LAX > MSP freewrite!

Good evening, Steemit! Is it? I don’t know. I’m not immune to the crypto-market depression that’s hitting everyone. On the positive side, I’ve made peace with the bear market some time ago. You can read any of my posts over the last six months and there’s a good chance I’ve complained that I’ve mentally switched gears to traveling, shooting and working my ass off so that I don’t have to spend from my crypto-portfolio. I do have an app with my entire portfolio listed, and these last few days, that has been a gut punch to open. I made two big buys on the downswing, only to stand in shock that I’ve still lost quite a bit on the dollar after what I thought was the bottom.

The same app has an RSS of cryptocurrency articles, upvoted and downvoted as “bullish” or “bearish” in nature. I will say, I’m getting real fucking tired of hearing predictions from the usual suspects. I could give a shit if Tom Lee thinks Bitcoin is still going to hit $15K by the end of the year, or that John McAfee sees this crash as “business as usual”. Fuck all of that. No one, and I mean, no one, has any idea what’s happening. Sure, some may have informed assumptions, but that is it. The fact that some crypto-millionaire isn’t phased by $140 billion hemorrhaging from the market sheds light on how out of touch they are with hodlers new to the hopes of a future with digital currency.

The last thing I watched before collapsing in a work-related coma was @exyle’s recent VLOG. It was an honest admission of how the majority of us are feeling. “Why is this happening to me?”, questions, the erratic emotions that I’ve been coping with, and a summary of how to bring the current situation to a logical investment strategy. There needs to be some calm, individually and market-wide. From a more Steemit-centric point of view, this awful FUD does legitimately affects lives. Many of us changed our careers to incorporate blogging, a few even making the transition to full time Steemians. When I see the market like this, I think of those friends. It hurts. There’s nothing wrong with venting about how much it sucks.

I had a plan. By the summer, I was looking to cut my travel and work trips down to twice a year. LA in the Spring, and New York City in the fall. I was going to work on comic book projects with @ghostfish and take a long overdue break from fast paced travel and the endless shoot schedule that has been my life sine 2012. There is a silver lining, though, and it wouldn’t have come without a market like we’re currently experiencing. I’m writing this at 37,000 feet above Utah, but I’m being reminded how much I love my job. Seeing the women that book with me and how these photos make them feel. It’s a privilege to capture unique beauty in a person, and a blessing to make a living doing that.

Again, I’m going back to a point made in @exyle’s last VLOG. After the bloodshed and panic, [...which is an entirely appropriate response], cooler heads should prevail. I’m relatively new to cryptocurrency, only discovering Steemit in 2016, but even then, I remember Bitcoin under $500. It’s all relative because if you were riding the bull during this time last year, it’s devastating, but from where things were even when I found blockchain, it’s not so bad. Honestly, the only time I feel broke is when I pay huge bills and have to scratch money together for gas or groceries. Even at $0.40, STEEM is a revolution in my life. I’m going to quote Harvey Dent here, “...the night is always darkest before the dawn.”.

One last thought in closing, and I’m focusing on Steemit here, more than STEEM or cryptocurrency. There are things on this platform still in their infancy, even bigger than money. Projects like @steemmonsters, @fundition, @dtube, @artisteem, etc., but the community, especially the artistic community. The fact that we have before us, a decentralized alternative to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube. We own what we create and publish. We’re rewarded for it! As I see silo companies ratchet up their algorithms, forcing users to pay for visibility, updating EULA’s that further infringe on privacy, I’m happy to have my place here on Steemit. These are foundations of the site that transcend a temporary bear market.

I appreciate you all staying with me. I genuinely love taking the time for these freewrites. They’re a big part of my therapy in getting through tough times like this. Not just market related woes, but life in general. I really like to write. My mind is constantly turning ideas and sorting emotions and logic. Summarizing everything I’ve said in this blog post, just another reason I’m grateful for Steemit. Thanks for reading, and for those of you that’ve followed me through this last week in Los Angeles. I’m behind on replying to comments, but I’ll catch up tomorrow afternoon. For more photography, illustration, art and thoughts on life and that blockchain life, follow me here @kommienezuspadt.