Sorting out my life, the revenge
This has been a strange and eventful (both in a positive and negative way) month, and at times has seemed pretty surreal. The more busy and complicated things got, the less I wrote. I still owe (to myself, at least... and I guess those of you who really care) a journal about not_on_fire and Ryan's New Years visit, and a few obligatory end of the year summaries/lists and a summary of my trip to LA.
Nonetheless, there have been some positive developments lately.
1) I actually developed some guts and confidence with girls (to mixed results- but I'm proud of my efforts, for once, anyway)
2) The Bears are in the Super Bowl (although I'm not thrilled about this because there is a ridiculous amount of hype and stupidity surrounding the Bears and their fans- but still, it makes me happy)
3) I flipped across C-SPAN and saw Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) have the courage to give the following speech- not on a talk show, not at a protest, not in a campaign speech- but on the Senate floor where it actually had a shot of possibly affecting policy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8nXuplS7UM
I don't agree with every single word he said, but the principles that are rare in these days are there.
Today, he backed up his words by introducing the Iraq Redployment Act of 2007. It probably won't pass. He was also the only Senator to have the guts to oppose the Patriot Act back in 2001. But it's nice to be reminded there's a man of conscience in a profession filled with manipulators, liars, thieves and cowards. A man of conscience who believes that there are better ways to spend $1.2 trillion and said so long before it became fashionable to believe that, when it could've actually made a difference- and he's still trying to make a difference.
4) I had a chat with a close friend that sorted out years worth of questions and was once again reminded what a strong and amazing person they are. If you're reading this: thank you, you know who you are.
5) I had an unforgettable trip to LA (although most of that is due to the surreal nature of what happened rather than anything truly positive)
6) All the books I've read this month have been fantastic and I highly recommend them all. Currently, I'm reading the Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy series on several million recommendations and it's a brilliantly creative and highly enjoyable mindfuck.
7) I reconnected with some friends I hadn't seen in months and actually acted like more of a social butterfly than I have in a while
and, last but not least.... *drum roll*
8) I'm finally moving out.
At the end of last year and the beginning of this year, I figured that the first step to getting my life sorted out is to seize opportunities that are presented to me, even if they're not the perfect ideal- but just good.
Originally, when my future roommate asked me if I was interested, I said "No" in an almost empthatic way- not because of him, or the apartment, or the location, but the zipcode. My desire to escape DuPage County and have the 24-hour-access to the city I craved kind of overwhelmed all the other good aspects of the situation.
Long story made slightly shorter: My friend's roommate moved out in a huff (longer story) and let him one roommate short in a two bedroom apartment. In downtown Glen Ellyn. I've been anxious to move out, but anxious to move to an area that's remotely diverse and interesting in the city or inner suburbs (i.e. somewhere with late night Blue line L access- Forest Park or Oak Park). I've been getting tired of begging
friends to crash at their places or cutting my night short to catch the 12:40 train... granted, 12:40 is a decent time to run a last train- but venues that start shows at 9 or 10 don't exactly cater to that schedule. Then I thought about things some more.
I realized the only things stopping me were the lack of late-night access to the city and the social stigma of living in DuPage County- then I realized it was moreso the latter- and looking at it pragmatically the pluses are staggering.
My share of the rent and utilities is cheap enough that it will be slightly less than what I expected to pay for rent by itself in the city. My train ride got 5 minutes longer, but my walk to the train got more than 5 minutes shorter.
I'm within walking distance to a locally-owned grocery store, a locally-owned pharmacy, three decent bars, several restaurants, an old-school (and cheap) movie theatre (that mixes in indie films with the blockbusters), a bakery, a bookstore, a liquor store... point is, I basically won't need a car. My roommate is a great guy who I think will be a blast to live with, our neighbors are pretty cool, the landlord is very laid-back and receptive to tenants needs (apparently) and our apartment has big bay windows facing the street and a working fireplace.
Where I live isn't going impress anyone or up my hipness quiotient, but anyone who judges me harshly based on where I live probably isn't worth caring about. Plus, I'm not planning on getting "domesticated" any time soon (by "domesticated", I mean even if I do end up in a long-term relationship, I'm not in a rush to live with my sig. other), so I've still got a few years left to move to the city to give the hipsters a chance
to feign an interest in me.
