Well we're still sort of kicking, but yea a lot of ppl got busy af (the disappearance of Bannedstory was especially a huge hit to MS animators in general). I feel partially at fault for my inactivity the past year :(
Try to get familiar with whichever program you're using. I find it easy to get motivated and use that motivation when I know exactly how I would animate something. It's the same for how I make music these days, too.