Nemesis

Story tellers will understand this all too well I imagine. For those that don't dabble in the rabbit hole of story creation, I'm about to tell you something that may explain your friend/sibling/family member/coworker/teacher and why they act the way they do.

If you give me an inch, my mind takes a mile.

I'm a very visual person. When something is described to me, I can see it in my head. I like to think that I write what I "see". Now, because of that, when someone starts describing things I shouldn't be seeing, my mind begins to fabricate just that. Nine times outta ten, I come up with something significantly worse than reality.

This is why 'what if's and I don't get along. Because the moment I start thinking, "Well, what if this happened?", I'm gone. Shot. Caput. My brain is already coming up with a story and already thinking of the worst case scenario.

For example: I have to talk to a friend soon about some issues we've been having. I'm not looking forward to it, but I really should. I don't want our friendship to be strained and, if at all possible, I want to get back to our ridiculous conversations and understood stupidity. However, my mind has already conjured up what the worst case might be. That alone makes me even less thrilled about the prospect that lies ahead of me. Somewhere in my mind, the entire time we talk, I'm gonna be replaying this imaginary situation in my mind and fretting over the "right" things to say.

Keep in mind, I'm probably not going to be having this conversation for a week. Just imagine what'll happen in the time in between. I could come up with all sorts of nasty end results that could plague me for days to come.

At the same time though, I almost never have nightmares. Crazy, right? Well, I might have them, but I sure never remember them. I can only remember two, and one of them shouldn't have qualified as a nightmare, yet it scared the bejeezus out of me.

Anyway, all of this to say: story-tellers and world builders tend to have this problem. Or so I've found. In the many conversations I've had with writers, we all seem to do this sort of thing. Making up stories about our lives as though that'll somehow be what happens. I've found - personally - that the moment I start pretending something in my life is gonna work out a certain way, it doesn't. God has a funny way of making things far more epic than I could ever come up with.

I do this though. Even though I know it doesn't help me, I still get caught up in this pretend reality. As though what I could imagine is better than what's actually happening. Sometimes, I think, I miss what's going on in my life because I'm too busy making something up that I think is better. Normally, I just wind up missing something and finding that reality was plenty of an adventure on its own.

I think that just stems from my desire for things to be more epic than they actually are. *Shrugs* That might just be me though.

Currently Editing: Genesis

Currently Listening to: "Homecoming" by Thomas Bergersen

Making It

I've had the privilege over the past few weeks of talking with a number of friends about dreams, goals and success.

For a good chunk of my life, the idea of success and "making it" has been shown to me as having money, things, and being financially independent. The more new stuff you've got, the closer to "arriving" I become. I get a smartphone, that's a step. I buy a car, step two. I move out and get my own place, step three. So forth and so on until...what?

Lately though, I've found that I don't agree much with that mentality. Yes, I have a smartphone and a car and yes, I wish to move out and get my own place one day. But in no way does this make me feel like I've done anything worthy of the title, "arriving" or the phrase, "making it". I've got my degree, I have a fairly (sometimes) respectable job, and I can pay off my student loans without feeling like my legs just got hacked off.

Still, none of this has made me feel like I've done something...I don't know. Something important. And importance is all based on opinion. To me, "important" in the grand scheme of things is actually rather minute. The important things in life are people, conversations, quality time. Money is temporal - it will decay and mold and disappear. It's the idea of, "You can replace x, but you can't replace a person."

Not so long ago, I write about the idea that Alan Watts offers regarding, "What would you do if money weren't an issue?"

Do you know how many of my friends want to do something nonprofit? Either in starting a nonprofit or joining one. It's alarming how many people I know that have a heart for doing something more than live. To give to others without necessarily being given something in return. That selfless nature is so inspiring.

That, to me, is important. Doing something for others with no expectation of getting something back. In this crazy, me-centric world we live in, I think the most important thing for us to do as people is to start acting like the caring, selfless beings we should be. Not could be. Should be.

I've got a question for you. Do the Liberty Mutual commercials about the "pay it forward" idea inspire you to be better? Do they make you want to do more good in the world? They probably do. Why do you think that is?

