A 2025 Recap
Look, when I started this year. I made it a simple goal - “I'm going to write more, maybe I could do that” and, I failed.
Not just because I don't believe in New Years Resolutions (January 1 is my favorite day of the year, best holiday, you sleep in most of the time, there isn't really any traditions)
But I gotta tell l be honest, the anxiety and headaches and depression and sadness and what some feel was an emotional roller coaster was more of a drop ride, or something with little to no escalation.
Everybody tries to do recaps, tries to give the best stuff of the year, and I'll get to that eventually, trust me. This is like one of those “recipes with the huge preamble”
My mom's injury started in December 2019. At the time, she was somewhat mobile, we could walk and go places. The last thing I remember was Americana At Brand before the lockdown happened on my birthday in 2020.
In the meantime, all of her work at her place was moved to the house, Work from Home before things became “Zoom Call Everything”
I was essentially an extra pair of hands, that became an assistant and just became a big part of her company. “I can probably juggle this and continue trying to get out there” I thought.
The pandemic made everybody lose their minds, but that house arrest cabin fever is still present here. In a way that is just getting worse in 2025.
Im up all night taking care of her, little sleep happens during the day, because of work, rinse repeat, where the only actual break I get is if she wound up in the hospital (and by that point, there is so much work piling up, it's mostly spent in the home office trying to catch up)
As I'm typing this, I'm sitting on the couch as she's asleep, she will wake up for a moment, then go back down. Neuropathy has come for her, as she is now very sensitive to most blankets and comfort items. It's no way for a mother to live, let alone my own.
As the weeks became months became years, and I'm now at that “half a decade” mark (this has been all of my thirties at this point)
I keep thinking “oh, but eventually, she will get better, she will have a happy ending, she can get into a wheel chair, we can get her to a beach, she can look at the sunset and have one last sleep”
Some days, I still think that can happen, I still think she can go out and eat food talk to people, be herself. Other days, like today, New Year's Eve 2025 (into 2026) I get nervous that won't happen. You spent a good chunk of time as a caregiver and you feel like you failed, because simply put - she's not getting better, if anything, she's getting worse every month.
So now you disassociate, as is common with us “fellow millennials” you wonder if you can keep your mom's company around if the worst happens, you think about “well shit, I can't afford to live in this family home, I need to downsize into something more comfy” and you just spend a couple hours on RedFin and Homes looking all across Southern California, because you love your home state so much, but also just don't think a state like Texas or Nevada or Oregon would be that welcoming.
But maybe Burbank will be, maybe Northridge, I really want to go back to Anaheim soon, but not just because of Disney…. one day, some day.
But then you read your friends in the TV industry haven't had work in over a couple years, and some of these people are REALLY talented, and you feel bad… “did I waste my college degree? nobody is having any work”
SPOILERS: not really? Given I always tried to make my degree more about Internet Video (they had Multimedia courses), Media Critique, Writing, the business side and everything I could get out of Game Shows — I'm okay by it. I know my talents are also in being funny, talking the media (at least that's what everybody tells me) and whatever this is now.
Maybe one day I'll be what Mitch McTaggart is in Australia but for dumb shit in America! And there is so much dumb shit, like too much to count. Guess leaving the default to “Charlie Brooker Knockoff” is still a good default to have.
SO IN MY EPISODE OF BLACK MIRROR, I'M GOING TO MAKE THE FIRST AI REALITY SERIES, BUT LIKE JOE SCHMO SHOW ONE PERSON IS REAL, BUT EVERYBODY ELSE IS FAKE. IT WILL BE THE LOWEST OF THE SEASON, FOR A LACK OF JESSE PLEMMONS.
But, yeah, I'm beating myself up because of all my ideas… “Be a Game Show Producer” in a world where most networks are VERY cheap and budgets are tightening to a sickening degree (Did you know The Price is Right is just repeating the prizes and games and set list for two recorded episodes a day? Will George Gray experience Deja Vu saying “you'll make somebody really happy with these designer handbags”) unless I have a Mr Beast level of budget and production, I think that will probably never happen.