I was encouraged by my Dad to throw some parties while he and my Mom are gone (I'm not even joking). So I'm going to have four nights of gatherings- including one big party in mid-February. I'll be fully moved into my new digs some time in early March and probably have some kind of housewarming in the middle of that month. Additionally, I'm planning out trips to San Diego, Miami and CoMo. Stay tuned.
Nonetheless, there have been some positive developments lately.
1) I actually developed some guts and confidence with girls (to mixed results- but I'm proud of my efforts, for once, anyway)
2) The Bears are in the Super Bowl (although I'm not thrilled about this because there is a ridiculous amount of hype and stupidity surrounding the Bears and their fans- but still, it makes me happy)
3) I flipped across C-SPAN and saw Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) have the courage to give the following speech- not on a talk show, not at a protest, not in a campaign speech- but on the Senate floor where it actually had a shot of possibly affecting policy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8nXuplS7UM
I don't agree with every single word he said, but the principles that are rare in these days are there.
Today, he backed up his words by introducing the Iraq Redployment Act of 2007. It probably won't pass. He was also the only Senator to have the guts to oppose the Patriot Act back in 2001. But it's nice to be reminded there's a man of conscience in a profession filled with manipulators, liars, thieves and cowards. A man of conscience who believes that there are better ways to spend $1.2 trillion and said so long before it became fashionable to believe that, when it could've actually made a difference- and he's still trying to make a difference.
4) I had a chat with a close friend that sorted out years worth of questions and was once again reminded what a strong and amazing person they are. If you're reading this: thank you, you know who you are.
5) I had an unforgettable trip to LA (although most of that is due to the surreal nature of what happened rather than anything truly positive)
6) All the books I've read this month have been fantastic and I highly recommend them all. Currently, I'm reading the Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy series on several million recommendations and it's a brilliantly creative and highly enjoyable mindfuck.
7) I reconnected with some friends I hadn't seen in months and actually acted like more of a social butterfly than I have in a while
and, last but not least.... *drum roll*
8) I'm finally moving out.
At the end of last year and the beginning of this year, I figured that the first step to getting my life sorted out is to seize opportunities that are presented to me, even if they're not the perfect ideal- but just good.
Originally, when my future roommate asked me if I was interested, I said "No" in an almost empthatic way- not because of him, or the apartment, or the location, but the zipcode. My desire to escape DuPage County and have the 24-hour-access to the city I craved kind of overwhelmed all the other good aspects of the situation.
Long story made slightly shorter: My friend's roommate moved out in a huff (longer story) and let him one roommate short in a two bedroom apartment. In downtown Glen Ellyn. I've been anxious to move out, but anxious to move to an area that's remotely diverse and interesting in the city or inner suburbs (i.e. somewhere with late night Blue line L access- Forest Park or Oak Park). I've been getting tired of begging
friends to crash at their places or cutting my night short to catch the 12:40 train... granted, 12:40 is a decent time to run a last train- but venues that start shows at 9 or 10 don't exactly cater to that schedule. Then I thought about things some more.
I realized the only things stopping me were the lack of late-night access to the city and the social stigma of living in DuPage County- then I realized it was moreso the latter- and looking at it pragmatically the pluses are staggering.
My share of the rent and utilities is cheap enough that it will be slightly less than what I expected to pay for rent by itself in the city. My train ride got 5 minutes longer, but my walk to the train got more than 5 minutes shorter.
I'm within walking distance to a locally-owned grocery store, a locally-owned pharmacy, three decent bars, several restaurants, an old-school (and cheap) movie theatre (that mixes in indie films with the blockbusters), a bakery, a bookstore, a liquor store... point is, I basically won't need a car. My roommate is a great guy who I think will be a blast to live with, our neighbors are pretty cool, the landlord is very laid-back and receptive to tenants needs (apparently) and our apartment has big bay windows facing the street and a working fireplace.
Where I live isn't going impress anyone or up my hipness quiotient, but anyone who judges me harshly based on where I live probably isn't worth caring about. Plus, I'm not planning on getting "domesticated" any time soon (by "domesticated", I mean even if I do end up in a long-term relationship, I'm not in a rush to live with my sig. other), so I've still got a few years left to move to the city to give the hipsters a chance
to feign an interest in me.
I was encouraged by my Dad to throw some parties while he and my Mom are gone (I'm not even joking). So I'm going to have four nights of gatherings- including one big party in mid-February. I'll be fully moved into my new digs some time in early March and probably have some kind of housewarming in the middle of that month. Additionally, I'm planning out trips to San Diego, Miami and CoMo. Stay tuned.