Personally, I think it's because that's how we're supposed to be. All the time. No matter who we're with or what we're doing. Take off the blinders and start looking at the millions around you. They have stories. They have lives and dreams and hopes. Have you learned about any of them?

On my next adventure, I'm gonna learn about the dream/goal/passion of a friend or coworker. Then I'm gonna pray for them. I hope you'll do the same.

Happy adventuring everyone.

Currently Editing: Genesis
Currently Listening to: "Touch the Sky" from the Brave soundtrack

I'd Much Rather Just Stay Ignorant

This week, on "What Bugs Susan"...

We have faxing at Staples. You'd think in today's world, faxing would be obsolete. I mean, you can scan and email just about anything. Yet every day we've got a line out the wazoo for faxing. So right above this fax machine we've got this sign that says, "Self-Service Fax Machine". Pretty self-explanatory, right? It's even got instructions labeled all over the thing on how to use it.

Today I had this woman with a strong Spanish accent come in and need faxing done. Normally, when I have nothing else going on, I say, "Sure, step right on over to the fax machine and I'll walk you through it." I'm all about teaching a man to fish so he can feed himself for a lifetime.

The woman then proceeds to tell me she doesn't have her glasses and can't read the fax number. Then - as if to mock me - she says, "That's the number. 484..." I almost asked, "I thought you didn't have you glasses and couldn't read the number?"

It's as if she wanted to say, "I'd rather remain ignorant, so why don't you do it for me?" but she didn't have the courage to just call herself what she was - lazy.

The worst example of this though was a woman about a month back that came in and set her brand new phone down on the counter and said, "I need to email a document I have on here to you." I proceeded to tell her how to do it. She shook her head and waved her hand, saying, "No, you need to do it. I don't know how to work that thing. Anyway, whenever I come in here, they do it for me, so just do it for me." She spent the rest of the time yapping to her friend about what she may or may not want for lunch.

I literally want to scream at these people. They have no clue how good they've got it. Worse though are those that know precisely how spoiled they are, and they revel in it. I get it. We live in an incredibly awesome time. Technology is fascinating and can do just about anything. In my direct area, homelessness and poverty are pretty non-existent (aside from struggling college students). Aside from the occasional shooting, crime is minimal in my hometown.

None of this excuses laziness and selfishness.

One of my friends from school and I used to occasionally remind one another of how good we had it. She was thankful for indoor plumbing and I was always thankful for the fact that I could walk up to a refrigerator and suddenly have something to quiet my rumbling stomach. We did this to remember that we aren't dying. In fact, we're flourishing. We live in a country that (for the time being), is for the free. A good chunk of our society has it so good, they don't know what a real depression would be.

I've been lucky enough to not only have parents who refuse to let me be ignorant, but to have driven all over this country and seen with my own eyes the devastation of poverty. I've seen houses that look about ready to cave in. I've seen homeless individuals huddled on street corners, begging for something to eat. I've offered lunch to the hungry in New York City. I've repaired houses for those suffering from hurricanes. And I've listened to them in these moments and every time, I've thanked God for what He's given me.

Don't be ignorant and don't be lazy. Take control of what you can. Feed yourself, don't just steal someone else's time and energy. Give more than you take. Offer what you have and then double it. I understand. That's a hard bill to swallow.

Swallow it anyway.

Currently Editing: Genesis
Currently Listening to: Ludovico Einaudi's "Divenere"

Journeys

I tend to take lots of road trips.

A majority of my college friends live a minimum of 5 hours away from me. Because of that fact, I usually have to request weekends off here or there to be able to visit my friends and spend a few days laughing my butt off over absolutely nothing.

This naturally leads to many miles being added to my car and lots of car washes. My poor boy's current situation is evidence of that. Just a few days ago, Mitchell (that's my car, by the way), looked like this:

 Now, he looks like this:

This is what happens when you travel to upstate New York on a semi-regular basis. I kid you not. I've been there three times in the past month. I know lots of people would be asking questions like, "Do you know how many hours of driving that is?" and, "How many miles is that?" Honestly, I don't care.

