The Results of a Week Off

Last week, from 11-17 April, I took a week off from writing for Sketching Details. I knew I was starting to get burned out from the few days I missed getting an article up. So, I took a week off. I let my social media scheduler do its thing and focused on me.

The fact is that I take great pride in running Sketching Details. I am proud of the work I do here providing thoughtful media criticism about media that doesn’t always get the most attention. I really do enjoy horror, sci-fi, and fantasy and have spent a lifetime learning about it. I like sharing that knowledge not to show off but to get other people excited to dive in.

So what did I do in my week off?

Most importantly, I slept. My hours at my teaching job changed just enough to throw my sleep and medicine schedule off, so I was struggling. I took the week to reset. I’m sleeping better and my mental wellness is in a much better state.

The rest was gravy.

I started a creative writing course for the first time since college. I’m loving it so far.

I started a new audiobook and made the choice not to finish it. I wasn’t prepared for the content in it and didn’t feel the need to battle through.

I rewatched the newest season of Battlebots and got all nostalgic for when I briefly competed in local robot combat events during the Comedy Central era. There used to be a whole lot of tournaments in NY/NJ/CT that I could easily drive to and I did. I sucked at it, but I had fun.

I went in hard on two new multiplayer horror games. They’re actually the subject of the new episode of Spookier Times that came out today. Both Home Sweet Home: Survive (in Early Access) and Dark Deception: Monsters & Mortals are fun multiplayer adaptations of solid indie horror games.

I hit two weeks out from my second vaccine shot and felt safer going to the grocery store for the first time in over a year. I even went for a walk outside since March 2020. That was nice.

I shook up my teaching repertoire and treated myself to a bunch of sheet music I’ve wanted to teach for years. It’s been fun learning new songs and finding unique pieces for my students.

Did I mention the sleep? The sleep was nice.

Now that I’m back, I’m excited to get back into gear and dig further into media. The TikTok videos and series on my main channel will come back; I’m not sold on the gaming channel right now. The format I stuck with didn’t feel true to me, so I’m putting a hold on that. Twitch streams will come back at night to better support my schedule. That’s not even going into the books I’ve been working on, the game that will come out this year if I have to put it live at 11:59pm on New Year’s Eve, and other projects I’m not ready to discuss.

I’m back. I’m rested. I’m ready.