I inspire people. I've heard it all my life. I've heard it in playing sports, I've heard it in dancing, and I've probably heard it at other times and places as well. I've had multiple pieces done on me in newspaper and television when I was growing up talking about how I was an inspiration because I was playing sports. But I'm not trying to inspire anyone. I'm just living my life and doing what I like to do, and for some reason people seem to find that inspiring.
Ok, I get it. People see me and realize I look different. They assume I've had a difficult life, and either know or assume that I have an extensive medical history. They see how I've "overcome" all these "obstacles" and "challenges" and live a normal life "despite" them.
I put those words in quotes for a reason. You see, I don't view my life as all that difficult, and I don't view my medical history as challenges or obstacles. My life is what it is and it's all I know. I mean I do owe praise to God for a positive attitude, and to my parents for putting me in a somewhat sheltered environment (Christian school kindergarten through high school) where I experienced pretty much no bullying and was fortunate enough to always have friends. But otherwise, my life is what it is. I had a different level of consciousness and awareness as a child than I do now as an adult. If I were going through all this medical stuff now, I think I would view it differently than I did experiencing it as a child. I would probably consider living a normal life after that to be more inspirational than doing it the way I have.
Allow me to take a moment to give those of you who don't know (which is most of you) a brief explanation of my medical history. I was born with a thing called Treacher Collins Syndrome. This is a syndrome (or condition, to use a more common word) that results in underdevelopment in the facial area. For example, two noticeable areas of underdevelopment on me are my ears, which are significantly underdeveloped and lack an outer ear canal, and for which I wear bone-conductive hearing aids, and my cheeks, which lack bones, and for which I have an implant on my right side (we tried the left too, but it didn't work out very well). The white thing around my neck is called a tracheostomy tube, or trach for short (pronounced "trake"). It's a device through which I breathe. I have a hole in my neck, and the tube of the trach goes in the hole and down my throat a bit. It's purpose is simply an additional airway, because for all intents and purposes I can't breathe through my nose, and as a child I was not getting enough air through breathing through my mouth alone. Nowadays I'm able to get sufficient air through my mouth alone, and generally keep a cap on the trach and do not use it except at night when I use it to get extra air for higher quality sleep.
I've had dozens of surgeries growing up to try to improve both appearance and functionality in my facial area. I haven't had any since I was 17 or 18, and don't plan on having any more in the future (primarily because the insurance ended when I turned either 18 or 21). My condition is purely physical, with no mental effects at all. This is very important to me for people to understand, because I hate it when people assume there's any kind of mental impairment, though I can't blame them, especially with my speech not being clear. Another thing I hate, or dislike, is for people to use the term disability or deformity in reference to me and my condition. I have no disability as far as I'm concerned, and the word deformity is a disgusting word that really rubs me the wrong way, at least in reference to myself.
All I'm trying to do is live a normal life, and all I want is to be viewed and treated normally. Please DO NOT give me special treatment or befriend me or act toward me out of pity, charity, or sympathy. I am only interested in people who are genuinely interested in me regardless of my physical appearance. If I suspect you're acting out of the aforementioned motives, I may actually resent you, or at least lose a little respect or favor for you, because I pretty much resent and detest the idea of people acting out of those motives toward me. Their motives may be good, and I can't really blame them and am kind of a hypocrite because I do the same thing, but nevertheless, I hate it being done to me, so please don't.
So if people want to view me as an inspiration, that's ok I guess. I can't control what people think, but remember, I'm not really trying to be an inspiration. Maybe I should embrace that a little more, but as of right now, I'm just trying to live my life like anyone else, just doing what I want to do, and only be an inspiration in the same ways anyone else could be, such as pursuing things that I love to do, and not because of my physical appearance and medical story.
Monday, September 29, 2014
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
My Last 30 Years
Sooo, I've been alive for three decades. That's a long time! As they say, it definitely goes by fast. I can't say it feels like yesterday that I was in high school or college, but it doesn't feel like my 29th birthday was that long ago, either.
I've experienced a lot over my first 30 years of life. In some ways I've experienced more than most, in some ways less, and in some ways about average. My first 10 years of life were pretty eventful, with lots of medical history, between surgeries and doctor appointments, which extended into my teens. This certainly made for a unique and sometimes challenging childhood, but thankfully it was a very happy one, as I was blessed with a positive outlook, and surrounded by a loving and positive environment of lots of caring family and friends. I made my first friends in kindergarten, and we're still friends today.