It is so rewarding to make those trips. I've said on numerous occasions in the past few weeks that I would travel any distance for a friend. That's the truth. I find little value in how few miles are on my car or how much money I've got in the bank. That sort of thing means nothing if I haven't got friends and family that love and cherish my company - and I theirs. I'm super blessed to have the financial stability to visit my friends as frequently as I do. For that, I thank God. Because sometimes I really need a brief respite from my day-to-day life. Sometimes, I just need a friend to hug me and say, "You're gonna do fine."

And, it doesn't hurt that whenever I get to hang with my college friends, I laugh until my sides hurt and get so little sleep that delirium sets in early in the day. That's worth it too. Despite the exhaustion and weariness of my adventures with my friends, I'm always glad for those journeys. I have yet to ever leave a friend's house and say, "Man, I wish I could get that weekend back."

In fact, my thought always is, "Why do weekends go by so fast?"

So enjoy your adventure. Go visit a friend - regardless of the distance. I imagine you'll thank yourself.

Currently Editing: Genesis (FOR REALSIES!)
Currently Listening to: "Hope Will Lead Us On" by Barlowgirl

Purpose

As it may have been noticed, for the past few posts, I haven't been adding my usual "Currently" tabs. Mostly because as of late, I haven't had anything change in those categories. My music constantly changes depending on the time of day, my mood, and all around randomness on my iPod. As for my reading and writing habits...

Those have been non-existent.

My writing being absent in my life is strange for me. I got so used to having ideas flowing freely from my mind, to my fingers, to the keyboard, to the screen, that I don't know what to do with myself when I have lethargy. Which is precisely what I've had these past few weeks. First I just chalked it up to no time - which was kind of true. I was rather busy at the end of December and for the first two weeks of January.

Now though, I face a week with no potential for excuses. And as I sat visiting a friend this past weekend, I tried to work through why I hadn't been able to jump back into the writing game. After last year's epic writing adventure, you'd think I could just fly through whatever else I wanted to write, right?

On many fronts, yeah, I should be capable of rewriting the thread of End Game to neater drafts. However, I stalled. I wanted to explore the histories of the world I had created to ensure that the end made sense with the real beginning. So I dabbled in the histories. Then I got confused and super depressed with the mountain that sat in front of me and I lost my gusto.

Anyway, I was super confused as to what the cause of my major lethargy was. Part of it was anxiety and another part of it was simply me being me. I tend to stand still when I reach a crossroads. Especially when both paths will take lots of time and attention. Juggling them both ends with both failing, so I have to choose one. I always struggle with what the "right" path is.

It wasn't until later in the evening that I watched a short video one of my coworkers shared with me. In it, Alan Watts posits the question of, "What would you do if money wasn't a problem?" Literally, as the question was being asked, I thought, "I'm already doing it."

I had to rewatch the video.

Because for the rest of the four minutes, I was having a private conversation with myself. I wasn't actually doing what I wanted - writing. I had been doing what I wanted, but then I stopped and I allowed myself to stay stopped. I allowed myself to sit at my computer and dawdle on YouTube for hours on end or talk with friends & family rather than attempt - even attempt - to write. Even after my friends and family went to bed, I would just sit on my computer, staring at Facebook, as though that would somehow answer my lethargy for me.

Suddenly, I knew what I had to do. I knew what this week had to be about. It's always difficult for me to take the first steps. So here I am, taking the first steps.

This week, when the world tells me, "No," I'm responding, "Yes. Because God said so."

Take that world.

Currently Writing: Nothing. But tomorrow, I will be editing Genesis.
Currently Listening to: THIS.

The Cancer of Moods

Last week, I worked over 51 hours. I loved every minute of it and enjoyed the time I got to spend with my coworkers. When Saturday rolled around, I was actually a little bummed that I had Sunday off, simply because I had not only gotten accustomed to being at the store every day, but I liked that I had been a consistent thing at work. It was great.

