This will be my last post I write before I take my writing break. It feels like a lot of pressure to determine what this post will be. I wanted to keep this simple. This is a post where I summarize everything I accomplished so far this year. I wanted this post to be something I re-read in the upcoming days, when I’m postpartum. There will be times in postpartum when I’m not productive, I will be sleep-deprived, and if I can manage taking a shower that day, good for me. I wanted a post to remind myself that I have had a productive year, even if I don’t feel that way. This post is meant for myself and no one else, and that’s okay. These are some things that I have achieved that I feel proud of this year.

Finish My Book and Comics TBR

This photo always makes me laugh. I swear this is the last time I will mention this. I’m thrilled that I finished my Goodreads and StoryGraph TBR. This shelf hasn’t had 0 books on it since I signed up with Goodreads more than ten years ago. I think that’s worth celebrating. Additionally, as of a few weekends ago, I finished all the graphic novels and comics on my TBR, too. I’m in a place where I can start thinking about which graphic novels I want to read and purchase next. I also have a tag on Libby for graphic novels to rent from the library.

Coinciding with my return to writing in 2027, I will start adding books to my TBR for both Goodreads and StoryGraph, but I wanted to give myself the year to have 0 books waiting to be read.

Finished Editing All My Blog Posts

Two years ago, I began a project where I would edit all the posts I wrote on Bizarre Brunette. I procrastinated as one does, and then decided to push to complete this. This has been a lot of work, but I figured if I was going to take a writing break, I wanted to ensure that my blog was in a good place. Through edits, I made sure the images I’m using are mine or covered under Fair Use. I also added Alternative Text to images I use in hopes of making Bizarre Brunette more accessible to read.

My total post count is sitting at over 990 posts! When I said this was a lot of work, I meant it. I’m glad I was able to prioritize this and complete it before the end of the year.

Finished Listening to Worlds Beyond Number

If you haven’t listened to Worlds Beyond Number, you absolutely need to. I started this podcast last year, and it was one of the few podcasts I was trying to get caught up on, and I did! Worlds Beyond Number is a TTRPG podcast starring Brennan Lee Mulligan, Aabria Iyengar, Lou Wilson, and Erika Ishii. Their first campaign, The Wizard, The Witch, And The Wild One was one of the best campaigns I have listened to. With that said, I will probably fall behind again when I’m out on maternity leave, but I at least wanted to finish their main campaign before I left.

I don’t have anything else to add. I hope the rest of 2026 treats you well!

As the title of this post suggests, I’m pregnant! In less than four weeks, I will be giving birth, which I cannot believe has come so fast. I purposefully kept my pregnancy off of Bizarre Brunette because I wanted this space to be devoted to my hobbies. Pregnancy is a personal journey for many, and I’d say that applies to my experience as well. I wanted to take a moment to write about the future of Bizarre Brunette and where I see this blog in the months to come.

Once the baby is born, I will be taking the rest of the year off from writing. I’m aiming to return to writing next January 2027. That feels like a long time, but I truly think that’s the right decision. I listened to a podcast about postpartum, and one of the hosts gave excellent advice. Their advice was to try to not rush into anything once the baby is here. You might read this and be like, “Well, no shit”. Before I found out I was pregnant, I was constantly busy. Traveling, planning cosplays, figuring out which conventions I would attend, writing, gaming, reading, and more. This is one time in my life where I’m putting everything on hold for this next chapter.

As I reflect on how far this blog has come, I am so proud of myself. The first post I wrote for Bizarre Brunette was published on November 12th, 2014. That was almost twelve years ago. Twelve!? I have been writing regularly ever since. It’s not often that someone can say they have been doing something regularly for that amount of time. I have followed blogs that are no longer active, and I have connected with many other bloggers who are continuing to write. They inspire me and keep me going even if I’m going through writer’s block. When I started Bizarre Brunette, I had no idea what to expect, and I feel this whole experience has made me a better person and writer, along with opening up opportunities I never thought I would have. I never set out to be popular; I just wanted to write about the geeky things that I love, and that’s exactly what Bizarre Brunette will continue to be.

