As we close the page on 2022 and look ahead to another year, I am back with a Yearly Wrap-Up.  I find it very therapeutic to look back over the last 12 months, at the highs and lows that made up the year.  We sometimes miss the small achievements, the learning moments, and the simple memories… so that’s what these wrap-ups are for.

Home Life

After two years of the most foundational stuff that needed to be done (full re-wire, woodworm treatment, gas conversion)… all of which turned our house into a horrid, dust-filled mess.  We were finally able to make it a home.

Walls were plastered, painted or papered.  Skirting boards and doors were ripped out and replaced.  New gutterings were added and tired, old furniture was finally replaced.  We even managed to squeeze in a bathroom renovation since the old one was not fit for purpose and causing floor issues.

Our home is finally a calm(ish… after all we do have cats) place where we can finally relax.  It also means that there should be no more big jobs to do for at least a year, so I am looking forward to all the extra time this will give me!

Cat Life

Sadly, at the very start of the year, our senior cat Twix (pictured right) became too ill and we had to make the painful decision to let him cross the Rainbow Bridge.  He has been with us since he was 6 months old and we have loved every moment.  It was heartbreaking, as all loss is, but we are happy he was able to pass peacefully at home, in comfort surrounded by us both.

This was especially hard for my partner as he and Twix were thick as thieves. 😥

Our other senior, Walter didn’t take the loss too well and became extremely clingy for a while. So we gave him all the attention we could.

After several months, we decided it might be good to give Walter a new friend.  We contacted the local rescue and ended up adopting a kitten.  She was one of five who had been abandoned at a quarry.

Once she was twelve weeks old, we were able to give her a new home.  Priscilla (we call her Cilly) came to join the fam and overtook it within no time.

She is still nervous and doesn’t like new people in the house or too many unusual noises.  It makes her hide, so we’ve to be very thoughtful when visitors are coming or work is being done.

She and Walter had a slow start but now they play, groom and steal food from each other like best friends should. 🙂

Overwhelm

If you follow this blog, you will know I needed to take a long hiatus.  I was overtaken by grief-caused depression following the loss of my sister back in 2020, which apparently was waiting in the wings to ambush me.  So in July, I took a long step back.  I sought medical assistance and my doctor referred me to bereavement counselling which has definitely helped.

I was also thoroughly burnt out and suffering from the effects.  We all talk a good game about Self-Care but it’s still one of those things we don’t always truly prioritise… until we have to.

The hiatus lasted until the very end of November and honestly, I needed it.  Things were still going on in my life but definitely a lot less, but not having to worry about my online life and being able to pull away from responsibilities gave me the space to rebalance myself and treat my depression through bereavement support.

Writer Life

I had been writing pretty well at different points of the year, but honestly, everything ground to a halt when I hit the depression wall and then took a hiatus.

I have tried not to obsess over what I “should” be doing or even what I “wanted” to be doing and instead just gave myself the quiet time to do nothing.  To heal, to grief, to be supported.

I have to say, doing nothing is HARD! 😀

The busyness regarding the work needed on the house was the only thing I could really manage (with my partner kindly dealing with a lot of that too), so I was able to give my tired, aching heart (and brain) a rest.

What happened during that time is my inspirational well has been slowly filling back up and ideas and plot hole fixes have been bubbling up.  However, rather than rushing back to try and write and most likely putting myself back into a hole… I just made notes on my phone and then moved one.

Next year will hopefully be a more productive writing time because there are no more big jobs overshadowing it.  Also, I have… a PLAN!!!  You’ll hear more about that in the next blog post.

I also plotted out book 2 of The Blessed during the 8-hour ferry ride over Christmas.  Apparently, when I have nothing to do and no distractions for my stupid brain, I can super focus! Who knew?

Pod Life

Goals

This year’s goals for the podcast were to hit at least 5k downloads on Podbean, gain more exposure on Youtube and have more guests than last year.

Well as of writing this, we have 6,400+ downloads on Podbean so that’s a big fat win!  We also, I believe, had more guests on the podcast.  Youtube exposure… I’m not so sure.  Youtube seems to be a little hit or miss.

Guests

We finally created a Guest Application Form for those who want to be guests on the Podcast.  Just makes it easier as often we would forget to ask for details and this way we get everything up front!  So if you are interested in joining us (don’t worry, we make it super fun, friendly and easy) fill in that form.  Or if you know someone else who might make a good guest, send them the above link.  Make sure to check the FAQ page first to make sure you are a good fit.

Makeover

Finally, we have been giving The Merry Writer Podcast a little bit of a makeover.  You may have noticed that our Youtube Thumbnails have been changing.  Well, the logo and banners are also getting a refresh and you’ll see the new ones next year in January when I change them across all the platforms our podcast is on. 🙂

Want to enjoy the podcast? We are on plenty of platforms but the two main ones are Youtube and Podbean.

~ ~ ~

I think the word for 2022 was Hectic.  There was so much going on and yet I actually forgot how much had been done.  It was only when my partner started to list off things we’d completed that I realised how busy this year was.

However, with many big jobs done I am looking forward to seeing how much free time I get in 2023 and definitely plan to spend more time outside next year.

How was your 2022?