I call this picture “If you don’t laugh, you’ll cry.” It was taken on May 15, in between my two medical calamities this year. I can’t remember what was so funny. Either I said something very inappropriate or someone else did. Regardless, it was good to be laughing.

I feel like I’ve lived a lifetime in these past 10 months, so let me bring you up to speed.

January and February: I have no recollection of what I did in these months. Probably complained I was cold or something.

March: Competed in my first triathlon. My goal was to finish, which I did. I complained the entire time and then promptly said I was planning to do it again.

April: Tested for my second-degree black belt. Slammed my face into a cinder block, had oral surgery, and got a hefty case of the sads. I complained a lot in April, too.

May: Came down with a weird infection in my knee. It cleared up, but then my leg decided it was going to continue leaking. So much complaining about my knee.

June: Had knee surgery to deal with the most severe case of calcific tendonitis my orthopedic surgeon had ever seen. This did give me a new angle for my knee complaints, so silver linings and all that.

July: My knee continued to hurt and leak. My career took a major hit. My complaining took on an increased, two-pronged approach.

August, September, October: It’s been a blur. Lots of stuff happened. Probably lots of complaining too. I spent a lot of time in my head, and what you’re about to read is the outcome of that.

Last year was rough from a career standpoint. This year hasn’t been a walk in the park either. However, one good thing came out of it: clarity. I’m so done with the life I was living. Since July, I’ve been working on getting out of the confines of a full-time job that sucks my soul out of me 40+ hours a week.

I’ve resumed working on finishing the memoir so I can start shopping it for publication. I have a handful of other ideas for my next project, and I’m exploring my options. I’m networking and chatting with people about writing, careers, life, health, wellness, and the other things that interest me, all of which are feeding into these other projects. I’m focusing on what makes me happy, including learning, research, teaching, fitness, and writing. The intersection where all these ideas meet is where I am right now. I could turn down any number of roads, and it’s just a matter of deciding which.

So why am I telling you all this? Well, for a few reasons.

First, I won’t lie. I need to build a platform if I’m going to publish. The only way I can do that is through proactive outreach. I intend to share more about this path I’m forging, and I hope you’ll join me on it.

Second, I want to connect with more people. If you’re into the things I’m into, let’s chat! Maybe there’s an opportunity for collaboration. Maybe we can help each other reach our goals. I’m a firm believer that the more we talk about what we’re trying to do, the more the universe will put things in front of us to get us there.

Third, I need accountability. If people are expecting me to do stuff, I’m much more likely to do stuff. No more dreaming big in a vacuum for me!

Fourth, I have to stop overthinking everything I’m doing. Perfection is the enemy of progress. So I’m going to update more and fret over all of it less.

Fun fact: I’m super easily distracted. This is something I working on. For example, I stopped in the middle of this to register for my first half-marathon which is two weeks from tomorrow. Make sure I update you on it when it’s over. If nothing else, I’m sure there will be lots of complaining.

That’s all I’ve got for now. I’m off to see John Waters: Pope of Trash and a screening of Desperate Living at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures tonight with the family while celebrating my 22nd wedding anniversary. It’s Friday; you should go do something fun too.

Look for more from me soon, and thanks for being here with me!