Tag: The 2013 100

The Year That Was… 2014.

The 2014 Wrap-Up: Darkness at My Back (Banner)

Last updated on April 6th, 2021 at 02:01 am

2014 was an insane year — insane.

I started it out driving a rickety ZipVan across town to pick a glider up for my sleep-deprived wife, unsure of my driving skills as I crossed an icy Gardiner Expressway to provide for my family. Last year at this time, I was stressing over my year-end wrap-up, trying to tell my stories in the last few days before calling 2013 a wrap.

This year, not only am I not rushing through the last of 2014’s content like a madman, I’m ending the year on a solid note, more confident in my content than I’ve ever been!

That Year I Lost My Way and Had to Climb My Way Back Up Again.

“Do you wanna, do you wanna be… happy?
Do you wanna, do you wanna be… free?”
— J. Cole, “Intro”, 2014 Forest Hills Drive (2014)

…I wanted to write something really special to close out 2014. This year has been the most defining yet in my life, challenging everything I thought I knew about love, balance, blogging and fatigue. 2014 wasn’t all smiles as I lost myself to the blogosphere, living life to the pulse of my email inbox with its media pitches and event invites. However, I’m coming out the other side a better man for it, more knowledgeable of who I am, what I stand for, and the things I’m willing to do support that.

2014: A Year of Temptation.

2014 was a big year—I got a glimpse of what life as a full-time blogger could look like, and revelled in it. I was finally getting paid for my work; seeing my social media metrics grow in ways I could’ve never previously imagined; and thought myself poised for a glorious future with bigger clients, bigger budgets, and a nest egg big enough to eventually spend all day — every day—working at my personal brand, creating stuff that’d leave its mark on the world.

But it was too much, too fast—I woke up one morning realizing I no longer recognized the path I travelled on. The things I chased felt artificial, the things I thought I wanted seeming to crumble to the touch as soon as I laid hands on them. It felt like I was a marionette, and lost track of who was pulling my strings.

READ MORE: 2014 was a heckuva year. And a mighty long one. In this post, I go over the things I learned and how I hope to be a better me in 2015. “The Year That Was… 2014.”

The Year That Was… 2013.

Last updated on April 5th, 2021 at 12:46 am

We made it. Despite a 3-hour outage from my hosting provider, I managed to get this done. Thank you for joining me on the ride, and I’ll just leave this up here so I can go get my party on in these last few hours of the year. Enjoy the post!

The 2013 100, Items 91-100: Fashion, File Storage and Fleeing from Festivities—not to mention some end-of-year musings! “The Year That Was… 2013.”

Lessons, Language, and Leaving Laziness Behind

Last updated on March 21st, 2021 at 09:29 am

I doubted myself for a while there, but I’m finally at the point where I think I’ll actually close The 2013 100 in time ???? I’ve already promised myself that I’ll be a lot more organized in 2014, not forcing posts out in the last few days of the year like I am now. I look forward to what’s coming in the year ahead. Trips, more things to learn about fatherhood, telling better tales… but let me save all that for the last post. For now, let’s get into 81-90!

READ MORE: The 2013 100, Items 81-90: Lessons, Language, and Leaving Laziness Behind “Lessons, Language, and Leaving Laziness Behind”

Karaoke, Cards and a bit of O Canada!

Last updated on April 20th, 2021 at 10:01 am

Who needs sleep?

It’s the last day of the year and time to close up shop. Zach survived A Sponsored Life, Sarah begat new life unto the world, and you know what? It’s been a solid year.

How solid, though? These last few posts should tell the tale!

READ MORE: The 2013 100, Items 71-80: Karaoke, Cards and a bit of O Canada! “Karaoke, Cards and a bit of O Canada!”

Education, Exercise and some Effervescence for Ingenuity

DMX's Bitches: an Infographic by Casey Palmer, detailing the women listen in DMX's 1999 song "What These Bitches Want" featuring Sisqo from the album "...And Then There Was X".

Last updated on May 30th, 2023 at 10:52 pm

Never expect to get anything done if you’re not giving yourself the time you need to do it.

That’s the theme I see in my wrap-up of The 2013 100.

Though my list was ambitious anyway, there are things I could’ve done a little less to make way for some things on this list.

Some of my less admirable accomplishments in 2013 include:

  • making it to level 465 in The Candy Crush Saga
  • followed by making it to level 145 in Jelly Splash
  • watching all of The Office, Friday Night Lights and the first five seasons of Mad Men on Netflix
  • easily playing 200+ games of Words With Friends
  • reading The Hunger Games Trilogy
  • surviving the Batman trilogy upon the release of The Dark Knight Returns in a room of the smelliest, sleepiest fans you could ever imagine

…maybe DoomzToo distracting me from my habits isn’t such a bad thing.

On to the list!

READ MORE: The 2013 100, Items 61-70: Education, Exercise and some Effervescence for Ingenuity “Education, Exercise and some Effervescence for Ingenuity”
%d bloggers like this: