I Got No Strings To Hold Me Down...
This year - the past 365 days - will go down in history as the year I lost just about everything. I lost my grandfather, my career that I loved, then Happy, my best friend and furry loyal companion. Finally almost immediately following that my boyfriend of 6 years, and with that crushing blow my home. Now some people would let this keep them down. They would wallow in their own self-pity, eat junk food and immerse themselves in reruns of "Friends" every night feeling sorry for themselves.
As you may know, however, I am not some people (though I will admit I have not been eating well and I may or may not have indulged in a few binge-watching sessions of "Sex In The City"). People who know me well know that I am naturally (and sometimes painfully) optimistic, and I try to find opportunity in every slight. This is no exception.
I will start off by preemptively saying to my pro-Cleveland boosters that you cannot tell me that I have not given this city enough of a chance. I've given it 36 years, far more time of my youth than I had ever wished to spend in it. One way or another there's a brush of shitty memories lurking around every corner of this town from various eras of my life.
My friends, I am posting this to inform you that I can no longer live here. On Monday, October 24th, 2016 I will be boarding the plane that will take me to the rest of my life. I am going to a place where absolutely nothing is familiar, including the language.
I am moving to Germany.
Cologne, Germany to be exact. With the help of various language-learning programs, books, and my lovely language partners and friends in Germany I have been learning German for almost two years now. I am also confident that as I ease into my new surroundings I will become more fluent with time.
I'm jumping in knowing that be rough at first, I will be completely alone in a strange country fumbling to adapt to a culture similar-yet-different than mine. I will struggle to understand my neighbors, and I may unintentionally piss a few people off with my American-esque quirks and propensities. There will be times when I will feel achingly lonely, homesick, and wonder what the hell I have done.
But I also know this; I will not only survive, I will thrive. Because if anyone can throw themselves into a strange environment and make it the best decision I have ever made, I can.
As you may know, however, I am not some people (though I will admit I have not been eating well and I may or may not have indulged in a few binge-watching sessions of "Sex In The City"). People who know me well know that I am naturally (and sometimes painfully) optimistic, and I try to find opportunity in every slight. This is no exception.
I will start off by preemptively saying to my pro-Cleveland boosters that you cannot tell me that I have not given this city enough of a chance. I've given it 36 years, far more time of my youth than I had ever wished to spend in it. One way or another there's a brush of shitty memories lurking around every corner of this town from various eras of my life.
My friends, I am posting this to inform you that I can no longer live here. On Monday, October 24th, 2016 I will be boarding the plane that will take me to the rest of my life. I am going to a place where absolutely nothing is familiar, including the language.
I am moving to Germany.
Cologne, Germany to be exact. With the help of various language-learning programs, books, and my lovely language partners and friends in Germany I have been learning German for almost two years now. I am also confident that as I ease into my new surroundings I will become more fluent with time.
I'm jumping in knowing that be rough at first, I will be completely alone in a strange country fumbling to adapt to a culture similar-yet-different than mine. I will struggle to understand my neighbors, and I may unintentionally piss a few people off with my American-esque quirks and propensities. There will be times when I will feel achingly lonely, homesick, and wonder what the hell I have done.
But I also know this; I will not only survive, I will thrive. Because if anyone can throw themselves into a strange environment and make it the best decision I have ever made, I can.