Boy Am I Glad August Is Over

Boy, am I glad August is over.

Why, you ask? Let’s just say life got kinda crazy.

I had just moved into a new place — something I’ve only done a handful of times in the past 20 years. Living in the same place has always been a bit of a mixed blessing. On one hand, you avoid the hassle of moving. On the other, staying put for too long can start to feel stale.

When I was a kid, we moved around more than I would have liked — bouncing between cities and leaving friends behind — so I learned early on that nobody really likes moving.

This time, I tried to treat it like a fresh start: new scenery, new décor, new memories. But between packing, working, and spending time with family and friends, my “fresh start” energy started wearing thin fast.

They say moving is one of the most stressful life events. I always found that a little dramatic — like, yes, it’s exhausting, but is it really up there with marriage, divorce, death, or childbirth? Sure, there are obvious circumstances where moving would be incredibly stressful, but that wasn't me.

I figured if I kept the right mindset, moving would be easy peasy. It was not

Packing a full household while scrolling rental listings is draining. Especially when most landlords expect you to make three times the rent and pay two months upfront. I don’t know about you, but I don’t make 3x my rent every month. Does anyone outside of surgeons?

We made it through the move. Mostly.

The office was still in boxes, the bathtub had become temporary storage (items moved to the floor and back whenever someone needed a shower), and the dishwasher was caked in minerals.

Then, one of my dogs — just eight months old — had a seizure. I didn’t even recognize it as a seizure at first. I just knew something was very wrong.

Thankfully, it was short, and the post-ictal period (the strange, disoriented behavior that follows) didn’t last long. That part scared me just as much as the seizure. If you’ve ever had an epileptic dog, you know how heartbreaking it is to watch your pup lose control of her body — confused, jumping, walking in circles, and even walking into walls if you're not keeping her on a short leash.

The vet figured it was a mix of the heatwave and stress from the move. He gave us some medicine and suggested I leave soothing music playing when I’m out. Not exactly the housewarming gift I was hoping for.

Then, right in the middle of all this chaos, I got a message from Mia at Kistemo.

We’d met a while ago in a writers’ group and had a video call once. She told me about her passion for creating children’s programming — stuff that’s educational but also fun. Something parents could feel good about letting their kids watch.

As someone with five younger siblings and nannying experience, that mission stuck with me.

This time, she reached out with something bigger.

She had launched a YouTube channel for one of her characters, MRG, and was trying to decide whether to expand into a book or a show. When she asked if I wanted to co-write with her, I almost said no out of instinct. I don’t usually step out of my comfort zone like that.

But then she said something that stuck.

She told me how many writers she’d met who keep their work to themselves — too afraid to show it to anyone or unsure how to take the next step. Whether she knew it or not, she was describing me.

And just like that, everything changed.

We've started looking into grants that to see if there are any that can help us fund the animation. That'll be the deciding factor — if we can afford fair pay for animators, we’ll lean toward a show. If not, we'll do a book.

So far, we haven't found anything that will work for us right now, but we have found several that seem worth sharing:

- The $100,000 Playbook Imagination Fund

- The SLF Working Class Writers Grant

- The Awesome Foundation

- The Pollination Project philanthropy-based projects

- Funds for Media – Grants and Resources for Sustainability this one’s a huge list and worth spending time with

If you’re a writer, artist, or dreamer trying to make something great, I hope these help.

It’s kind of wild to look back and realize that during such an overwhelming month — while surrounded by boxes, vet visits, and shower-storage logistics — a creative door quietly opened.

And I’m really glad I walked through it.

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