New Years Eve

Every new blog or journal seems to begin with some kind of statement with the author claiming that this is the time they really set themselves to the task and start writing on a regular basis. I know I’ve done it at least twice, though I can’t remember if I ever published them. Luckily, this is no such post, but rather a short retrospective of 2014 and glimpse into what’s to come in 2015.

I’m being completely honest when I say 2014 was absolutely amazing year for me and my family. After years of struggling and slowly climbing out of holes (ones that I fully admit I had dug) I consider myself extremely lucky to have made it through the year with very few issues but lots of amazing experiences.

First, I fulfilled four of those big “life moments”. In March I got engaged, in April I bought a new car, and in November I moved 1500 miles from home and bought a house. Looking back, I don’t really know how I pulled it all off, responsible adulthood hasn’t really come naturally to me, but having settled into a steady, well paying job definitely had a big hand in it.

Second, I finally reached a place where I’m comfortable letting go of the things that simply just aren’t important in life. Ever since I can remember I’ve chronically stretched myself thin trying to be involved in every single thing all the time. The biggest items include social networks, new design trends, new development libraries, personal projects, and TV. That hot new thing, I’ve might have heard of it (cause I can’t let go entirely) but that’s most likely as far as I go.

I owe a lot of this change to an internet hiatus I took this summer. For two weeks I limited how much I was online outside of work tasks. It was kind of nice despite the fact that the internet pretty much feeds and clothes me and my family. I’ve seen a few friends take steps back from the web and I was curious if there was really something to it. Turns out there was and the break allowed me to really take a look at how I spent my time. I’d like to say I stuck to the strict limits I set myself, but I’m definitely better off than I was before.

For 2015, my plan is to shake things up a bit, challenging myself physically, mentally, artistically and professionally. I won’t go into detail yet because despite my best laid plans, I’ve always found life ends up taking me in an entirely unexpected direction, but I can say that I plan to be much more conscious of how I spend my time and be more open to new opportunities and experiences.

For all my friends and family I shared 2014 with, thank you for always being there. If we didn’t see each other this year, let’s make plans to fix that in 2015. Now that I live the farthest from everyone I know, I want to make a serious effort to keep in touch. We’ll be back East at least a few times this year and I’m hoping we can travel a bit more now that we’re saving all that Boston rent money. That is the number one reason we left after all.

Happy New Year!