Welcome to the last issue of The Voice Magazine for 2021. It’s been a bit of a year for me, and hopefully you’ve had an even better one. As it’s the last issue, some folks have contacted me asking about what’s happened with issues from previous editorials, so, quickly, the dog seems to have bounced back and be happy again, we still don’t know what happened, but gift horses.
My journey with ADHD medication has proven to be unproductive. I’m at the maximum dosage they like to give and while it’s finally starting to have some noticable effects, those are primariy side effects—a slightly higher level of tension/anxiety and an elevated heart rate sometimes. I expect the next change will be to reduce the dosage and try to find ways to focus on psychological/lifestyle adjustments to deal with habits that have formed over some 50 years. I’m not terribly hopeful about the chances of any significant differences, but I guess you don’t know until you try.
As the last issue for 2021, the time has come for me to ask a favor of all of you. If you have a moment in the busy rush, think back and see if there’s any article over the past fifty issues this year that struck you as particularly thought provoking, enjoyable, infuriating, or simply a really good read. If something comes to mind, send it to me at karl@voicemagazine.org because I’m starting to compile the list for the Best of the Voice 2021, which will be our very next isssue, released on January 7th, 2022. If you can’t remember the title or the issue, that’s fine, just give me a general description and I’ll hunt it down.
Creating a “Best of” issue that’s informed by your opinions is not only great for me, reminding me of some of the articles I’ve forgotten, but I feel makes a great way to start a new year and to really show new students what The Voice Magazine is all about.
Also, I should let you know that if you’re not subscribed to our notification list, you missed out on a secret contest I ran a couple of weeks ago. Ten lucky people who wrote in in response to my announcement will be notified very soon that they’ve won a fun pack of The Voice Magazine swag, just for sending a quick email! Will I run another surprise secret contest in future? You never really know (hint: yes), but you’ll have to subscribe to know when it is and how to enter. All you give up is the email space for a single message on Friday letting you know when the latest edition of The Voice Magazine is available online—and that’s something you already wanted to know, right?
So, what’s in store for our last issue? Well, we’ve got a great interview with a student who’s had to be her own primary motivation for her education. And, like I’m sure many at AU, her journey in post-secondary is as much as exploration of what she can learn as it is a step toward a possible goal. Sometimes it’s hard to remember among all the students who are driven to get their degree as simply another step in their life plans that some people are still figuring out their plans for sure, and post-secondary education is part of how they discover that.
We’ve also got a look at holiday traditions. We probably all have them, but do we really know what they are? Plus, Marie Well makes her case for a selfless caring Christmas, and some of the things, large and small, that you can do to help bring it about. All this plus advice, closures, scholarships (with a bonus to keep you going over the holidays), reviews, recipes, and more!
Have a happy holiday, enjoy the read, and we’ll see you next year!
