19th April, 2024
It’s that time of the year again! By ‘that time‘, I mean the days surrounding Christmas and New Year when space, time and energy cease to function in a regular manner.
Naturally, it’s the perfect time to ponder on the year that has been, and make plans for the next. The many ups, downs, and sideswipes that 2022 has thrown my way have been entertaining to say the least. After a couple of slow, lonely, watered-down pandemic years, 2022 came in full swing, lockdown free and full of possibilities. To call this year overwhelming compared to the last is a severe understatement. For the most past, though, things went according to plan.
In last year’s end-of-year blog post I included my mood board and playlist for 2021. I don’t end the year with the same playlist on rotation, but in this case, I really stuck by it. Here was my 2022 mood board and playlist, for reference. Feel free to listen while you scroll through this post.
I’ve been writing fairly regular life recaps this year, alongside making a semi-weekly Instagram reel, so I don’t feel as though it’s necessary to re-hash the entirety of what has been a truly gigantic year. I am more than willing to gently reflect on some of the major happenings, and perhaps poke some fun at the less ideal incidents. In that spirit, I have prepared a brief presentation pertaining to the more tragic moments of 2022.
2022 wasn’t all bad, though, not even close. I feel as though I’ve made up for the lost lockdown years in the space of 12 months. I’ve seen countless gigs and concerts, did a bit of travel, made new friends, reunited with old friends, tried a billion new things, had some interesting experiences and pulled off some projects I couldn’t have dreamt of last year.
To Summarise this year without a boring long monotonous essay, I’ve devised a simple list of the best and worst things to happen in each month of 2022, and attached the relevant blog post if you particularly wish to learn more on the topic. Enjoy!
January
👍: Went on some fun little trips with friends and family.
👎: N/A calm times
February
👍: Got the opportunity to interview + photograph headliners for the O-week festival and saw Pacific Avenue.
👎: Got Covid for the first time.
March
👍: Developed my first roll of film and got the opportunity to attend Yours & Owls festival for free to shoot content and interview headliners.
👎: Yours & Owls got cancelled the day they sent me my ticket and schedule.
April
👍: Finally cut my hair (it was a LONG time coming).
👎: Took a wrong turn driving to Dubbo and ended up taking 12 hours to get home.
May
👍: Had a really fun time turning 21 + saw the best gig of the year (MA-YA at Oxford Art Factory)
👎: Got Covid (again) from a Stella Donnelly concert.
June
👍: Saw Ball Park Music (life-changing)! Helped organise + photographed first in-person Bloggies event. Finished up the most stressful and rewarding uni subject made some stories I’m really proud of (Newsroom).
👎: Blew up my car’s engine.
July
👍: Took some really cool photos and got a new car.
👎: Got in another car accident.
August
👎: N/A good times!
September
👍: Worked on a really cool major project for my Journalism degree, and saw a really fun Telenova gig.
👎: Ripped my favourite pair of jeans.
October
👍: Went to Fiji and got to take a bunch of photos of cute dogs!
👎: The worst sunburn in my life.
November
👍: Officially launched Neesh Photography!
👎: Got covid AGAIN.
December
👍: Landed some really cool photography gigs (most notably, Refinery29!).
👎: Tired & broke.
This is going to be the last thing I write this year. I’m going on strike after this; my weary hand will scribble not so much as a shopping list down. I hope everyone has a safe & fun Christmas and New Year, and if not, I hope it’s at least interesting.