The crazy thing is, one person can ruin that feeling in an instant.

Another story for you from my life in retail (which is probably true of nearly any work environment). Yesterday, we had a cashier call out. It makes things difficult, but my "boss" in Copy Center offered to stay until eight to help with coverage. Because of that, I was asked to be the cashier until eight. Fine and peachy with me.

Until, for some reason, my lead from CC decided to try to override what my manager on duty had already decided. Literally, in an instant, there was more tension in the building than I liked. It only got worse when the head of my department left for the evening and I went over to "finish the jobs that were for me". Not only did I have to keep a customer until 9:15 last night because he wouldn't work on the job in question, but I was scrambling like a chicken with my head cut off trying to ensure that our opening associate knew what was going on.

I sped away from the building shouting to "One More" by Superchick. When I got home, I vented to my mom about the laziness of the individual in question. Then I let it go. Or at least, I tried to. Because then I started to think back to last week, and how much I had enjoyed myself.

It surprises me how easily one person's laziness, incompetency, and downright rudeness can completely destroy whatever might have otherwise been a good working environment. Then I realized, this is the cancer of our moods - negativity.

I could be the best me I could muster, but sometimes I'm thrown into situations where I just want to punch someone square in the face. The frailty of my human feelings is blatantly apparent in instances like this. It shows me that I really need to learn how to get my mind out of the present and start thinking more about what needs to be done. And, most importantly, to not let it rattle me to the point of wanting to drive my car off a cliff.

That's a hard bill to swallow though. Learning to accept that hard times are coming and that you have to be better than the problems thrown at you might very well lead to me shattering whatever self-esteem I have. I have a fine line to tread in the next few months to keep my attitude, and my heart, in check. If I'm to be a light at all, I need to learn how to be a light at all times and in all environments.

Easier said than done. But I'll do it none the less.

Road Rage

I have a confession. I can get road rage.

Really it should just be called "impatience". That's what it actually is. There are days where I just want to get to where I'm going, and I want to get there now. It doesn't even have to be somewhere I like being. Some days I think I'm just frustrated or angry and it comes out in my driving.

Though, to other drivers, I'm just weaving around, trying to get past the sputtering 18-wheelers.

This is all just an excuse. I've come to recognize this fact and because of that, I attempt (and that's the keyword), to keep my cool when I feel that frustration surging toward the surface. Funny thing is - and this really isn't that funny - I'm normally singing along to like, a Chris Tomlin song or something while my anger is most prevalent.

Last week as I was trying to get to work as early as possible to help out with a sudden hole in our schedule, I remember being stuck on a back road in Bedminster behind this SUV that wouldn't go the speed limit to save their lives. These are roads that I know cops barely frequent and I can easily do 10 miles over. This is called breaking the law. Yet I do it.

Another thing I do wrong. *Rolls eyes* Whenever I think I'm really not that bad of a sinner, I look at how I think during the course of a day and realize I've got loads to work on.

Anyway, as I sat behind this Grand Cherokee, I kept wanting to scream at the driver. They showed no signs of indecision and I could see they had no GPS. So why weren't they just driving the freaking speed limit? It didn't catch up to me until I was nearly home that I had to knock it off and love them already. In spite of my frustration and in spite of my anger, I needed to accept that God didn't want me to work as early as possible. He wanted me to work when I got to work. Any sooner and for all I know, I might have gotten into an accident.

However, I'm not all that afraid of dying. That's a blog for another time. Maybe tomorrow.

So my takeaway from this is simple. We all sin and sometimes that sin is "minuscule". The best we can do as the feeble Humans we are is to accept that we screw up and try to not do it so frequently. 'Cause I imagine that when we get so good at avoiding sin that we're practically healed, we aren't kept on Earth anymore. Kind of like when you're at a hospital. When the doctors and nurses have healed you, you go home.

I look forward to when I'm so healed I can go Home.

Happy adventuring everyone.

What Lies Ahead

I'm not very prone to looking really far into the future and laying plans out. When I do, I expect them to stay the same. Which is why I tend to freak out if those plans go awry.

