I KNOW I KNOW IāM LATE! I was trying to hyper focus on editing the video I published yesterday (December 8th) so I got really backtracked on this update. BUT, as always I appreciate the patience and without further ado, letās talk about whatās happened recently.
November felt like a dry month for me since I didnāt make much content, but I did get to make a special video celebrating my brotherās graduation. Iām very proud and happy for him and I hope he keeps moving forward in life.
Two somewhat negative things that happened in November were the slight injury in my elbow and the bad news that my dad gave us as a family. Thereās also a few positives too because life isnāt all bad of course. Letās talk about the lesser of the two bad things first and we can end todayās update on a good note. :)
At some point in my workouts maybe due to rushing it seems I have hurt a muscle around my elbow. It really only hurts when I extend my arm too much but itās still an annoying injury. It unfortunately has limited my ability to workout a bit BUT I have not let it completely incapacitate me. I am very dedicated to what I do and showing the world that through healthy eating, fasting, and daily at home workouts (no weights) you can be in shape if you so desire.
Now, onto the heavier bad news. My dad hasnāt been feeling the best. He has had this problem with his back ever since he got over COVID. I know it has to do with his lung because he did say before when he had COVID that due to the nature of his jobs (construction in the USA and cooking on a grill here in Ecuador) one of his lungs had been heavily affected. He hasnāt gone to a doctor recently, Iām not sure if itās due to expenses or because he has said before that hearing bad news from a doctor can only make you feel worse, which I actually agree with since the mind is a powerful thing. But this doesnāt make me feel any better because it worries me that he might have a more deep rooted problem and he wonāt be able to get it treated if he doesnāt know what it is. Iām really hoping that at some point I can help lighten his load because he does feel that thereās going to be a point where he just canāt be as productive as heās been, and I think thatās fine but I need a way to help him before that happens.
Now moving on to some good news, my mom and dad have bought some gear to start building up my momās own little spa. Some context: my mom recently graduated from a course where she learned to do some things with hair and nails and such, and now my dad is building up a small area here at home to make a little studio for her to work. She hasnāt worked since before the pandemic when they let her go at her job because the place she worked at wasnāt earning as much. Hopefully with this little spa sheās going to have sheāll be able to start making some money for herself because she also deserves to be able to buy her own things. One day I hope I can just buy her anything she wants or needs but thatās why Iām working to make things improve little by little.
The other good news is that with my brother we managed to buy my dad a shirt for the World Cup! Even though Ecuador was eliminated (still frustrated about that) we knew our dad deserved to have the shirt since heās a major soccer fan and he NEVER buys himself anything. Literally he busts his butt for the house so heās never got anything leftover to get himself something nice. I had actually added the shirt as an item to the wishlist on here in buy me a coffee but I donāt think itās necessary anymore, although I also wish I could buy him the other colors too. I got myself the blue one since I had been saving up money for a few months to be able to afford some things for Christmas.
And speaking of affording things, aside from the shirt I really wanted to get a new phone to record my YouTube videos on. I canāt emphasize how much I do on my phone, heck this post is being done on my phone. But I donāt think it would be possible to get the phone over here and I canāt afford it anyways so I decided to replace the watch that broke when I took a spill on my bike last year October. It feels so natural to have it on and my body remembers having it on, not to mention itās super useful for tracking my workouts which I missed being able to do. This watch and the shirt may be the only real Christmas gifts Iāll buy myself because Iād like to try and invest the rest into some gear for the channel. I really want a drone or the gimble I added on my wishlist here. I feel that any of those two things would up my creation game. Other than that maybe I can save for a trip. Iād been hoping that through donations on Buy me a coffee Iād be able to get enough to go on a trip to record in another city but I think I might just have to spend a bit to do so. Iām hoping I can get monetized on YouTube soon so I can start investing that money into the channel and bringing stability to my parents but everything is a process and I know if I keep grinding and with your support that Iāll get there soon! šš¼
Speaking of videos, yesterdayās video came out awesome and I dedicated a ton of time editing it and finished much faster than expected, I was even able to edit for almost 7 hours one day which was nuts to me! Whenever I hit those hours of editing even Iām surprised with myself but also very proud. But there are 2 reasons I tried to have this video ready as quickly as possible. One was because I promised myself Iād have 2 videos out for December, maybe even 3 if I get the creative itch (lol). Itās hard to do but Iāll give it my best shot.
As for the other reason thereās a little story that goes with it. So, basically as part of my December grind to try to save up some money for the channel and to give myself a Christmas gift, I took on 2 extra jobs. One was giving some private English classes, nothing too out of the ordinary just me preparing some university students for a test, and the other was a subbing job that was supposed to be for a day but lasted a week. I didnāt expect much out of the subbing job because it was at a place that ripped me off once (a story for another day) but the person who asked me to sub is cool so the at was fine. So anyways, while at the place I entered a classroom and gave the instructions as asked by the teacher I was subbing and then I was approached by two girls. Honestly I thought they were going to tell me that they didnāt want to do the assignment or something else because Iāve just grown heavily accustomed to the majority of students no matter where I am making excuses and trying to get out of doing work, but surprisingly thatās not what they did. They actually asked me if I was āthe guy from YouTubeā. I was like WHAT? ME? (š³) And of course I had to assume that they had watched my video on the PortoviejoNaceDeTi Instagram page because thatās where I imagine most people might know me from, BUT NO. They actually had seen my video from YouTube because the girls who approached me are from Switzerland. They are exchange students here in Ecuador and they wanted to know more about Ecuador and portoviejo and they actually watched my videos! Like I know it sounds weird coming from me saying (writing) it but it was kinda shocking to be honest. I obviously know people watch my videos, I see the views and I see the comments and previously someone had even recognized me in Manta as well, but itās so reassuring that what Iām doing is being of use when someone recognizes you for the video you made and that the info in that video helped in some way shape or form. I always appreciate the comments on videos (thatās why I tend to make long detailed replies lol) or when I see people share them, but itās a whole different feeling when someone comes up to you and says it in person. I was and am really happy. But aside from the feeling like I was able to help, the point of this whole story is to say that my next video and maybe even some after will include the experiences that these girls have had as exchange students and in general while theyāve been here in Ecuador. I wonāt spoil too much but they have a ton to say and Iām really hoping everyone is ready to hear it. āØ
And yeah, I think thatās all I can really say as to what has happened. I hope I everyone is doing well and please always let me know if Iām helping, tell me how I can help, and enjoy the heck out of Ecuador if youāre here or coming.
Take care of yourself and as always
Ace out ā¤ļøā ļøāļø
Photos of the shirt we bought our dad, the thumbnail for yesterdays video, me using the blue Ecuador shirt, and a selfie the girls from Switzerland and I took (donāt know why it keeps uploading upside down)
