I just love this shot so much. Shame you had to cut it, but it happens

Actor Lee Shorten in a deleted shot from my short film Happy Traveler.

happy birthday and having triple day offy time and day (for brain and maybe ass also)

Always a delight to see you around, and to see what you cook up.

It is, and I'm still trying to find a way to alleviate the pain. But, in the meantime, life just goes on. Every day away from the pen atrophies my skills that much more and deepens the shame, doesn't it. I appreciate you though.

The mental and emotional hurdles and loops I found myself jumping through to simply meet deadlines really spoke to a very grave underlying problem that "burnout" doesn't sufficiently describe. Maybe it was a consequence of it. Who knows.

I took a drawing class this past session to see if it could help break me out of it. It didn't. It was the most grueling and difficult class for me to date in undergrad - but it was an entry-level general ed art class for anyone. The content of the course clearly wasn't difficult or burdensome.

This opened something for me. Similarly, my fibro matters and has consequences (for drawing and elsewhere), but I think something similar and fundamental happened with me. I developed shame around drawing. I've been calling it burnout, but maybe that's not quite right.

Two things that are certainly not mutually exclusive

Finally, I can fly in my natural state

Another trip around the sun. Keep on keeping on, yourself. Happy birthday.

You gotta let me read it

I'd gladly dig holes, breaks rocks, and hammer nails for my community in between doing all the other things that fill my life. I long for it, in fact.

Finally, some rep for liches and cursed sorcerers!

Your existence is self-justifying. Like everyone's.