This update is going to be a weird one, maybe a bit short, maybe a bit long. As the year comes to a close, the burnout is stronger than ever. I just finished writing my personal year end reflection in Obsidian, and the prevailing theme for every section was burnout. It's hit me so hard I'm not sure how I'm going to recover, if I'm honest. Sorry to start off on a sour note, but I feel like being up-front and truthful is the correct way to be.
A result of this, is that really just doing any task is utterly exhausting. I know doing more things and making more things gives me life, but there's a snowball effect to that, and when you don't have enough energy to step outside, how do you begin to form that first snowball? This is all to say that I apologise once again for a huge delay between posts, especially as my eventual goal is to have these as weekly posts. I will continue to aim to be better, and hope that the next one won't be such a delay.
Additionally, the holiday season once again approcheth, and with it, many obligations that sap my time to work on other projects. This post will be a little short, but here's what I did this month:
Started streaming!
Yep, ya girl is a certified vtuber now. I got my qualification and everything. You can find me on twitch.tv/foxtrotluna where I'm currently working on getting every class in Final Fantasy 14 up to the level cap.
My model is courtesy of the lovely @maygebee. I love this model so much, and I was surprised how accessible vtubing really can be. It's a lot of fun and means I have to worry less about my physical appearance, and much more about my voice when streaming 😅
Modelled and printed an enclosure for a vape battery
My lovely neighbours decided to throw their trash into my yard a while back. Said trash was a disposable vape, which are commonly known to contain rechargable batteries. With one easy to hand I decided to crack it open and inspect it to see if I could repurpose the battery for a project. It is a messy process, disposable vapes surprisingly have a lot of juice still left long after they become useless, and the whole process is unpleasant. I actually cut myself doing it.
However, the results were true! A rechargable odd battery. Not an 18650 like you commonly see, but an LPC21350. I couldn't see any 3D printable cases for these about so I quickly designed my own and printed it. There's lots of improvements to be made in the model but at least the raw battery is protected and the wires are tucked away better now.
You can find the print file here
Made more FFXIV Keychains (and did it again)
I had another order of Final Fantasy 14 keychains to laser cut! I love doing it, so it's a pleasure to get them done, and they're minimally profitable. Unfortunately this set is no longer profitable as Royal Mail lost the first package. So I cut, painted, glued and posted a second set. They have at least found their way to the correct country, so I'm crossing my fingers they arrive safely.
Fixed an Xbox Controller
One of our original Xbox One controllers had developed a fault, said fault is mostly just a buildup of grime over years of use and disuse, causing some buttons to stick. Thankfully iFixit has an amazing series of guides to Xbox controller disassembly, so a half hour of disassembling and a quick bath later it's good as new!
Made a coaster (and did it again)
Experimenting with new Laser things! I made a coaster for a friend. This one isn't for sale, due to the design, but it did go down a hit! So for a friend I made some more gifts for their sisters wedding. I'm proud of how these turned out, and they seemed to have been recieved well from what I hear!
I may begin to put up a more official store for things next year. Is there an interest in this kind of thing?
Celebrated the Holidays
Lastly, I celebrated the holidays! Due to my work situation, I just focused on those most important to me. My partners and my kid. It was small, but nice. And as I write this, I'm preparing for a nice new year with my partners. It's been a tumultuous year for me, and I'm hoping that 2025 brings a lot more good news, for me and for you! See you in the next one.