My middle ten years were fairly happy as well. They saw me go from middle school into high school and then to college. Things got a bit more challenging socially during these years. I still had plenty of friends, at least through high school, but I started to become more self conscious about my appearance, and also had a desire to be part of the popular crowd, which I sometimes felt difficult to fit in with, as I am not a pure extrovert, and tend to be kind of quiet in group settings. My self consciousness hit a high point in college. This was because, though I was at a Christian school (which was also the case previously, kindergarten through high school), I was now at a place where I knew almost nobody, and had to make new friends. This was an exciting challenge which I was very much looking forward to going into college, but it took a little longer than I hoped. I made many acquaintances during my freshman and sophomore years, and got along with my various roommates fine, but it wasn't until my junior year that I found friends (and roommates) who I really connected with and became close friends with. I am thankful that I found them; they are some really good people, and we are still friends today.
In addition to the usual routine of school and friends, my childhood also included an active sports lifestyle. This started with baseball at age six, which lasted a couple years, until I quit. Then at age nine, I took up hockey. I played hockey (roller and ice) consistently until about age 17, when I sort of phased out physically. While still playing hockey, I also took up golf, starting at age 12 or 13, and played consistently through high school, where I played for my school all four years. My last 10 years have not been as eventful athletically, as I played some intramural sports in college, and a couple hockey and golf leagues outside of school, but that's about it. The latter half of my last 10 years have introduced me to a new "sport", though, in the form of dancing.
I found dancing (country dancing, to be specific) about five years ago. I had already been into country music for a few years, and eventually I decided to check out country bars. It started out slow, and I didn't learn any dances until a while after I started, but eventually I got hooked on it, and started learning, and haven't looked back since. I added more country bars and more dances and more friends, and it eventually comprised my entire social life. I'm not quite as active or passionate now as at times in the past, but I still do it and enjoy it, and am open to continuing to learn new moves and dances, including different styles of dance other than country.
Speaking of country music, an interesting sidebar is that my life has included a variety of musical tastes thus far. It's seen everything (in rough chronological order) from pop (Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, Backstreet Boys, N*Sync), to "punk rock" (Blink 182, Good Charlotte, Sum 41, Yellow Card), to Switchfoot, to my current interest in country music. Also interesting is that I've observed that with both music and sports/hobbies/interests, I tend to be really passionate and involved in one for a certain amount of time, and then I stop and move onto something else. Usually this time period is a few years. I suppose this is both a good and bad thing, since it means that I will be a very avid fan or participant in whatever I'm currently interested in and will go at it full-force and try to master it, but that my interest may wane over time, and I might eventually stop and move onto something else. Currently I'm at 4+ years of dancing, and 7+ years of country music, and I don't plan on quitting either anytime soon!
In addition to music and dancing. my most recent decade has seen some other transitions. I graduated from college, lived in two other states, and progressed in what is now my current job. My out-of-state residencies were both short-lived, one for a predetermined 10 weeks in Colorado as part of a summer program, and the other for what ended up being five and a half months in Idaho. With the latter, I could have stayed longer, but I lost my job a couple months in, and made the difficult decision to move home instead of stay and find another job. What made the decision so difficult wasn't so much the job situation, but other factors, such as it being a beautiful place with a winter climate that I love. That climate is why I moved there in the first place. I'd love to go back there again to visit, and maybe someday to live. But for now, I live here in Southern California, where I enjoy working in my current job involved in a couple of my family's businesses.
As is common after college, my life has settled down into a fairly regular routine. It consists of work and fun with friends, which for me is dancing. In some ways it appears I'm a bit behind when it comes to milestones or progress, as almost all of my longtime close friends are married with kids and financially independent, and I am not. This could be viewed as a shortcoming on my part, but I'm working my way toward financial independence, and have goals and plans. As for the marriage and kids, I certainly desire to get there someday too, but that part is a little more out of my hands. I've pursued a few girls over the last few years, arguably for the first time in my life, and while I haven't had any amount to a romantic relationship yet, I'm hopeful that I will find one someday. It is a bit saddening to me at times that my friends are so far ahead of me in the stages of life, and I allow it to create a bit of a distance between us and reason not to spend a lot of time with them, as they are doing their own thing, and have different interests/schedules/commitments than me. But it is what it is, and they are still very cherished and valuable friends. Because not only are they still great people, and caring for me as ever, but now they also have valuable experience and wisdom in terms of life and love.
