Some time ago, somebody read this article and came to the conclusion that I am an atheist.

I don’t know if he read the whole thing, just skimmed it, or simply read the title, but somehow, he made the assumption that I believe in no god and have a nihilistic outlook on life. I quickly corrected him, of course, but it did get me thinking about the kind of tone I express on this website.

I’d Like to Be More Positive

Looking back at the work I’ve published here, much of it has been couched in a rather negative perspective. While I still stand by the opinions voiced (a great deal of effort has been put into saying as much as “stop fighting, you turds”), I’m not sure I necessarily stand by the negative tone I’ve taken much of the time (this after using the word “turds”).

It’s actually a really unfortunate trend I’ve noticed among religious and/or conservative content creators. There’s a lot of defaming and condemnation alongside attitudes that could be perceived as (if not outright be) self-righteous, lording their personal tastes and values above those of others.

I don’t really want to do that, but I feel I have to some degree. And I’d like to take a slightly different direction with things here.

What I’ve Been Up To Lately

I once wrote that I am a writer whether I like it or not. I’m not sure that’s still the case. Maybe it is, but I’ve not really felt the need to write for fun after several years of doing it freelance as a job. Writing is something I dread now rather than feel a need to do.

So what have I been doing? Well, I must confess that there has been an awful lot of geeking out here. I’ll make a list:

• I’ve been painting miniatures for tabletop games.
• I started drawing cool pictures in sketchbooks again. Haven’t done much of that since my earlier college days.
• I designed a roleplaying game. Still working some details out and writing up content.
• I’ve learned a ton about game design from some awesome YouTube people.
• I’ve been running RPGs for friends, mostly using the system I’ve made.
• I considered painting miniatures for profit. I don’t think I could stand doing that for very long though.
• I’ve thought of a few dozen story ideas, but can’t seem to find the words to tell them. Haven’t read much in the last couple years, so that may be part of it.
• I incorporated reading cool stuff into my daily schedule. It remains to be seen what kind of benefits that will yield.

Given that my interests have taken a deep dive toward TTRPGs (tabletop roleplaying games, for the uninitiated) and the like, I’m probably going to be incorporating stuff about that in future posts. Instead of being a website about opinions and writing alone, I’d like it to be a general “hobby and good vibes” kind of site.

I kind of want to change up the formatting on this website too. Google keeps telling me it’s not very good for mobile. Not sure if I’ll bother, though.

Maybe I’ll start up a YouTube channel too? That could be fun. I had a couple people mention I could do voice acting, so I’d imagine my voice wouldn’t be unpleasant to listen to.

Perhaps most importantly of all, I’ve been learning to be at ease and to give praise rather than criticism when people make something cool. I’m not perfect at it, but I do have some good role models to look toward, such as this guy.

Being Good for Something

So what am I getting at here?

I’d like to use this platform for some form of good, even if that’s just giving you something delightful to look forward to every so often. In essence, I want to follow this quote by Gordon B. Hinkley:

“You are good. But it is not enough just to be good. You must be good for something.”

I’d like to make The Astral Wanderer not only good, but good for something. It must have a positive impact on the universe. It must alter reality in a way that makes that reality better for people, even if it’s only by giving you something to smile about. Otherwise, its existence is utterly pointless.

The Astral Wanderer is brought to you by the song that was sung from the beginning of the universe that instilled in the soul of humankind the desire to do good. If you want to support this website of dubious quality, like this post, share it with friends, or leave a comment. All proceeds go toward making the universe a potentially more livable place for mortals. Really.