uhh yeah so, happy new year and stuff. i don't have any pretty photos or sparkly fonts, sorry about that. if all goes well i will post some pics of the fireworks show.

anyway, i know that was a bad year for a lot of people i know, but i have to say that it was good for me. 2007 was a very depressing year school-wise, for several reasons. but this year i changed to an art school i love, which means finally feeling comfortable about my career choice, school chioce and prospects for the first time in 3 years. i made new friends and reunited with old ones, made an actual effort at socializing and partying (still working on that), and i made some changes to the way i look that have made me feel happier about my body and image than i can ever remember feeling. i know the last point sounds shallow, but it isn't to me, so there.

i don't want to discuss the RL downsides, because they were small, punctual things that don't affect the "this was a good year" feeling.

fandom life was very good, in the sense that i've been more active than ever AND i've broadened my horizons greatly regarding characters, ships, etc. and i have to thank you guys for that, for making me feel included. i've had small groups of friends in my previous fandoms but i never got a sense of *community* the way i've had in the HP fandom. i love my friendlist, most of you i've friended because of your talent at writing and/or art, or because i just plainly found your LJs interesting, but with many of you i've reached a point where i can really call you "friends" beyond common fandom interests. and i should also thank you for putting up with me (or ignoring me, which works just as well) when i get wanky (often) or annoying or incoherent.

oh and i guess i should say "sorry" in case i have ever offended anyone. :p

art-wise, i think i wouldn't be the same if i had never set foot in the HP fandom. these characters (the move from a visual to a literary fandom was a strange one) were the sole motivation that consciously made me move from an unoriginal anime style to a style i can call my own and not an imitation of something else. i've learned a lot about character design and illustration and storytelling just from watching other fanartists and forcing myself to draw and get better at it.

on the downside, prolonged exposure to the bad and stupid sides of this fandom turned me into a neurotic ball of barely-contained rage. but i think i've been running out of patience with fantards since 2003, so i was going to reach that point sooner or later. HP-based stupidity combined with the years of anime and zelda-related frustrations finally got me. :p

anyway, yeah. that's pretty much it. i'm supposed to be heading out in a few hours... what to do in the meantime? *twiddles thumbs*