I am joining the Army.

I’m serious, even though it’s not my choice. In Greece, there is a 9-month mandatory service, and my time has come.

It was a bit sudden, because I had been informed I would be joining in January, but I got a call two days ago that I’m leaving next Monday. I don’t think it’s wise to share more information about it, so we’ll leave it at that.

But let’s do a Q&A now! These are fun, right?

Q: Why are you joining?
A: By Greek law, all men over 18 must serve in the armed forces. Depending on the branch, this ranges from 9 to 12 months. I’ll be doing 9 months of service. You can postpone it for several years in order to pursue a degree, as I have, but eventually you will get called. Usually it’s not something you can avoid, and only very special cases can do so.

Q: Are you going to ride a tank?
A: I cannot confirm nor deny this.

Q: Are you going to pilot a fighter jet?
A: I’m too tall to fit in the cockpit, so no.

Q: Are you going to run D&D games?
A: If i have the time, players, and permission/order from a commanding officer, then sure! I somehow doubt that, however.

Q: Will you disappear completely for 9 whole months?
A: No, but I won’t be able to maintain the current momentum of the blog. I don’t think I’ll be able to write any articles for the first couple of months, since I don’t even know if I’ll have access to a computer, let alone the Internet. I’ll try to wrap up as many projects as I can before I leave, but bear in mind that i have less than 10 days to prepare.

Q: What about social media?
A: As I said before, for the first couple of months, I’ll be probably completely gone. That means no blog, Twitter, Instagram, etc. After that, I may or may not make sporadic appearances. At some points there will be some leave granted. Depending on other responsibilities, i might pop in to say hi and give updates.

Q: So, is your blog and social media going to be completely dead?
A: Technically yes. At the very least they’re not going to be as active as before. However, I’m considering handing down my account and the blog to Anastasios and Nicole, to keep things from dying out completely.

Q: What about Patreon?
A: After a lot of thinking, I have decided to disable every tier above the $2 one, since I will be unable to provide the appropriate rewards. The $1 and $2 tiers will remain, in case you’re interested in supporting me, because there are going to be expenses during my service. For example, I’m going to have to pay for some parts of my uniform.

Q: How do you feel about this?
A: It’s something I have to do. It’s even necessary as a job requirement most of the time, so i just want to get it over with and get back to having a normal life as a civilian. So I’d say this can be classified as “resignation”. I also feel a sense deep, profound sadness because I will have to shave my beard.

Q: Do you have any more answers?
A: Not if you don’t have any more questions.

Thank you for being my readers for the last 5 years. I am not done yet with the blog. I will return, with more energy and ideas and I hope you will still be here to read what I have to say.

So, until next time, have fun!