Website Status Update – May 2023: Time, Lines and Obligations

Time is an interesting thing, isn’t it? We never seem to have enough of it. Recently this seems to have been very much on my mind.

When you’re younger that’s okay, you’ve got your whole life ahead of you. Dip into your thirties and, ooh, things have suddenly got a bit more serious. Now I’m in my forties (only just, mind you) I’ve discovered that everything just stepped up again. Not only that but you’re suddenly aware of time’s hand on your shoulder. There’s always comings and goings, partings in life but how I feel about those has changed too.

As I mentioned on Twitter back in April I’ve been thinking about Last Minute Continue, where its future lies and where that future intersects with my own.

LMC is, quite simply, the thing that keeps me sane. I edit videos and podcasts and things to relax. But I’m definitely going to have to start winding down some of what I do and shuttering stuff I’d hoped to do in the future in favour of focusing on key things going forward. The reason for that is pretty simple: I’ve just not got the time or energy any more. So let me meander through this in my achy, tired state and just get things out there.

There’s a few factors here.

The new job I took on in October last year is big. There’s a lot of responsibility. I’m doing stuff at a higher level than I’ve ever done. It only took 15 years but there’s respect and investment in ME. Heck I was at a full on film shoot the other day directing content.

I also got COVID, but let’s look at the positives.

On Tuesday I’m due up at 4am-ish to get a 6am plane to fly overseas to be part of a company-wide meeting, and then I’m flying back at 9PM. No rest for the wicked – and no livestream either. But that makes sense, it has to take priority.

Health wise I’m also dealing with some stuff, beyond the ongoing pain problems I’ve gotten very good at masking down the years. I’m still suffering the effects of the gastro-intestinal illness that hospitalised me a couple of years back and did a real number on my already damaged internals. (Hey, remember when I was literally operating on glucose drinks and painkillers for about 6 months to try and keep things together for THAT company? Yeahhh that came at a cost.) The effects are numerous and one of these days I may even get a follow-up to find out what I CAN actually eat safely.

Combine this with a throat and lung seemingly constantly full of horrible mucus and I am pretty much always exhausted. You can imagine COVID did not help the respiratory issue a hell of a lot.

Still, if I am able to get those issues, and the weight I’ve put on in part from the first problem, sorted. I should be pretty good. A full on health check earlier this year revealed I’m in surprisingly good nick apart from that. My blood pressure is ‘text book’, apparently. Which I note only to utterly astound those of you that know me.

I still do an awful lot around here, often unseen as readers of #kevinsworkshop on our Discord server could tell you. But the days of ol’ Kev burning the candle at both ends and the middle too are long gone. So it’s time to start making some decisions.

Back when I tweeted my thoughts I’d not edited a video in three weeks. Something that bugged me tremendously. I’ve since managed to get myself back into the habit and I can build up the schedule again. But that was partly due to needing two weeks off and COVID screwing my sleep cycle with 12 hour sleeps.

Even though we have a big team, traditionally it has been nearly all me in terms of sorting updates. In the last year that’s all rather changed thankfully. We’ve got ShadowFox doing an extra Twitch stream on every other Monday. Titans Creed sorting out individual long form series for YouTube (seriously, check out him and Turbo doing Brand Warfare – it’s a hoot) and Nibal sorting out LMC Cast has been a godsend. Others are helping out in their own way too when they can.

LMC is a collective of friends. I never want it to be anyone’s priority over ‘real life’. I will, I hope, find some new blood to assist down the line and maybe get some folks for archival and technical stuff too.

So what should be the priority for me? Well, honestly, it’s the stuff that makes me happy.

I was quite happy to put my heart and soul into the archive side. But some of the interactions and comments I’ve seen relating to it have soured me greatly on it. Who’d have thought me rescuing things from a skip a decade plus ago means that I ‘owe’ random people things. In one case I was told that I was should hand everything over to them as I was ‘clearly not deserving’ of it. Tell you what kid: next time, you get in the fucking skip.

I don’t need nor am I obligated to do it. So, once I finally have time to sort out the Unleashed Whip video (yes, yes, I know… ) and we finalise the releases of the rescued Beta builds that’s me drawing a line under it.

Positive news on the rescue stuff later, by the way.

In terms of SEGA/Sonic I’m also drawing a line. Over the years I’ve turned up to stuff and supported community meets and efforts where I could. I was going to go to one last meetup for the old community to support it as I’ve tended to do in the years since, but am not now for reasons. So that’s that.

I have a tendency to feel beholden to and protective of the ‘old stuff’. Caring well past any time I’d be expected to.

The people matter. The friends matter. The rest… not so much any more. 2024 will mark two decades of the site existing from the earliest Sonic Wrecks comic and I’ve done my time.

This is not to say I’m closing the door on SEGA/Sonic things. I want to get back to writing SW and LMC comics but have not had a chance for ages. So there’s that.

Our work with RadioSEGA will continue, but I’ll definitely need to either roll Radio Redux into LMC Cast or LMC Cast into Radio Redux. My plan for an ‘easier’ Radio Redux fell apart after two shows due to work. Either way one should probably be put to bed so we can concentrate on the other as a group.

Speaking of music Wescin Rocks Records is a fun little side-project, which is definitely staying around and will eventually slow down to an annual thing. Expect new releases across the rest of the year. A new EP of original tracks, Seasons, is out now!

The TSSZ Archive project I’ve chipped away at when I can but will probably need someone dedicated to it – and I have ideas for that.

And Twitch streams will probably alternate on weeks between 2 and 3 sessions. I really enjoy them so I’ll try and keep time for those.

So happiness over obligation is the way forward. Be that self-imposed or implied by others.

Time to take it a bit easier. Then again this is me, so let’s see how it goes, eh?