Years seem to slip by, 2007, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and I find myself trying to reconcile them, what happened last year, in 08, 09? I think this is a phenomenom amongst the self employed, the isolated, those of us who work in our studios day after day because that's the only way to do what we do. It may also mean I need a social life, and it may also have something to do with raising children, they eat the years.  When I had 9 to 5 jobs back in New York -years lasted a long time, I can recall where I worked between what years, Warner Bros (93-95) Nickelodeon (95-98) though I was freelancing while at Nick so those years are fuzzy too. I look back on the years and try to find good work, did I progress, I made a good living but did I mark time in other ways, am I doing the same illustrations over and over? I think I am in some respects but I also get opportunities to break out. SooJin Buzelli offers up a testing ground of sorts over at Plan Sponsor, I mean the work needs to be good of course but there is LOTS of room to play, to not do the same illustration over and over. This is not to say I am handing all my other clients reheated solutions, I try to do good work, I try to be inventive, but one also gets a feel for certain clients and what will work for them. Furthermore-doing good, inventive, risky, fresh work requires energy, something that I often have in short supply. How to get more?