Ignoring Writers Block, Physical Media and some Knee Pain.
This March weather is testing me, I think its been cold for about eighteen months now. Anyway, I am on day five of a much needed holiday break from work, I took a block of days off rest up around a doctors appointment with a bone specialist to check out that nagging knee problem (finally). I intended to just relax, rest up as work has been incredible testing lately, and perhaps get some headway into the tail end of this third Bulldog book. In reality thus far I have spent time with the cat, had my knee appointment and got my home in order again - also been cooking a lot which I've enjoyed. So lets get into the tofu of this weeks update.
Ignoring writers block.
I wrote eighteen pages for Bulldog final chapter involving Cleo & Jacob, I then deleted them all as they didn't feel natural to the characters. Now I am slowly creeping back through that final chapter and as I approach its end, and the end for some of these characters, I have found myself struggling to overcome another bout of writers block. So why is that?
Distractions and the resistance, putting it plainly I am being lazy and allowing myself to become distracted. Which is why I chose to write this blog today, in hopes it can spark some writing muscle memory back into life and I can attack that chapter head on. I bought a new game for the Switch, Pokémon Fire Red (for anyone interested) which is an easy distraction, I have been cooking a lot and that has also been a distraction (albeit a good one as I try healthy vegan meals), I have also been watching some movies lately with the wife as we share some time off together. But these aren't necessarily a bad thing, what I have found to be the problem is that I am using these distractions in a very deliberate way to avoid writing.
Writing it hard, it shouldn't feel like that but right now it does. I want to finish his project and move onto shorter forms of fiction but this can only be achieved after I leap over the hurdle of Bulldog 3. Speaking about it like this feels negative but these blogs are always from the heart, I don't plan them out before hand and I think that's a better way to vent about the realities of writing and working full time. But as with all things, it doesn't get done until you put the work in to do it. I am pledging right now, that today, the 27th of March, I will get this final chapter down for Cleo and move onto the final two arcs. Accountability, that might work. I will let you know next week.
Physical Media
I keep seeing blogs and videos that are discussing the revival (or resurrection might be a better word) of the physical media market, mainly in the forms of DVDs and Blu Rays. I wanted to speak about this and share my thoughts as I have been shouting into the wind about this idea for a while now. Streaming services are a failed experiment for the consumer, for the provider (those relentless greedy giants like Netflix, Disney and Amazon) they are working perfectly. When I was a young lad my parents had cable TV, that meant we had some sort of subscription to Sky or someone like that. We had enough channels that I never really thought about it and options for movies, sports and music - I am completely guessing here but I would think it cost then below £100 a year at the time.
Fast forward to the ever exciting year of 2026 and you would need over £200 a year to get the bundle of Netflix, Prime, HBO, Disney, Hulu, Paramount and others that fit your likes (Wrestling, Anime, specific sports etc). That is fine and dandy for some if you wanted ad-free media at your control, but then came along the adverts and the price rises and more price rises and MORE price rises. So what exactly are we paying for these days, the answer is; the resurrected corpse of cable/satellite TV/
If you have streaming services on the cheapest bracket, say less than £10 a month for one platform that sells its cheap price via adverts - YOU ARE THE PRODUCT. And I don't like the idea of my details being sold to advertisers that can further sell them onto data hoarders for shady business.
So fuck that, I binned them all and cancelled all but one subscription service that I pay for which is for AEW (love me some non-Trump affiliated wrestling). Now the writing was on the wall for this inbound enshitification of streaming, so I have been buying DVDs and Box Sets for movies and shows that I love for a few years now - and the mad thing is that I am not missing anything. Movies will come out eventually on DVD or the free streaming platforms like Tubi or Pluto (which, yes have ads. But also don't require my personal details or money to use). I am telling you all, physical media, having that tangible thing in your hand that cannot be edited, clipped or removed from your access is the best way in the modern capitalist hellscape to enjoy media.
Knee Pain.
When I hit thirty, I told myself that this was just a figure and it is for the most part. But as I crawl through my early thirties I have found that certain joints and bones have started to just creak a bit more noticeably than they did before. In particular, my dang knees. I have been having knee pain for the better part of two or three years, finally I got on the phone to the GP and got an appointment with a really great bone specialist (that's what she said) and this Thursday I went along to hear the bad news.
Turns out, its not as bad as I expected and entirely fixable. As I walk almost the entire day for work, I need my body to be in optimal condition so the idea of a knee injury was really starting to bother my resting time. This guy took twenty minutes and one physical check over to establish the problem and proscribe some exercises to fix the issue, basically I have built up more muscle outside my knee than inside and my knee cap that should be moving up and down my femur, is moving across at a slight angle instead. No worries, the doctor said, I just need to do some exercises two or three times a week and it should eventually start to improve. Good news!
Any other business.
I have been thinking about my travelling days lately, I miss the road and in particular miss Eastern Europe. The streets of Moldova, the mad markets of Romania and the busy centres in Bulgaria - I miss the madness and the familiarity that this part of Europe gives me. England will always be my home, but my head seems to gravitate towards the East whenever I reminisce. For a bit of fun I might rank the countries, maybe cities, that I have visited and compare with Tanya to get her opinion. I just really miss the road, with Angel still floating around its impossible but man are my feet getting itchy.
The whole food plant diet is going great, I am cooking more than ever and really branching out my efforts in the vegan menu. Last night we had a leftover pasta, basically whatever leftover dinners we had in the fridge and cooked some pasta to mix them up. But the night before I made wholemeal buns, sliced up some Seitan and put together a couple of vegan donner kebabs. Tanya approved so it must have been something worth eating.
I think I have been rambling for a while now, so I will do my knee exercises and crack on with this chapter that is still mocking me to finish it up. Keep your feathers clean and remember to take off your shoes, you little goblin people.
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