Similar, Game Journalism or just Game Coverage. Every year I see so many people try and do their version of '“I'm playing video games on Twitch” and I think eventually I could break it down into every type - VTuber (Fun) VTuber (Racist Analogue), Nobody looking at chat, somebody being REALLY overproduced that the bedroom looks like a gaming pc, a “humiliation ritual” for money (if this gets $1,000 I'll shave my head, oh wow, that's never been done before!)
If you're left in the industry, you're either moving into a Barstool Sports style “must podcast every thought” and try and Inside Baseball what games will be out in a year, every week for the rest of your life.
Or, you're trying to be a documentation, trying to get resources for your video essay series that's a deep dive of “Gex Deep Cover Gecko”.
Or you're just upset about things being “woke” which is so oversaturated and so boring, you might as well be changing it up to say super racist things like Asmongold or super sexist things, like Asmongold.
Maybe if you're lucky, the CEO of GameStop will give you money to do ads for GameStop, so they can try and get more bodies in the building because the GameStop Stock people don't actually buy video games at a reasonable rate to stay open, and the current CEO blames “Wokeness and Diversity” for why the stores that are famous for undercutting trade-ins and having unsold Funko Pops, would be shutting down stores and laying off thousands of people.
Looking at you, Mega 64 and Scott the Woz.
But if not that maybe something else?
So I end up thinking “oh, maybe voice acting, I love reading in front of a microphone, it was partially why I pivoted into podcasting a decade ago”
But then you realize - oh, you're nearly 40 and you spent years away from a microphone that you'll need to practice again on timing, pausing, breathing, tonality, and maybe, just maybe, that's still possible, but now you're in a world where AI text to speech is being overused, and maybe one of those silly goals like '“be a voice in a You Don't Know Jack game” will never happen.
Again, things are eroding at a worrying rate. Did you know SquareSpace, wants me to use AI to write my articles for me? I know we played the “Who is Jordan Hass?” game earlier this year, to look into research data on me online and came to the obvious conclusion - people know you better than robots.
I really wanted to do more this year. There was so many game shows out this year! The Genius Game! 99 to Beat! The two shows I put my money on as being hits and success stories and…well, who knows.
Destination X was there with a game of where are you. It's Europe! I win! But also you saw Deal or No Deal Island give away over five million dollars, and then Beast Games showing up with $10,000,000 given away and then you flip on Wheel and they are barely spinning that wheel with the $5,000 space anymore.
And most new formats (as seen in my GSN reviews) have some variant on “you win $1,000 with a chance at $10,000”) which isn't even enough for a car, and based on The Price is Right, hardly enough for a “dream vacation with the family.
Either inflation is THAT bad, or the budgets are just dropping in favor of Netflix playing “What's in the Box” for $300,000 in Bitcoin or “Best Guess Live” a HQ-style guessing game for a chance to split $5,000 (maybe you'll get the full amount, maybe it's just $3!)
But for me, I'm trying to think and all the TV shows I watched this year, from Dan Da Dan being this really fun anime series that blends multiple genres into this comedy action that feels like Shaun of the Dead to Black Mirror rebooting with the most fucked up story of Health Insurance and phone plans. I'm sure most year-end recaps will bring up Apple TV’s Severance and Pluribus, but I really liked The Studio for having that “what if your dream came true, but it wasn't what you expected” story.
I know movies are kind of a big deal, but I was only able to be in a movie theater twice this year - both for anime titles. One for Dan Da Dan : Evil Eye (which was just a package of a few episodes of season 2) and I even went to the Crunchyroll advanced screening of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle which was very lengthy, but very emotional, especially when it came to the midpoint and you get into a beloved villain backstory and how he just crashed out from Caregiving. NOT THE BEST TIME, MOVIE. Which is very wild, to think about - 100% of the films I saw in 2025 were at an AMC Theater and mostly dubbed by Bang Zoom! Studios, give yourselves a round of applause, friends. And while you're there, can you double check to see if my High School ID card is still there? It's from 2007. I think Lex Lang left it at the desk.
