2013: End of year thoughts.

I'll be blunt - 2013 was a shitty year.

I've come to the conclusion that the World is on a dangerous path to extinction care of global warming, and collectively our governments are not the way to solving this problem.

I've realized that corporations large, medium, and small pretty much dominate everything in life, and that this is a big part of why no one is really doing anything about addressing global warming. They effectively gum up the works of pretty much every political process to suit their own interests at the expense of the very societies these systems are supposed to be accountable to.

Too many bad movies - too many movies with the same 1-2 actors being pushed over and over. I really get sick of that. I get sick of seeing really horribly-talented actors showing up in just about every film either with ugly faces and acting, or annoying celebrity voice-overs. And really - all these endless CGI movies and celebrity voice-over stupidity - that is the best the film industry can do? That's as original as they can get?

I watched everything I did at the office amount to absolutely nothing in terms of promotion, merit, or even real acknowledgement. Indeed, every accomplishment was read back to me by the powers-that-be read more like a bunch of back-handed compliments.

I watched as other people who cannot perform the actual job (but are very good at managing up and ass-licking) move into positions of authority.

After two consecutive years of writing rock albums - I hit a complete stop this year and failed to write one. Oh I have tons of ideas, words, chord progressions lying around. And I did have a track listing to walk through. Yet somehow I couldn't do it.

I started the year w/a mysterious back injury, that despite some surgery and tons of stretching, remains with me to this very moment, unresolved.

I watched my home life become more unhappy as the problems from the previous years only seemed remain and be unresolved.

It's the year I really felt like I hit middle age. I finally am seeing the first visible signs of aging in my face, in my skin, in my hair.

And not just in age and appearance.

But I mean I felt colder, grumpier, less patient, less tolerant.

Okay - that's the bad.

Was there any good?

Well... I did become a US Citizen. Finally after all these years of work and struggle, I'm able to work pretty much anywhere in the US or Canada.

I did lose some weight. Granted because of the aformentioned back injury, I wasn't nearly working out as much as I should. Hence, I think much of the weight I lost was largely muscle mass. Still I didn't put on any fat though.

I did make some connections here and there with possible moves I could make in the future. It's simply a question of seeing the right opportunity coming around and making the right move.

I still have my ideas. I still have my lyrics. I still have my chord progressions. I still have my track listings.

And perhaps most important - the shitty 2013 gives me all the motivation now to make 2014 a year I will look back on fondly. It's up to me to make it happen.