Hello (Start Here)

Hello.

Welcome to my journal.

What kind of way is that to start? I guess it would make more sense to start with, hello, my name is...

Well, I'm not going to tell you my name. After playing around with different options for how to structure this spiel, I've decided I prefer to keep this journal pseudonymous.

This blog is a record of what I think I can be accurately called burnout. It is a record of the years 2023–2024 and likely beyond, with some notes and descriptions of the years the preceded this period, and with particular emphasis on the weirdest period in history, the Covid-19 pandemic years.

I find myself in a persistent state of frustration, fear, shame, embarrassment, and uncertainty in the wake of this period of my life. The pandemic began over four years ago as of this writing, but has left an indelible mark on the soul of America and the lives of everyone in the world. Our lives have still not gone back to "normal" and likely never will. Society has gotten worse in just about every way imaginable, deteriorating at a pace that was previously unthinkable.

And yet, here we are. We are all living and breathing in spite of everything.