Video Games? I played a few, I did get a Nintendo Switch 2 for Christmas and been playing Kirby Air Riders, but also Fortnite, most of the time. I feel like an early adopter of this, but the GameCube library and playing Soul Calibur 2 again continues to be great.
Hades 2 is my Game of the Year, but I also want to give a shout out to Dispatch and Date Everything for making these beautiful, funny, cm stories that gives voice talents a ton of fun to work with. (Plus, I think Date Everything is a profit share, so that's good for all the people there, GOOD GOOD ROBBIE GOOD GOOD)
I have seen Police Squad and laughed, I saw Sinners and loved the Soundtrack, i finally saw Bugonia last weekend and loved it except for the ending.
But I had somewhat of a “2025” - I bought a small Labubu (it's one of those Coca-Cola Monsters, it's sitting in a desk), I had Dubai Chocolate (is it just pistachio?) I had Chai Lattes, Matcha Lattes, Boba Teas and I'm hoping it's not like Frozen Yogurt!
I actually did a “tap to pay” and opened up a Ko-Fi! I think all I have to do left is ride in a Waymo and I'm all set! Maybe next year.
I even made the best TikTok Ever - https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8ygQS7R/
Remember Minecraft? Remember Sixty Seven? Hilarious!
Anyway, I'm getting very hungry, and gloomy and hanging in there. But I'll try and share a few photos that I enjoyed this year, and then sign off.
I was able to go to Round 1 in Burbank and in the claws,I was able to get Jigglypuff, the Munchlax was next to it, and I got it back to back. That actually happened. My two favorite Pokemon!
(I also later got a Poochita from Chainsaw Man and Hawks from My Hero Academia)
I think this is a win?
They are stacked in a corner with my other Plushies, oh wait, Pac-Man. I won the big Pac-Man as well (The Little Pac-Man was at Five Below which is much cheaper than the credits at Round1)
This year, I finally got an XLR microphone, stand, pop filter and audio interface.
I have been doing everything from a USB microphone which is great when streaming or podcasting by yourself, but ask every professional — DON'T DO THAT!
Anyway, fun backstory. When I graduated college, my goal was to get into voice over work. (I was out of breath because my mom was a smoker, so the one class I tried, the teacher told me “I could never do this”) And it was heartbreaking, but I wanted to keep trying so a Craigslist ad for this equipment was available for $100 and… it didn't work. It was fuzzy,, my voice couldn't get picked up, feedback, it was so heartbreaking (and the guy moved at that point so nvm)
So I never got “professional” (ish) equipment. I still don't think this will happen for me (my brain is still sl stuck on how disappointing the industry has become in general)
But I'm buying it for two reasons - one, because I can finally have closure that I can work with actual equipment, and two - so I might have something to look forward to. Maybe.
And finally this photo from me at the Train Station. I know it's not the best photo, but it was one that I really enjoyed. Mostly because it was me going out and exploring.
Unfortunately, it was at the expense of my mom at the hospital suffering. However, for mental standpoint, it told me i belong out there. Going to different places, going to eat different foods and trying to have fun.
Sure, there was a ton of overpriced cocktails during this, but meh that's maybe 10 drinks all year? I also ate a whole extra large cheese pizza, and I think a total of 50 McRibs and also many burgers. Stress eating and eating when sad isn't really the best at what is going to continue being a struggling, frustrating 2026, however, I have said it myself, I like to MUNCH, and damn it, if I'm going against my word now.
I hope my 2026 will be happier healthier, sure, but just more “well” in a mental standpoint, and in a social standpoint. This isn't good. But I know what I like and don't like, and somehow can still give somewhat if a mystique of “a human adult male” (maybe I'll be one of those guys that just wears coats and eats chicken wings while doing a crossword puzzle. Maybe I'll have a somewhat successful writing or Internet career.
Maybe I'll have time to actually write more next year. Hopefully something good, anything good? Some sort of win? Please?
Jordan
