Hope for the Holidays · 8:16am Dec 13th, 2022
I really had high hopes for 2022. But hope springs eternal - as does a story I'm glad to say is about to rise once again. (more after the jump)
Hey, folks. Hope this finds you safe and healthy. So I went into this year, my 40th on this spinning rock, with a lot of motivation and some writing goals to go with them. Try to get back to some kind of normal routine quasi-post covid, and clear out my neglected drafts folder too.
As the old saying goes, plans usually never survive their first contact with reality. I'll refer you to my previous blog posts for the details, but a quick TLDR: Service tech messed up our washer, causing a minor flood in the house. Medical issue forced me to cancel a (2-year delayed) holiday trip and fly home. Wife caught a horrible stomach bug and passed out at home. A few weeks after that she got covid. My parents downsized into assisted living due to my mom's accelerating Alzheimer's. Months of chasing one specialist after another for help with my own issues. 6+ months to fix the flood damage to the house. And on top of all that, a increasingly dead-end to my job.
I published one thing, all the way back in January. And for some reason, it fell victim to a wave of drive by trolls who blasted me with downvotes and bad comments for no reason at all, all but burying the poor story. (to he11 with them, btw)
So, not much to show for this year. A lot of things outside of my control, but I still feel like I let all y'all down big time. That my follower count rose at all this year is more than I deserve, and I can't thank you all enough for sticking with me all this time. 
BUT, hope does indeed spring eternal, and so I choose to hope/pray for better times in 2023, at least on the creative front. And to hopefully help jumpstart my creative juices, I'm very happy to announce the return from hiatus of a story I've been helping edit!
New Chapter coming on Dec. 31st!
Do not adjust your LCARS panels, ladies and gentlemen! ST: Phoenix is indeed back! Dewdrops, our intrepid author, recently contacted me and asked if I'd like to jump back onboard and pick this story back up and I couldn't say YES fast enough. Working on this story has been amazing, and I'm excited as heck to get Sunset and Twilight's story back in motion. Even if you're not a superbig Trek fan, I hope you'll give this a try. I really do think we've made it accessible even to casual fans.
More to come on my own stories, but I can only hope that the next flip of the calendar brings better tidings for me and my house.
Much love to you and yours, and I wish you all a safe and blessed holiday. Hug your loved ones and stay pony, my friends. 
-GMP
Keep on
Eeeeee!!!
Sorry to hear about the IRL shakeups. If it means anything, I can sympathize on some of them - my October and November were highly occupied by ongoing health issues with one of my parents. Even if it wasn't bad enough to involve moving relocating to assisted living, those weeks were a grueling time, and you have all my sympathies.
Like you say, hope springs eternal, and here's to a better next year for all, yeah?
Best wishes and happy holidays to you, Moff! I know you and your family have had a tough year, but as you said there’s always hope. Remember that you always have friends that are here for you.