Almost another year and FINALLY I am providing an update on my life so far. I am using this post to talk about subject or two that has been on my mind as of late. This may seem like something akin to a ramble, but if I don’t get these thoughts out of my head, I may never find some form of clarity.
To start, I made changes to how I spend money on almost everything. Without going into too many details, you need to understand where these changes come from. At the Midwest Gaming Classic of 2025, I spent more money than I had on me, and I maxed out a credit card. I made this discovery when I was in line for autographs and photographs of voice actors from a series of games that I consider to be personal favorites. Because I couldn’t afford anything in the line, we chatted for a minute or two. When my friends and spouse found this out, they were embarrassed. Quite frankly, so was I.
Financial responsibility was always one of my weakest qualities, but I am learning ways to strengthen it. Because of this, over the past year, I have done something highly uncharacteristic of me: I would sell entire sections of my video game collection every couple of months. When I did sell some for the first time, I was surprised to feel like I was set free of something; like a weight was lifted off of my shoulders, or a heavy metaphysical object I was shackled to was taken off of me. Stranger still, I didn’t sob from selling prized possessions of mine. In fact, as of typing, I rarely had a desire to get them back. I say rarely because did buy back one of the games I sold, but the others have been either a very low priority, or nothing I think about at all.
This has caused me to re-evaluate who I am in regard to my hobbies and what I still derive enjoyment from. Ever since, some of my friends saw a change in me (as well as my spouse). They used to say that I used to be the fun on of our group, and that my husband was the serious one. Now, they tell me that our roles have switched; I have become the serious one, and my husband is the fun one. This, compounded with the previously stated events and choices I made, has honestly made me question what I want to do with my personal life going forward. I still enjoy playing video games, don’t get me wrong; but now, my desire to purchase more games has taken a noticeable dive. Perhaps this is what happens as a person grows older? After all, I turned 40 this year.
As for Anime Milwaukee 2026, I didn’t go at all. I simply couldn’t afford to go. Not to mention, the guests simply grab my attention enough to warrant spending the money to receive an autograph, as well as travel to and from the convention grounds. In regard to the Midwest Gaming Classic of 2026, I went down there, showed the place to a friend who never went there before, saved money for food and Uber, and introduced new friends to old friends. That was it (assuming I remember it correctly). I’m not trying to downplay my experience there; I still enjoyed it; I just enjoyed in a manner that was different then when I was younger.
I also went to the yearly Pride Parade near the Allen Bradley Clock near Downtown Milwaukee. It is here that I took what I believe is the most photographs of any event I have ever gone to: I took 3,064 pictures. It took time to look at which ones deserved to be seen more than others, hence why it has been so long since the time I started this post versus publishing it. I will provide the best ones below.
With this, I must apologize for not updating as often as I should have. Sadly, I may not be updating anytime soon, because my fulltime job has changed both shift and location. I work at a major shipping company, and when Thanksgiving rolls around, we get mandatory six-day work weeks. I will try to tidy things up whenever possible. When I next make a post on this blog, I hope to tell you more, and perhaps show a new skill (or two) that may be relevant.