Boy, 2017 has been something. What’s been interesting that as far as my personal life goes: it hasn’t been terrible. The rest of the world…all I can do is apologize for the creature the rest of my countrymen decided was fit for the office of presidency.
Let’s go over 2017. Have a cocktail ready. I’ll wait.
January: Over here on the blog, January was Fanuary and we covered plenty of topics like criticism, my top favorite animes of all time and the death of discourse. January also featured a trip to Fredericksburg with Amber where I mused about how much I love Germany, alcoholic chocolates and the merits of fluffy chickens. I also started working with Fangirl Nation and so far it’s been a fruitful partnership!
February: February featured the 15th anniversary of my father’s passing. I think I handled it well. Additionally, February featured a trip Amber and I took the missions that did not end well and absolutely ended with me almost yelling at a bunch of children.
March: March featured a trip to Houston, the reappearance of my ex and a lot of discussion on RuPaul’s Drag Race. I got to fangirl over fossils, see the National Funeral Museum (which was a BLAST) and see some great things in a city that I will likely never visit again.
April: A musical month where we talked about the music I listened to as a kid (most of it was bad), how music and mental health intersect sometimes for the worst and we discussed my love-hate relationship with Rent
May: In May, I battled a mouse that has now left my apartment, coped with my anxiety in the process and also went on a trip to Goliad which was…interesting. The post about Goliad also features a GREAT ghost story if you stick around for it.
June: In June I went to A-Kon with Carlos and BOY, OH BOY. That was…wow. My ex appeared. I was surrounded by an anime that I hate and faced some of my convention highest highs and lowest lows. June also featured a very honest talk about LGBT pride and a small break while I recovered from the summer everyone decided they liked ice skating.
By now, you’re noticing that I’m sticking to just stuff over here on the blog and in my personal life. By now, you’re probably thinking that’s a little narcissistic. We’re gonna get there. Relax.
July: My birth month! Amber and I went to Austin to see Welcome To Night Vale once more and we had a time and a half! I also reached 100 followers on this here humble blog and I’m still a little in shock that anyone would want to read my rantings.
August: August was a deeply personal month on the blog where I talked about Pokemon Go, wanderlust and simply baked in the Summer Sun.
September: We split the month between talking about nostalgia and patronage!
October: October marked both of my parents’ birthdays and we discussed the effects of long term trauma, memorialization and putting your life on pause because of grief.
November: I went to OtakuFair with a few friends. It was interesting which is why there hasn’t been a post about it yet. I had started one but didn’t have the heart to finish it. But I think I looked okay.
Additionally, in November I celebrated my One Year Anniversary with my agency. I also started playing Pokemon Ultra Moon and had opinions…
December: IT SNOWED IN SAN ANTONIO!
And December is still ongoing! Who knows what will come next! I promise to update this post if anything new and thrilling happens in the time before this post goes live!
So that pin I asked you to hold onto about why I’ve only focused on my blog and personal life…let’s take that pin out. Wow, I thought 2016 was a raging dumpster fire. 2017 then promptly said “Hold my drink.” 2017 featured some of the most tragic acts of terror, the most terrifying natural disasters and the continued incompetence of an orange fascist. My heart broke during most of 2017. I cried knowing my friends in Houston may not be safe. I couldn’t sleep knowing that innocent teenagers were put at risk in the U.K. during the Ariana Grande concert. My family and friends had to check on me so many times as Texas faced many of the most devastating shootings in the state’s history and that isn’t even covering the massacre in Las Vegas.
2017 was exhausting, emotional and painful but we made great strides most parts of the worst travel ban were struck down. Many states have kept their promise LGBT people and while hate crimes and domestic terrorism are still concerns: we’ve made a lot of steps. With the continued firing of habitual sexual predators and more, we’re making steps. But god dammit, was the cost high.
During the year I struggled with friends, with family, with worth and with feeling lost in a world that seemed to only get worst. I watched as my concept of what it means to be American, African-American, LGBTQ, and biologically female rattled to my very core. I battled creative differences, trauma, also made several guest appearances, and had an amazing time retelling the myth of Lilith to a captive audience. I’ve made new friends, lost old ones, kept bonds strong and grown some. I’ve traveled, seen places and done things that I’m proud of and done things that I am a little less than proud of. I’ve made memories that’ll last forever and will be working on forcing some deep from my memory.
Happy 2017. And honestly, I do have a few choice words for this year that was filled with fire, misery, tragedy, bullet casings and utter corruption and idiocy. Burn in Hell. If 2016 was a dumpster fire then 2017 has been an oil fire (not to be insensitive to my brothers and sisters in California). At least in 2016, the fire was contained to a dumpster.
Let’s all try to be better next year.
Amanda.Actually 