have kept this blog, I’ve experienced incredible highs and lows as well as some crushing struggles and disappointments. You may not really notice it reading any of my older posts because I’ve kept a lot of the personal stuff going on with me out of my weekly posts. I’ve probably said it many times before, especially in prior celebratory posts, but it still rings true for me then as it does now—simpleek is very much a safe haven for me to write and be passionate about my geeky interests. Whatever may be going on with me at any given moment doesn’t need to be the focus of my blog. This is why I keep a separate and very private written journal to express my deepest well of emotions and thoughts when I need to unload the good and the bad in my personal life. simpleek is a dedicated blog for fun and lighthearted accounts of the awesome video games I really adore or the TV shows I’m really into at the moment. We all need to escape from reality from time to time. Not everything in life has to be so somber and melancholic.

I’ve also struggled behind the scenes trying to come up with fun content to write about each week. This is more a writer/blogger issue more than anything. There will be moments where you have a brilliant burst of inspiration that keeps those fingers feverishly gliding across the keyboard to keep up with the words that continue to spill forth without an end. Or you’ll have those times where you’re staring at a blank screen and your hands feel heavy from the effort to type at least one sentence. It’s hard to predict which feelings you’ll have when you sit down in front of the computer ready to compose your next post for your readers. But what I’ve learned after sticking with my blog for six years is as long as you’re passionate about something you’ll find a way to keep going and doing. Whether you’re feeling extremely fired up to write or you barely have it in you to even touch the keyboard, the thought of not doing or producing something is absolutely unthinkable. This has been my experience anyway. It’s often easier to roll over and call it a day when you don’t feel like doing something, but it’s far more rewarding when you push forward in spite of everything else that may be going on with you.

I think my own tenacity coupled with my passion for writing are what helped me sustain this blog for six years. I was never really sure simpleek would still have the staying power it does, especially when life has thrown quite a number of curve balls I wasn’t expecting and had to learn to adjust to what came my way. 2017 was a year where I struggled quite a bit only to take a turn for the better towards the end of summer when I landed my new job. There were a lot of adjustment periods going on in the last few months, learning new skills while also bringing my own current knowledge to the table. The last few years I’ve felt largely unfulfilled and restless in some areas of my life, mostly on the professional side of things, but lately I’m feeling like I may have found where I belong. I’m starting to feel what I haven’t felt in the last nine years of my life since graduating college and that’s a sense of peace of where I’m at right now. It’s something I’m still getting used to and it doesn’t mean I’m not going to keep seeking more ways to improve and grow. What it does mean is that I’ll no longer feel like I’m not where I’m supposed to be. I’m in a good place right now and I hope it continues into 2018.

This post is dedicated to my little blog that could and I’m grateful it’ll be here no matter how life continues to twist and change. I also thank my readers, followers, and one-time guests who come and read my blog. There just isn’t enough words to express the large amount of appreciation I have for those who deem the words I have typed on the screen worthy of the time spent to read them and sometimes leave a comment to express their own opinion. I read each and every one of the comments I receive, whether you agree or disagree with what I have written, and I will always treat every single one of them with the respect and consideration they deserve. The best part of this blog is the engagement I have with my readers and it’s a good feeling to know your words have some kind of impact on someone, even if it’s a small one.

Happy Birthday, simpleek, and here’s to many more!