I’m really looking forward to this break. This is the longest break I have ever taken, and there’s a part of me that’s afraid. What if I struggle to come back to writing? Or what if the break is longer than I thought? I’m trying to keep an open mind, which I feel is a good mindset for what’s to come.

If you have ever commented on my posts, subscribed to get email reminders, or supported me in any way, I appreciate you. This blog wouldn’t be where it is without that, and I’m grateful that I embarked on this journey.

Tropes & Trifles is another bookstore I try to support. Tropes & Trifles is a primarily romance-themed bookstore with each shelf separated by a romance sub-genre. There is a shelf that’s non-romance, but for the most part, romance is what Tropes & Trifles specializes in. Recently, Tropes & Trifles celebrated its second anniversary with a prize wheel, and they were taking donations for two charities. I decided to stop by because I can always make time to go book shopping.

I pulled up outside Tropes & Trifles mid-afternoon. When I parked and walked up, I was happy to see that there was a line outside. Tropes & Trifles is already a smaller bookstore, so it didn’t surprise me that there was a line on the sidewalk and that it wrapped around the building. The line honestly wasn’t that long, so I had no problem waiting. I didn’t time how long I was waiting because I didn’t have to wait long before I made it inside.

When I walked in, there was a prize wheel to spin. I won candy, but I think they had totes and stickers to win, too. I thought that was fun. There was a line for those who were donating because if you did make a donation, you got an ARC (advanced reading copy) of a book. The fun part about finishing my TBR earlier this year is that I wasn’t looking for anything specific. I feel like it’s been a minute since I have been book shopping aimlessly versus finding books that were specifically on my TBR. I bought two books and one graphic novel. As a side note, I didn’t realize Tropes & Trifles had a graphic novel section, so I was pleasantly surprised.

I’m glad I stopped by! It was great to see so many other people there. The Twin Cities have a strong book community, and it was great to see everyone show up for Tropes & Trifles.

I recently had the opportunity to attend a Minnesota Wild hockey game! I was able to get a ticket through work, and while it was last-minute, I’m glad I was able to go. I was thinking to myself, “When was the last time I went to a professional hockey game?” I couldn’t recall going to a hockey game as an adult, so it must have been when I was a kid. This game was fun because the Minnesota Wild were playing the Chicago Blackhawks. I immediately texted one of my friends who lives outside of Chicago that I was at the game. Who doesn’t love a little trash talk? This must have jinxed the game because the Wild lost to the Blackhawks.

One other thing I’d like to do is go to a Minnesota Frost game. The Minnesota Frost is the women’s hockey team that also plays out of Grand Casino Arena in downtown Saint Paul.

This won’t be my last professional hockey game in my future.

This is one of the few blog posts where I’m turning off comments. I’m not interested in debate, and since this is my space on the internet, I’m allowed to control that if I so choose. I write for Bizarre Brunette as a hobby and a way to distract from the world we live in. With that said, I can’t stay silent about what’s going on in Minneapolis these past few weeks. Our communities have been thrown into turmoil, and human rights are being violated. All thanks to ICE being brought to Minnesota. I do not stand or condone what ICE has been doing, and they need to leave Minnesota.

Since ICE has arrived, two people have been murdered. Their names are Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti. If you don’t believe that they were murdered, I have nothing else that I want to say to you. If you are watching what’s happening and it’s horrifying to you as well, say something! We, as the people of this country, can come together and speak up about the atrocities that ICE is committing. If you’re able to financially donate, I have been making contributions to the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, which is a non-profit that provides free legal representation to low-income immigrants.

ICE is not the good guys. It doesn’t matter if they are federal agents; we cannot forget what they have done to Minnesota.

The Minnesota Vikings are not in the playoffs this year. As a result, the last few Vikings games of the season had cheaper ticket prices. My husband had seen a news clip advertising that Vikings tickets were cheaper. One of the last games of the season was the Vikings playing the Green Bay Packers, and on average, tickets were $70 each. We decided to go to the game at U.S Bank Stadium, and it was a blast.

This is my second Vikings game I have been to. This time, we decided to park at a parking ramp that was farther away and take the Skyway over to the game. For those unfamiliar with downtown Minneapolis, there’s a Skyway system, or walkways connecting several buildings together above the roads. The Skyways connect the Convention Center to Target Field to U.S Bank Stadium. Walking farther away and taking the Skyways was the best way to attend the game. The first Vikings game we went to, we parked close to the stadium, so by the time we left, we were stuck in the parking garage for a lot longer. This time, when the game was over, we were able to walk back to our car and drive out of the ramp at a reasonable time.

