Just as I was finally getting used to writing “2018” on things, the year is drawing to a close. As you might already know, I have an obsession with numbers. And so, to that end, one of the better ways to look back at 2018 is to consider the year in numbers. Here’s what I wrote, watched, read and shot this past year.

Movies Watched: 59

Sing Street (2016)

Even though I watch practically no cable TV anymore, I still take in more than the occasional film. Most of these are through online streaming or as a DVD from the local library. Some were a little disappointing — All Eyez on Me and Suburbicon come to mind — while others were pleasant surprises. Here are five of the best movies I watched in 2018.

  • Black Panther: Arguably the best film in the MCU with complex characters and an amazing soundtrack.
  • Sing Street: Speaking of great soundtracks and complex characters… and check out that wardrobe!
  • Baby Driver: I didn’t expect to like this one as much as I did.
  • Avengers: Infinity War: Yes, two MCU films on this list, but this one had the snap of the century.
  • The Founder: If you thought Michael Keaton in Birdman was great, check out this story of McDonald’s.

Books Read: 33

How to American by Jimmy O. Yang

At the beginning of the year, I set out on a reading challenge. I wanted to read one book a month. Well, I blasted way past that goal, because I made the conscious decision to read much, much more than I have been. Some notable highlights include:

Blog Posts Published: 203

At the public library

Including the posts I plan on publishing this coming Sunday and Monday, I will have written and published a total of 203 blog posts in 2018. On Beyond the Rhetoric, anyway. Once upon a time, I blogged daily. This year, I set out to blog four times a week. Based on this final count, it looks like I missed a handful, but that’s still pretty prolific, isn’t it?

The posts that attracted the most eyeballs were:

Hump Day Haikus Written: 52

Hump Day Haikus (BTR)

Much like the vlog on YouTube, part of the motivation behind the Hump Day Haikus series was to exercise my creative muscles in a slightly different way. If you missed these poems on my Instagram, here are five of my favorites from the weekly series.

Vlogs Posted: 45

#5DadsGoWild

It was nowhere near the biggest moneymaker for me, but the vlog really drove a lot of my creative process this year. Some of the videos that garnered the most views and/or were the most fun to produce include:

What Will 2019 Bring?

So, that was my year in numbers for 2018. It feels like I did a lot while doing not much at all. Perception is always so distorted, right? Looking ahead to 2019, should I expect more of the same? I plan to keep up with the reading, and hopefully the vlog will return in some form too.

What do you have planned for 2019? How did 2018 go for you and what would you change? Let me know through the comment section below.