The year flew by at the astonishing rate of one second per second, though some days felt like weeks and some weeks felt like a blink of the eye. Let’s look back at some of the highlights.
January brought with it our 14th wedding anniversary. Neither one of us are the same people that married each other that cold winter day in 2009; we have been blessed that each version of us has grown more in love with the other. Typically we celebrate our anniversary later in the year by going to a convention or something similar; this year we put money towards something even more special the first week of May.
I’m writing this post in part by scrolling through the photos on my phone and trying to recall what was so important that I took a picture of it in the moment.
I have deleted so many memes . . .
February and March saw me beginning to branch out into more androgynous clothing when out in public, a trend I’ve expanded into my work outfits and even this year’s Christmas picture. I’m also reminded that February was when I received my custom My Chemical Romance fragrance – even now it is one of my favorites (though others have come to contented for the top spot).
The last week of April and the first week of May were highlights not just of the year but also of the last decade – maybe even in the top five events of my life:
First, I drove to Atlanta and met my friend Victoria for the first time in the seven or eight years that we’ve known each other – for the express purpose of the two of us seeing Taylor Swift in concert on April 29th.
Second, I left Georgia, slept at home overnight, and then drove to Pennsylvania to spend a week in the Poconos with my D&D group. We started playing in January 2020 and our campaign was coming to the end of its story arc. They are my found family and I cannot wait to see them again – we will likely all be together at some point later in the year for reasons.
This wasn’t the end of us playing together, of course. Our original game was called “Chronicles of Hilan” and over the summer we played a short, six-session prequel game called “Hilan: Calamity” and just a few weeks ago started “Hilan: Legacy” – and in between played a World of Darkness campaign set in Boston (1984).
If you follow the links in the above paragraph you’ll go to my character pages.
I don’t particularly care for the heat of summer, so it’s not very surprising I had very, very few pictures from June and July. My pictures focused mainly on the Summer Solstice and the Fourth of July.
August had me catching up with friends. Good drinks, tasty food, excellent company all around, and even some cosplay made it in.
In September I read my favorite new book of the year: Starter Villain by John Scalzi.
October and I was back volunteering as the Headless Hessian for the All Hallows’ event.
November I made pies and went to a friend’s house for a “Stone Soup” event. I also seasoned my cast iron pan.
December has been jam packed with Candelight and other events of the season, like seeing Christmas lights, taking pictures, celebrating Yule (and my birthday), giving and receiving gifts, eating much more than I should, and looking back at 2023 while also planning for 2024.
Looking back at my photos from 2023 I like what I see: focusing on quality of time over quantity of stuff. Sure I’ve bought things, and events cost money, but I think I spent more time this year focusing on creating memories than any other year. In addition to everything I mentioned above, I cooked a whole lot of delicious food (apparently I made quite a bit of pizza), listened to many hours of good music, and simmered more than a few seasonal simmer pots.
I truly believe this was a year well-spent.
As for looking forward into 2024, well that’s a post for tomorrow, isn’t it?
Running In My Head 