Overall, I can't really complain about where my life is at, 30 years in. I have more than I need, and lots of great, caring, loving people around me. Do I wish certain things were a little different? Yes. And am I completely happy? No. Can I be a better person and do I have areas I need to improve? Yes. But life is what you make of it, and it's a journey for all of us (that sounds really cliché). So as I begin year number 31, I guess I just need to continue to set goals and plans and try to accomplish them, and try to take things one step at a time, and not worry about what I can't control. Before I know it, I'll probably be celebrating another 30 years! Let's hope they're good, and that I experience self-improvement and progress, and make decisions that promote happiness.
My middle ten years were fairly happy as well. They saw me go from middle school into high school and then to college. Things got a bit more challenging socially during these years. I still had plenty of friends, at least through high school, but I started to become more self conscious about my appearance, and also had a desire to be part of the popular crowd, which I sometimes felt difficult to fit in with, as I am not a pure extrovert, and tend to be kind of quiet in group settings. My self consciousness hit a high point in college. This was because, though I was at a Christian school (which was also the case previously, kindergarten through high school), I was now at a place where I knew almost nobody, and had to make new friends. This was an exciting challenge which I was very much looking forward to going into college, but it took a little longer than I hoped. I made many acquaintances during my freshman and sophomore years, and got along with my various roommates fine, but it wasn't until my junior year that I found friends (and roommates) who I really connected with and became close friends with. I am thankful that I found them; they are some really good people, and we are still friends today.
In addition to the usual routine of school and friends, my childhood also included an active sports lifestyle. This started with baseball at age six, which lasted a couple years, until I quit. Then at age nine, I took up hockey. I played hockey (roller and ice) consistently until about age 17, when I sort of phased out physically. While still playing hockey, I also took up golf, starting at age 12 or 13, and played consistently through high school, where I played for my school all four years. My last 10 years have not been as eventful athletically, as I played some intramural sports in college, and a couple hockey and golf leagues outside of school, but that's about it. The latter half of my last 10 years have introduced me to a new "sport", though, in the form of dancing.
I found dancing (country dancing, to be specific) about five years ago. I had already been into country music for a few years, and eventually I decided to check out country bars. It started out slow, and I didn't learn any dances until a while after I started, but eventually I got hooked on it, and started learning, and haven't looked back since. I added more country bars and more dances and more friends, and it eventually comprised my entire social life. I'm not quite as active or passionate now as at times in the past, but I still do it and enjoy it, and am open to continuing to learn new moves and dances, including different styles of dance other than country.
Speaking of country music, an interesting sidebar is that my life has included a variety of musical tastes thus far. It's seen everything (in rough chronological order) from pop (Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, Backstreet Boys, N*Sync), to "punk rock" (Blink 182, Good Charlotte, Sum 41, Yellow Card), to Switchfoot, to my current interest in country music. Also interesting is that I've observed that with both music and sports/hobbies/interests, I tend to be really passionate and involved in one for a certain amount of time, and then I stop and move onto something else. Usually this time period is a few years. I suppose this is both a good and bad thing, since it means that I will be a very avid fan or participant in whatever I'm currently interested in and will go at it full-force and try to master it, but that my interest may wane over time, and I might eventually stop and move onto something else. Currently I'm at 4+ years of dancing, and 7+ years of country music, and I don't plan on quitting either anytime soon!
In addition to music and dancing. my most recent decade has seen some other transitions. I graduated from college, lived in two other states, and progressed in what is now my current job. My out-of-state residencies were both short-lived, one for a predetermined 10 weeks in Colorado as part of a summer program, and the other for what ended up being five and a half months in Idaho. With the latter, I could have stayed longer, but I lost my job a couple months in, and made the difficult decision to move home instead of stay and find another job. What made the decision so difficult wasn't so much the job situation, but other factors, such as it being a beautiful place with a winter climate that I love. That climate is why I moved there in the first place. I'd love to go back there again to visit, and maybe someday to live. But for now, I live here in Southern California, where I enjoy working in my current job involved in a couple of my family's businesses.
As is common after college, my life has settled down into a fairly regular routine. It consists of work and fun with friends, which for me is dancing. In some ways it appears I'm a bit behind when it comes to milestones or progress, as almost all of my longtime close friends are married with kids and financially independent, and I am not. This could be viewed as a shortcoming on my part, but I'm working my way toward financial independence, and have goals and plans. As for the marriage and kids, I certainly desire to get there someday too, but that part is a little more out of my hands. I've pursued a few girls over the last few years, arguably for the first time in my life, and while I haven't had any amount to a romantic relationship yet, I'm hopeful that I will find one someday. It is a bit saddening to me at times that my friends are so far ahead of me in the stages of life, and I allow it to create a bit of a distance between us and reason not to spend a lot of time with them, as they are doing their own thing, and have different interests/schedules/commitments than me. But it is what it is, and they are still very cherished and valuable friends. Because not only are they still great people, and caring for me as ever, but now they also have valuable experience and wisdom in terms of life and love.