As this first year out of school has progressed, I've been witnessing a growing concern - the future of America. Not that I think I have any control over our society as a whole, but I am concerned about where we're choosing to take this country. The fact that we've even begun to entertain the idea of a president having the power to determine how long he should be in charge of our country bothers me. George Washington set the precedent for a reason.

What bothers me more is that we're allowing immoral, corrupt, horribly sadistic people the power to run this country. And it's gone farther than that. It's beginning to reach into our lives and personal choices. We're looking at the beginning of the USSR in America and rather than learn from history, we're blatantly ignoring it.

I've already written a blog about the civil war I think our country is currently in. This concern bridges off of that a bit. I had originally meant that post to be what it was - the obvious problem of the word religion in today's society. But this is bigger than that. We, as a culture, have engaged ourselves in civil war. The artillery hasn't broken out yet, but goodness, it's evident in our speech. Because of that, we've got warring viewpoints.

Conservatives are seen as these ancient people that need to accept that the culture has 'changed to a better thing' to many liberals - that they need to stop being uptight, religious and become more accepting and tolerant. To many conservatives, liberals are immoral, selfish, greedy, lazy people that constantly ask for hand-outs and will turn on their own mother.

If we aren't careful and don't wake up, then we're going to be in a lot of trouble. And this isn't just for me. This is for the very thing America is supposed to be about. America is supposed to be the "home of the free" and the "land of the brave"; the land "under God". So where are you, free ones? Do you feel free? If you do, then you've allowed yourselves to think that freedom is sitting around, doing nothing. Freedom is never easy and it's always something to fight for.

One day, we're gonna wake up and see a very different America than that of the history books. When that day comes, where will you be standing, and with whom will you have put your allegiance? 'Cause at the end of the road there's only one Judge, and He's the Judge of Forever.

I know what freedom is. Do you?

Wrong or Right?

Y'know what baffles me? This isn't like a silly little thing. It literally confuses me until my brain starts to throb from non-understanding.

I'll explain myself with a story. Today our self-serve color machine decided to freeze. Legit. Out of nowhere it suddenly became non-responsive  The menu would pop up, but beyond that, it would just sit there and beep at you. No error messages. No warning. Just random inefficiency.

So about an hour before I had the time to call our helpdesk, I had this customer ask for hep with it, 'cause you know, it wasn't working. I went over with a fellow coworker to help try to remedy the situation. When we discovered it wasn't responding to anything (even a hard shutdown and reboot), we offered to make the copies for the customer behind the counter.

Now, before I continue, let me explain this customer. He was an older, squat gentleman. If you saw him on the street, you'd think, "Aw, he looks like a nice old man. Probably very respectable and conservative." You'd never guess he was carrying around a book of nude women and planned to copy them in a very public place. Not kidding in the slightest.

As he tried to discretely hide the front cover (and failed miserably), he said in an abrupt sort of way, "No thanks." He tucked the book under his arm, facing the cover toward himself, and we apologized to him as he gruffly muttered something before he walked briskly out of the building.

Here's what confuses me.

If it's so okay for someone to be into porn or sex or any sort of sin, then why do we struggle so hard to hide it? I'm positing a question I really want an explanation for. So often we're told to be "tolerant" of others and their choices. To accept them and be gracious in understanding and respecting their actions. To allow that our culture has grown "freer" - or a worse description - "more accepting" to a growing (de)sensitizing culture. We're supposed to be okay with the fact that PG-13 rated movies show sex scenes while R rated films garner full on NC-17 material. We're supposed to be okay with homosexuality. We're supposed to be okay with abortion. Because "that's what our culture has matured to."

Then why do we hide it?

Why do we so shamelessly tuck something away that's supposed to be okay? That's supposed to be accepted? Why do we feel the need to not let others - strangers or otherwise - to know about our obsession? Why keep secrets if what we keep secret is viewed as a-okay?

Just going out on a limb here, but could it be because it's wrong?

The Title Eludes Me

It's gonna be one of those weeks.