It was fun to see the Vikings and Packers play. The Vikings ended up winning, which is funny because the Vikings didn’t need to win since they weren’t in the running to move into the playoffs. It was more important for the Packers to win. Unfortunately, the Packers’ season is now over since they lost to the Bears. As a side note, who would have predicted the Bears to be the team that won the NFC North? Good for them, since they haven’t been good in a while.

This was a fun way to kick off the year.

I started this post series last year as one of my year-end posts. I write my end-of-year book survey and my pop culture year in review, and now I’m adding this to my list. These are posts that I enjoyed writing or posts I’m proud of. I’d love an extra like or comment on these posts if you could spare the time! I’d really appreciate it. Here are some of my favorite posts I wrote in 2025.

Candela Obscura – Mini Campaign

Candela Obscura – Mini Campaign was a post I wrote in January of this year. This campaign feels like it happened a long time ago, not just this year. I love playing other TTRPGs that aren’t just Dungeons & Dragons, and I am fortunate to have found a group that’s open to playing other systems. This was a mini-series that played for a few months, and I’m glad that I was a part of it. I added this post to this list because it was a post I liked writing, and even re-reading this brings back fond memories of our game.

Cosplay Advice I’d Give My Younger Self

Cosplay Advice I’d Give To My Younger Self was another post I had to include on this list. This was a personal post as I talked about what I struggled with when I first started cosplaying. If younger me could look at how far I have come, I think she would be impressed. While I don’t get to cosplay that often, I love getting the chance to write about it. I would like to write more about cosplay in 2026 and hopefully come up with a regular cadence of cosplay-related posts.

When in Rome

When in Rome was one of the posts I wrote to summarize my vacation in Italy. I knew I wanted to plan another international trip, and I learned a lot from reflecting on my honeymoon in 2023. This vacation was relaxing, especially because we focused solely on Italy, rather than hopping around to other countries. It’s tough to choose which post to include, but I decided to choose Rome since we spent the most time there. I love traveling and seeing new places, even if that means traveling within the US. I want to continue writing about travel.

Moonshine Cybin Cosplay

Moonshine Cybin Cosplay is a post that I knew I wanted to include on this list. I’m proud of this post and this cosplay for a few reasons. The first is that this was a relatively cheap cosplay. I thrifted the overalls several years ago, and the bikini top I already had in my closet. I only ended up buying the crown, the green rainboots, and the opossum. I’m trying to find more ways to cosplay on a budget, as cosplay doesn’t have to be financially burdensome. Another reason I’m proud of this cosplay is because of how much this character means to me. I have talked about NADDPOD on this blog, and the fact that I finally took time to cosplay Moonshine was necessary. I liked how I wrote this post and summarized the cosplay and how the cosplay came together.

10th Writing Anniversary – Twin Cities Geek

10 Year Writing Anniversary – Twin Cities Geek is a special post because ten years only come around once. Writing for Twin Cities Geek has meant a lot to me. My writing has improved in ways that I don’t think would have happened had I not started writing for them. There aren’t that many people who can say that they have volunteered somewhere for ten years. I am happy to be one of those people. I hope to continue to partner with Twin Cities Geek in any way I can.

Vesper’s Story Came to a Close – The Conclusion of Our Campaign

Vesper’s Story Came to a Close – The Conclusion of Our Campaign is the last post I will include in this list. I still think about this campaign a lot and how much it meant to me. Vesper’s story came around full circle, and I’m in awe that I rolled seven natural 20s in that final session. If you don’t believe me, I have the other players in my group who can vouch for me, I promise! I have grown as a player and have learned how to be a better player at the table because of this campaign. Vesper’s story is going to stick around forever, and there will never be a moment when I don’t think about her. Special shout-out to Badwolf Adventure Studios for running this campaign and letting me be a part of it.

I had a good number of posts to choose from this year. I will continue to write this as an extension of my usual end of year posts because I think it helps round out my year from a writing perspective.