Celebrating 9 Years of The Ghost Howls!

Wait, is it weird to start by confessing that I still remember exactly where I was on August 15th, 2016? Seriously, that day has stuck with me. Italy celebrates it as a holiday, and for them, it’s some grand Ferragosto or something. But for me, it’s bigger—like, epic birthday kind of big. My scrappy little blog was born that day, under the somewhat skeptical yet amused guidance of Tommaso Di Bartolo—a “serial entrepreneur” as he calls himself. Oh, let’s be real, my first post? Total cringe city. But hey, here we are, nine years later, a little wiser and a lot messier.

Can I just say how freaking grateful I am for all you weirdos who’ve stuck around? You folks showing love, you’ve kept the ship sailing. Running a blog about VR feels kind of like yelling into the void sometimes. Imagine hours of grinding on these articles and… what, like three bucks back? But then again, hearing stories about how someone nabbed an investment or cracked XR tech in Unity because of something I wrote—man, it’s unreal. Makes me feel like maybe, just maybe, I’m onto something worthwhile.

Yeah, I should probably give a shoutout too. Blogging’s my side hustle; my main gig is as an XR developer/entrepreneur—whatever that means, right? But through blogging, I’ve met some absolutely bonkers cool people. I’ve been all over the place lately, shook hands with tons from the XR community, and really, those personal connections—they’re the magic spice.

So, surprise! For the blog’s birthday, I’ve cooked up something snazzy for you. This year, I snagged an interview with “The Reverend” Kyle Riesenbeck, the big cheese at Upload VR. Who knew admiration could lead to conversation, yeah? We dove deep into VR stuff—like 50 minutes worth!—talking journalism, Upload, and reminiscing about the “good old days” (which, let’s be real, still happening). The interview’s not dropping today (thanks, vacation season), but I’ve got a teaser for you folks—a little vintage VR tale from Kyle. Just give the video below a look.

Wild, huh? I’m buzzing with excitement cuz who’d have thought, nine whole years with this blog? By the way, who’s arranging the cake? Just a heads up—no durian, please. Those things smell like gym socks gone bad.

Oh, and speaking of visual flair—the header image? Credit given to ChatGPT for that stroke of digital genius.

Quick heads up: I sprinkle ads and affiliate links here and there to keep the lights on. No shame in my commission game—click through and help a pal out. Need the so-called ‘boring’ details? Check out my full disclosure, as if anyone actually reads those.

So, share this chaos, spread the mess—it’s all part of the innovation ride. Cheers till next time!