Overall, I can't really complain about where my life is at, 30 years in. I have more than I need, and lots of great, caring, loving people around me. Do I wish certain things were a little different? Yes. And am I completely happy? No. Can I be a better person and do I have areas I need to improve? Yes. But life is what you make of it, and it's a journey for all of us (that sounds really cliché). So as I begin year number 31, I guess I just need to continue to set goals and plans and try to accomplish them, and try to take things one step at a time, and not worry about what I can't control. Before I know it, I'll probably be celebrating another 30 years! Let's hope they're good, and that I experience self-improvement and progress, and make decisions that promote happiness.
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
A Look Back at 2012
Looking at the big picture, 2012 has been a good year. I certainly ought not complain. In terms of the basic necessities and things that matter most in life, it's been all good. I've had my health, have lost no family or close friends, had shelter, clothing, food, and a job. I've pursued my passions and had a lot of fun and made lots of new friends doing so. By and large, 2012 has been perhaps one of the best years in recent memory for me.
Early 2012 featured an annual trip with some friends to Bass Lake, CA to visit some other friends of ours who live up there. It was a fun trip as always. We traveled into Yosemite National Park, went hiking, and had a good time.
Spring of 2012 also included a few concerts, namely Lady Antebellum, Gloriana, and Dierks Bentley. All were good. For Lady A and Gloriana, I was right up next to the stage (for Lady A I was actually IN the stage because of the cool stage setup they had where a small number of fans could buy tickets for an in-stage pit area called the "Inner Circle"), which is always fun.
Then at the end of April was Stagecoach. It was a hell of a good time. This was the third year in a row that I've gone to the festival, and it was was by far the best. The lineup was incredible, I ran into probably about 75 people I knew, I got to drink all day and dance all night after the concert. It was amazing.
Middle 2012 was a pretty good time as well. I traveled to Nashville for the second year in a row for CMA Music Fest in June. Like Stagecoach, this was also the best time I've ever had there. 2011 was amazing and certainly unforgettable as well, but this trip was arguably better, for completely different reasons. 2011 was my first-ever trip to Nashville and CMA Fest. So as a die-hard country music fan and enthusiast, this was an incredible experience, since Nashville is the mecca of country music, and CMA Fest is, as it is marketed and which I would find to be true, "the ultimate country music fan experience", and the biggest and best country music festival in the world. I visited everywhere I could and experienced several of the significant sites and venues in the city, and saw a whole lot of live music and met a bunch of country artists, including big stars such as Kenny Chesney and Jason Aldean.
But 2012 was, like I said, a completely different experience. The reason why this was the case is that, in addition to the fact that I had been there before and seen lots of things already, I got to experience this trip with a group of people. Both times that I've gone to Nashville, I've gone alone. But on this trip I happened to meet some people on my second or third night in town, and that changed everything. They invited me to hang out with them the rest of the night, and that ended up continuing for the remainder of the trip. Every day they invited and welcomed me to hang out with them. They introduced me to all their friends (some of whom live in Nashville; they themselves are mostly from New Jersey), and for the remainder of the trip I had a go-to group of people and a community to hang out with and be a part of. Instead of doing everything alone, I was with people. This was an incredible experience. Because although I'm used to and willing to do concerts and trips like this alone (because of my passion for the music), it's a lot more fun doing it with people. In fact, I enjoyed hanging out with them so much that I sold my ticket for the last three (out of four) nights of the main concerts at the festival, simply because I enjoyed hanging out with them more and and didn't want to miss out on any of it. These people were so kind to me, and introduced me to so many people, who were also so kind to me, and I can never repay them or thank them enough. My network of Nashville acquaintances and contacts has grown exponentially because of them, and I will never forget the amazing time I had with them. I have since kept in touch with them and have gotten to see them once since this trip, when I went and visited them in New Jersey in September. I plan on seeing them again soon, this next summer in Nashville if not sooner.
Summer 2012 also featured my first ever trip to the river. I went with some friends from my hometown area. It was just a weekend trip, but nevertheless was a lot of fun. We went on a group float down the river for a few hours, and hung out at night at the motel pool and the casino. It was a lot of fun, and I hope to go back to the river some more this next year, with them and anyone else that wants to invite me.
