The end of the year is getting closer. I haven’t achieved anything that I had planned. I’m still in the same place as I was before. For example, I still have to watch my money. I thought I would have financial security by now, but no money is coming in.
I’ve had so many other things to think about besides blogging, so I didn’t realize I hadn’t blogged for two months. Blogging isn’t what it used to be. I wonder if people still care about blogs. Not mine anyway. I’ve been away so long; people might have forgotten about this blog. Even I am a little bored with blogging. There is so much else to do than think about blogging. It’s usually life in general that does that.
Even if I haven’t posted, I still had traffic, but now I don’t. This blog has reached over 100,000 views in the 13 years I’ve had the blog. This year, traffic has been higher than ever. Look at the image below.
Stats.
The only time I’m having a jolly good time is when I write fan fiction and go to ice hockey games. (I have a season ticket to my local team, HC TPS) And of course, when I take photos and videos. But I don’t get paid to do that. I wish I did, but no one buys.
I should be grateful I still have my health and that I live in a country without war. You should enjoy the small things and do something every day. I have taken up reading books. I never thought I would. I’ve read books before, but never anything longer than 100 pages. Right now I’m reading “The murder of Roger Ackroyd” by Agatha Christie. So I am actually having a jolly good time. And as long as the weather is nice, it’s good to read outside.
Nothing seems to work, no matter how I try. Perhaps I just need to withstand the lack of reaction from others. I have made up a new fanfic, but no reaction to that. Not even views, or they come slowly. I spent hours writing it, and I think it’s good. Then none. But it doesn’t matter because I like what I write, which matters. I did get a compliment from someone who said I’m a talented writer. They suggested they would make a comic of it. But I can’t afford it right now. It’s a nice gesture, though. At least some are reacting. Some fan fiction succeeds better than others. I have a lot of fiction. Maybe it’s only the subject that people don’t care about, or a lack of coitus.
I’ve started a faceless account on Instagram in Finnish. It’s IN right now in Finland. You can sell digital products made by someone else and then resell them. There are MRR (Master Resell Right) and PLR (Private Label Right). You can make them your own or resell them as they are. To start somewhere, I bought a package with Instagram Stories and Reels and resold it. But when trying to sell a digital product, you need to advertise. So it’s not get-rich-quick (I don’t even want to be rich), but it is frustrating that it takes ages. I won’t earn anything. Some have waited for months and still haven’t sold anything. I was initially excited about faceless marketing, not having to show my face. Many faceless accounts sell courses about digital marketing and how to start faceless marketing, but I’ve already studied digital marketing and visuals. I’ve used a lot of money to study those things. Even if I did buy the course, there’s no guarantee I would profit from it. As a graphic designer and photographer, I want to make my own digital product. The best thing about selling digital products is that you don’t have to contract with a client and wait for clients to contact you. What if I don’t succeed, and I’m wasting my time? I need to withstand the negativity from my mind that it won’t work. I need to be more patient.
Lastly, about this blog, I don’t feel like blogging the way I used to. The last post about the Duran Duran concert was ignored, but I guess people are too busy. Or maybe reading blogs and blogging isn’t as popular as it used to be. I just need to withstand the lack of reaction from others. I’m writing for myself anyway. How else will I learn to write in English if I don’t blog? That’s why I’m here; the same goes for writing fan fiction. I need to get my thoughts written down somehow.
I won’t collapse, even though yesterday’s post didn’t get likes immediately. There can be many reasons, which doesn’t necessarily mean it was terrible. I’m good at keeping it together. There are worse things in the world than no one liking something. Despite being active on social media, I don’t get many likes and even less comments. But I post anyway. Sometimes, people find old posts that were posted ages ago. You never know what happens when you’re on the internet. One thing that I’m good at is keeping things together, and I don’t collapse when things get tough. Life’s disappointments make you stronger, and you can take the heat a little better.
The other four things I’m good at are as follows. Two of them are thanks to my late parents.
Cooking and baking
I used to help my mother in the kitchen. That way, I learned how to cook and bake. It had been a big help. My dad didn’t cook, so I cooked for the both of us after my mother died. Sometimes, I try new recipes, and sometimes I succeed, but sometimes I do not. For example, I once tried to make chocolate cheesecake, but it became all gooey and too sweet. I followed the recipe to the letter, but still, it failed. I have more success in cooking a meal. If I like the food I tried for the first time, I cook them again. Now, when I’m alone, I’m a little lazy to cook, so I either order takeout or buy microwave food. But a home-cooked meal is always better, so I still do that. It’s less expensive to cook your own food. I should learn to make smaller amounts of food, though, now that I only cook for myself.
Driving a car
Everybody probably says they’re a good driver, but I can genuinely say that. I follow the rules and consider other people. I only got my driver’s licence three years ago, but I’ve improved since then. I gained more confidence driving because Dad was with me. You get better the more you drive. The longest trip I’ve driven was to Helsinki last week. I even drove in total darkness on the back home. I couldn’t have done it a few years ago. But because of my dad, I’m more confident behind the wheel.
Writing stories
The first time I wrote stories was in elementary school as school assignments, and I got good grades. As a teenager, I started to write in English, and it hasn’t stopped. I have a vivid imagination. Today, I write fan fiction, primarily real-person fiction. It is good practice to learn writing in English, and I have learned a lot of new words. In Finland, we start to learn English in 3rd or 4th grade. That’s how it was in the 1980s, at least. Writing is a lot of fun, and that’s why it’s my favourite thing of all the things I’m good at.
Using a computer
I might know how to fix a computer, but I’m good at using one. The first computer I used was a Macintosh. I was in 7th grade when we got a computer in the classroom. Computers weren’t common then, and you had to know codes. There were no icons to click on, so it wasn’t easy to use one. I used Windows the most because that’s what our school had. It was only the Macintosh that had icons. The first time I used the Internet was in 1997 when I was in business school. As they say, the rest is history. Kids today have no idea how it was then. It’s good that computers have gotten better over the decades. It is more fun to use computers and the Internet these days. But that’s good because things were so slow before broadband and computer icons. That modem sound still haunts in my head. If you lived in the 1990s, you know what I mean.
I wish I could improve on some other things, but that’s another list.
