2017 End of Year Wrap-Up

How has 2017 been?  I think pretty good in general sums it up.

I’m going to follow the same format as last year.

This Website

2017 Highlights

• I updated the look of the website a bit
• I wrote 23+ blog posts (I removed some) when my goal was 1 per month
• I added a photo page which links to ones I publish on Flickr

2017 Lowlights

• I need to add more photos to the Flickr account to show up on the photo page

2018 Plans

• More posts on things I find useful and might help out other people.

Giant Pumpkins NZ

2017 Highlights

• I went on a road trip to Gisborne to see their weigh off
• I shot more video and started the GPNZ Vlog
• I’ve been consitant with the pumpkin post newsletter.
• I am getting me heard around growing in the smallest pumpkin patch ever again.
• I sorted out the photos on the website page – WOOHOO
• I setup the online shop

2017 Lowlights

• Hmm I’m not too sure

2018 Plans

• Try and get to some new pumpkin events
• More Vlog episodes in conjunction with the Blog posts
• Get some more items into the online shop

Op Shop Directory

2017 Highlights

• More comments were made on the site, and updates being sent in

2017 Lowlights

• I really got over the whole site

2018 Plans

• I’m not really sure, it’s good having the site up and running, but my heart is not in this at all currently.

The Chris and Sam Podcast

2017 Highlights

• We keep making episodes and people keep listening

2017 Lowlights

• It’s hard to get feedback from anyone
• Haven’t been utilising Twitter as much as we should have been

2018 Plans

• Might get around to sorting out patreon
• Will get business cards and maybe shirts made with the logo on them
• Thinking about applying for media passes to events

The NZ Filmmakers Podcast

2017 Highlights

• There was no highlights this year.

2017 Lowlights

• No episodes

2018 Plans

• I’m not sure what the plan is for this. I think Chris is renewing the domain name shortly.

The Great Pumpkin Carnival

2017 Highlights

• We had another good Carnival
• Good media coverage
• Set up an incorporated society and committee to run the event
• I became the president of the committee
• Making more good connections with people that can help us out

2017 Lowlights

• The NZ record didn’t get broken this year
• The usual mission of finding sponsors and money for the event

2018 Plans

• To have another successful event
• Try and not be as busy on the day of the event

NZ Secret Santa

• NZ Secret Santa was on again this year with lots more media coverage from around the world, I did a couple of radio interviews and one with BBC World News which my cousin saw live in a bar in London.
• I did a TedX talk about NZ Secret Santa, which is such an awesome experience.

Travels

January
I went to Hastings twice due to a death in the extended family, once was a pretty rushed trip but I was ready to go in half an hour.

March
Christchurch Trip – went to Ferrymead for the first time and got some good photos of firetrucks.

April
Gisborne – first time going to the Bushmere Arms Pumpkin Competition, had a great trip.
Taupo – Went to check out the farmers market and the giant pumpkin competition

July
Christchurch – First time going way down south, saw Alexandra and Tekapo, got snowed in at Tekapo, luckily I got travel insurance which paid out later.

October
Went to Auckland for Armageddon and the live Dollop Podcast show

November
Flew to Christchurch after missing a flight due to roadworks and traffic.

In between all of those there were trips to Rotorua and Tauranga to see family, looking back some of these trips seem to long ago.

Health and Fitness

On the whole for most of the year I think I didn’t really get sick much.  I still have bouts of feeling tired, but I think sometimes it’s just from doing a lot and I guess other people are tired a lot too?  Maybe I need to take up drinking coffee more.

In January I did the whole 30 food thing, which was OK, but if I was to pick something I would do the slow carb diet over the whole 30 I think.

I also did my first parkrun this year, a timed 5km free run every Saturday at 8am all around the country, my cousins are mad for it, with one just completing her 300th, and the other one over 260.  For me, I did 5 this year which is 5 more than last year.

This will probably sound dumb, but 8am is sometimes too late in the morning for me when I have a lot of things I am trying to do, but… I’m sure I can do more in 2018.

I retired the Garmin Vivofit and upgraded to a Garmin Forerunner 235, which I will write about at some point, but I do like it.

Money Stuff

I started the year writing about the debt I had, and was doing updates until about halfway through the year.  But I decided that while it was exciting to try something new, I am not a financial blogger.  I have removed those posts and the page for it off the site.

My goal of paying off the debt didn’t go as well as I had planned.  But I did have money for everything, the one exception is I haven’t put money aside for the dentist, which mite come back to bite me.  Haha.

I’ll be working harder in 2018 on the whole debt front.

Other bit and pieces

I’ve probably forgotten a bunch of stuff, but I have learned more about what I believe in this year, what makes me tick and feel more centered if I had to pick a word.

I’m using some new tools to help me with creating things and saving me money.

I’m looking forward to 2018, I am implementing a new layout in the bullet journal and I will have to see how it all goes.

New projects which I should have had done this year will be coming out in January, the waiting on the right time and waiting for everything to be right is the wrong mind set, people don’t really care and things will evolve and grow.

I’ll post more about those things when they happen.

Anyways, if you have somehow found yourself here and are reading to the very end, I hope 2017 was OK for you and 2018 is going to be good, and if it isn’t start doing small changes to head in the direction you want to go.