One of my coworkers won't be in this week, due to his father relapsing hard core on his cancer. Things apparently aren't looking very good and so my coworker will be spending as much time with his family as possible, rather than at work. I feel really bad knowing that there is little I can do aside from pray.

I'm an awful person. Because at the same time, I know that this week is pretty much shot. Someone's gotta pick up his shifts. Those someones are myself and my fellow Copy Center Associate. If I wind up working all 7 days this week (which really isn't the end of the world), I'll be clocking in around 49 hours of work.

49 hours.

I haven't done a work week near 50 hours since the beginning of my second year at Staples. On one hand it's great - more money to put into my student loans. On the other hand, I kind of want to crawl into a hole and die. If I'm remembering correctly, weeks like this made me hate Staples. Simply because I couldn't get away.

Worse though, is the fact that I literally have no motivation. Here I am, sitting with at least two hours of prime writing time, and I can't dredge up the gusto to even skim through Unity. In spite of the fact that I was only just on vacation a week ago, I feel drained. How does this happen so quickly?

A large part of me wants to kick myself and say, "Stop it! Just get back on the bandwagon and move forward!" Another part of me wants to just say, "Screw it. I wrote 5 books and a novella in one year. Time to take a breather!"

The larger part of me doesn't want to take a breather. There's so much story to explore! There are so many avenues and characters and aspects of this world that have yet to fully be brought to light. I can't just sit idly by and do nothing. Especially when I obviously have the time.

I gotta crack my back, take a deep breath, grab my coffee mug and explore my imagination again. There's bound to be something buried in there that'll shock me back into the flame of story writing.

Happy adventuring everyone! I hope you're not as lethargic as I am.

Currently Writing: I should really, really, REALLY do Zero Point. Maybe I'll start that tonight.
Currently Reading: Brisinger by Christopher Paolini
Currently Listening to: "Once Upon a December" from the Anastasia soundtrack

Hobbies

We've had this great sale going on at work on these 16x20 photo enlargements. Being the goober I am, I've been printing pictures for my future home. 'Cause I've got room to store these things.

Anyway, because I've been printing pictures for myself and my parents (they wanted some decor for our Beach House and are pooling pictures from my collection), a number of my coworkers have been seeing my photography and commenting on it. Bringing a plethora of prints home every other day has been fun.

My dad was looking at a shot I took of Cinderella's Castle at Disney World. Impressed by it (I have to admit I really like it), he said, "The number of things you do well amazes me. Creatively, I mean. You can write these books and take these great pictures and come up with unique ceramics stuff. There's little you don't do well."

The problem I constantly have is that I don't have enough time or energy to do all the things I love doing. I have too many hobbies. There's too many things I enjoy doing and wish I could do more of. Because of this, I'm baffled when people say they don't have hobbies - or that they don't even know if they have hobbies.

One of my coworkers and I were talking today about hobbies. I can't remember what led to the conversation, but he basically began digging around, thinking about what he enjoyed doing. It was strange. With each thing he brought up as a potential hobby, I was thinking, "Am I really that strange to have so many things I enjoy doing?"

It baffles me. What motivates people to get out of bed and do something? Is it really just working to obtain money, to then afford stuff (or worse, pay off loans), to be exhausted to fall asleep and do it all over again? How do you survive like that? What drives you?

As I drove home, I listened to "Revolution" by Trading Yesterday. The very opening line is, "Open up my eyes to dreams that should have died. I was made for more than this." Those lyrics make me feel empowered to do something extraordinary. To step outside of the mundane and become more than the cookie cutter of a human being.

For some reason, I began to pray for everyone I knew. I want them all to feel a sense of extraordinary; a desire to reach for something new and exciting. To have something impact them and inspire them to do...something. Something amazing. Something unheard of. Something crazy. Something beyond their comfort zone.

That's my challenge to you - whomever you are. Search for your extraordinary. It's out there, we're all capable of it. In fact, I think we're meant to aspire to it. Climb a mountain. Design something new. Create a new software. Make a new gadget. Rethink the way we do things. Dream up a story. Buy that camera and tour Europe - then write a book about it. Find your cliff and jump off of it. It's in the terror of falling that I think we find our wings and begin to fly.

