YEAR FIVE
Admittedly, I had been a little hesitant to scribe anything for a Year Five summation post. 2017 wasn’t the most advantageous year as there were still a world of things I wanted to do and experiment with and suffice it to say, life as usual got in the way some.
Indeed, it still does to this day and that’s pretty much the best way I can explain it without sounding like too much of a Debbie Downer which isn’t the tone I’m going for, especially given the more eventful moments I’ve had this year amid recent memory. Needless to say, I hope to be able to foresee more photos in future annual scrapbooks like the one at the bottom of this post. All the photos I’ve shared hail from a year in which I’ve had many a night shared with some of the best kind of people to drink and laugh with, with the exception of another birthday party for which I never got the photos but will eventually include if they come under my radar.
Alas, I sit here writing this with the utmost fondness. My life is hectic and frustrating as I almost always have to put off seeing people during the day due to work and my own scheduling. Some nights, however, do work in my favor provided the Universe doesn’t have different plans, and these are the nights in my life I cherish the most. Moments I hustle for, be it on bus, subway or on foot.
Of course, I do continue to work toward a more easier-going pace of things. That effort will remain as long as I have working bodily functions and a sustained interest in this platform around which I’ve centered my current subject matter and circles of friends and acquaintances. The support is what I thrive on the most though, and I am hugely thankful for those of you who have actively helped sustain and grow our readership, be it interest in my posts and that of our contributors – past and present, as well as submissions from folks with projects of their own for our weekly column aptly titled The Hit List, which happens to have the biggest audience among nearly any of our posts.
Lest I forget, there is also the “outer rim” of folks who either just don’t like my blog or even my politics as a vocal liberal on my own personal social media page. Sadly there’s nothing I can do about that apart from being as inclusive and tolerant as I try to be, but…that’s a whole other bag of Skittles. Although, I am thankful for those who’ve stuck around despite sharing distinct differences while remaining on amicable terms. A lot of people talk a good game about not being divisive with one another and unfortunately a number of those people end up betraying themselves in the process. In any event, we all move forward and do what we can, I suppose.
I’m also, truly and greatly thankful for some film professionals who’ve sought my opinions on things both creatively and analytically, and for even just breaking the ice a time or two and sharing chatter when possible. Moreover, and on that note, I am especially thankful for a number of you around the world working in stunts and film in some capacity. You people are the bread and butter of this site, and as hard as you all continue to work and struggle at times, dealing with the physical strain and danger, the pressure and pain, the politics at play, and the tragedy and risk that come with what it is you strive for in your profession, I am joined by a chorus of consumers and writers like myself when I express my sincerest hopes for you all and your successes, and that of your colleagues and loved ones in 2018.
And, though I may not always be there and even as we may not consistently have the opportunities to crosspaths, I hope you will still count me in as one of you. If any of you are reading this, thank you for partaking in this manic 2017 and leaving me with some of the best memories a hairy-chested manly-man can cry happy over.
With any luck and all the hope in this life and beyond, see you next year, and by all means…don’t stop creating.
2017 Scrapbook
