A Need for Change

One of the things that have been a clear through line for 2026, at least for me, is the need for change.

Whether we are talking about self care and my health, that have been prompted by recent health scares, or the changes in the industry I call home, or the geopolitical changes happening in the country I was born into, this year has been about change.

And that's a good thing.

My wife and I have been making plans, real concrete plans, like we did when we were in our 20's and trying to figure out where our life would lead. It's been great.

Stressful and a lot of work, but great nonetheless.

One of the lessons I am learning is to abandon, in the best possible ways, things that are unnecessary, unloved or just not working. Which leads us to this post.

The Weight

I've been making crap for YouTube for over 10 years, and it was, for a while, fun. I enjoyed what I did and the people who watched it. We had a community and we supported each other. Somewhere along the way it became less fun, and eventually it was no fun. At all.

Just something I did out of an obligation I felt to the people who hung around and stayed subs to my two channels. It has become clear that at this point in my life, if it doesn't bring me joy, or at least a giggle, I'm not doing it.

With that being said I am sunsetting CJD Explains and Sillyness, my two YouTube channels. Effective Immediately.

The Solution

Not exactly. They aren't going offline, but there won't be anymore updates on them. I am not leaving YT, since I enjoy the process of making videos, but I want to lean into more narrative things, telling stories that I care about, than what I have been doing.

This will be on a brand new channel, and I will be following the "I'll make and release something when I feel like it" YouTube Creator Process (tm).

I have struggled with this over the last 2 years, so the decision isn't taken lightly, for the few people who might care and be upset with this direction. I just need to make a change and focus on what matters to me for the years I have left to do these things.

Since we moved to Buffalo, NY I have really wanted to do some short documentary type productions highlighting things and places I love here, so I am thinking of making that the first "real" thing I come out of the gate with. I have wanted to highlight our families go to coffee shop for years, so I might just stop talking about it and start doing it.

I also want to get back to doing more stream of consciousness type videos, since I enjoy those so much. I had a series when I first started, called "patio therapy" where I sat on our patio in Cali, drank a beverage and just talked about what was on my mind that day. I loved it. It wasn't popular, but that wasn't the point, and honestly won't ever be the point of YouTube for me.

I don't approach it as a business, I approach it as a creative outlet. So I am going to focus, again, on being creative. It's not my job to teach people how to do anything. Others already do that really well. What I can do that no one else can, is see the world and whats happening, and then tell you about it, from my perspective.

So I'm going to do that. Should be fun.