Adventure. It's calling. I can hear it. Do you?

The Most Magical Place on Earth

I got to spend my Christmas week in Florida at Disney World.

It was a wonderful time and I really did enjoy it. As I went back to work yesterday, I dilly-dallied around because well, let's face it, no one was that worried about getting their copies done on January 1st. Anyway, today I was compiling pictures from the trip and uploading them to Facebook. 'Cause that's what I do. In the hours that it took me to muddle through the nearly 900 pictures from the trip and upload them, I found myself already yearning to be back there.

Crazy, right?

In a way, yeah. There's only been two days separating me and my mini vacation, so I really shouldn't be missing it. Yet I am. Which I think is a common thing. Everyone pulls themselves out of relaxation and fun and throws themselves back into the work grind and almost immediately, we say, "I wish my vacation had been longer."

I heard once, I don't know where, that it takes two weeks to fully de-stress from any given situation. If that's the case, then I need two weeks off pronto. I haven't had two weeks off since I left for Memphis to help my brother two summers ago. Even when I was sitting around my last month of school, I wasn't relaxing - I was hammering out book 5 and stressing over every detail of that. Almost immediately after graduating I had a job and started working.

Not a bad thing, mind you - having a job I mean. But nonetheless, no wonder I'm exhausted. However, I can't afford two weeks off. With my loans now in repayment (oh joy), I've gotta keep working so I can hammer those away to a reasonable amount. That way I can look to move out and get my own place.

Maybe whenever I find a job other than retail, I'll take a two week hiatus before starting the new job. Whatever that may be and wherever that may be. Or for all I know, I'll just charge full steam ahead and do lots of stuff without taking a break.

I think the latter has a greater chance of actually happening. 'Cause even with my short work week this week, I'm packing a million and ten things into it. Tomorrow I drive to Jamestown to visit friends from school.

The only thing I can hope is that the little efforts I make in keeping contact with my friends will be worth it and one day, who knows when, we'll all be together again on a vacation or something.

Happy adventuring everyone!

Currently Writing: Random story ideas. Be back to production within a week or so (see? I don't even know how to take a break from writing.)
Currently Reading: Brisinger by Christopher Paolini
Currently Listening to: "Illuminations" on the Epcot: Tapestry of Dreams CD

Book 2013, Chapter 1 of 365

I've thought it over a bit today and I decided I don't like the phrase "happy new year". Couldn't rightly say why, just that I don't like it.

If I had to hazard a guess, it would be because everyone tends to ask questions like, "What's your new year's resolution?" and, "What did you do for new year's?" I have no resolutions and I drove through most of the east coast for my new year's. That might sound boring, but I got to see a bunch of fireworks shows along highway 95.

Regarding the whole "new years resolution" thing...

No, I don't have any. Not because I don't think I need them, but because I don't try to assign a multitude of things I wish to change about myself all on day one of a new book. It's hard enough to tackle the nitty-gritty of our lives. Only crazy people pile all that sludge up and say "I'll fix this all," and actually expect it to change within 365 days.

You know what I resolve to do? Spend each day trying to be the best me I can be. Pray more frequently and live with a freer attitude about life. There's so much more to this world than stress and worry and fear. There're infinite possibilities with our lives if we allow ourselves the opportunity to adventure into our ever expansive imaginations.

I'm really tired, so I feel like I'm not making sense. I'll sum up what I'm trying to say: Enjoy life. Don't pile up all the stuff you want to change about yourself and attempt to conquer the mountain of it all. Take life with each step and celebrate your victories - however small they may appear. Never stop aiming for improvement, but at the same time, never let yourself feel discouraged by "all you want to do differently". One day, I couldn't say when, you'll wake up and realize that suddenly you're where you never thought you could reach.

Have faith and hope. That'll keep leading you on.

Welcome to another rotation of the world. May the next 364 days bring you countless adventures that you can't help but tell the world about.