Then came the Fall of 2012. Three notable events from this time of the year were my birthday (28th), and celebrations for my 50th and 100th nights of dancing in a row. That's right, in a row. I managed to string together what ended up being 102 consecutive nights of dancing. Not every night was at an actual country bar or dance facility (I think those comprised 93 of the 102 nights), but every day or night for 102 days I managed to do at least a partial-song's worth of a line dance or two step. The celebrations for all three of these occasions (50th, 100th, and my birthday) were at some of my favorite country bars. I invited lots of people, many of whom showed up, and had a great time.
Now we're into the Winter, and the end, of 2012, and the beginning of 2013. My Thanksgiving and Christmas were good, both the usual tradition of gathering with family. New Year's was a fun time last night, as I spent it with a friend and a bunch of other friends, celebrating the one friend's birthday (which was yesterday) and New Years combined. As for today (New Years Day), I don't have much planned, just working and maybe going dancing or bowling tonight. However I may also stop by my brother's house this afternoon to watch some of the Orange Bowl college football game, which is part of an annual tradition (he has people over every New Years Day to watch the football games).
All told, 2012 has been a lot of fun, and free from any major problems. I got to pursue my primary passions in life of country music and dancing, going to several concerts and two music festivals, and dancing almost every night of the week. I've gotten better at dancing, made a few new dance partners, found a great new country bar in The Ranch in Anaheim (which opened in December 2011), and am still enjoying myself about as much as ever with all of it.
Transitioning and looking ahead into 2013, my life will probably continue to be much the same as it was in 2012, as far as my plans are concerned (obviously you never know what could happen that is unforeseen or out of your control). But there are a few things I might like to change. Let me address this by giving a little recap of where things are in certain area of my life, and where I would like to see those things go in 2013.
Professionally, I'm in decent shape. I co-own one of my family's businesses, and that's going well. Looking forward, it would be good for me to move forward in my career, either with this business, or with songwriting, or both, or something else. But it's time that I start being a little more proactive with this, rather than being complacent and not trying very hard to progress or move forward, which I've been guilty of in the recent past.
Socially, I'm arguably a bit out of balance. My social life literally consists entirely of dancing and the friends who I have from there. I'm somewhat okay with this, as dancing is one of my biggest passions and I'm still enjoying it about as much as ever. But at the same time, I realize that I am probably neglecting my close, longtime friends from home a little bit, and should spend more time with them. They may be married and have their own lives and different interests and such, but still, I ought to make more of an effort to spend time with them than I have been recently. I should also probably look into broadening my hobbies and activities, or at least my social circles. Dancing is great for meeting people, and there's lots of really cool people there, many of whom share my interests in country music and dancing; but while all of that is great, it might not hurt for me to look elsewhere also, such as a bowling league, softball league, or church, especially considering that the places I go dancing are not close to me, and hence, neither are the places where most of my dancing friends live, which is a natural obstacle for friendships. Despite this obstacle, however, I would also probably be best to try to develop some of my dancing relationships, and become closer friends with some of them and hang out with them outside of the country scene. Part of the reason for my lack of closeness with them is that I tend to be a wanderer or mingler at the country bars, hanging out with several people or groups of people throughout the night, rather than sticking to one group. While I enjoy this, it doesn't help with developing friendships and close-knit community, so I might want to consider changing that behavior as well.
Speaking of church, my spiritual life is in a perhaps interesting place right now. It's not very active, which would appear to be a bad thing, yet I don't really have a problem with it. For those of you who don't know, I've been a Christian for most of my life, with my church attendance, and my effort toward my personal relationship with God (and, I feel consequently, my closeness with Him) fluctuating up and down throughout my life. Lately both my church attendance and my effort toward my relationship with God have been minimal-to-non-existent. I've basically been content living my life the way I want to live it and doing what I want to do, and have not really consulted God about any of it. While my life has had many negative and unhappy moments, and while I may be far from being as content and fulfilled and happy as I maybe could be, I still do not feel a great need or desire to change what I'm doing. My life is largely a happy one, and though it is predicated or dependent on things that maybe it shouldn't be (namely, looking forward to events in the near future like a fun night of dancing or a concert, or a maybe a love interest if I have one at a given point in time), I am not yet to a point where I feel I want to turn to God and look to Him for my happiness, contentment, fulfillment, and peace in my life. But this may be about to change somewhat. I'm considering checking out church again on Sunday nights (for the aforementioned social reasons if nothing else), so we'll see where that goes.
Personally, my life is in decent or okay shape. I still have close friends, albeit with perhaps a slight barrier present, in that literally just about all of them are married. I have tons of acquaintances through dancing. This feels great, because I know somebody wherever I go and people are always saying hi to me and such, which makes me feel popular and wanted, which is nice. However as I said earlier, not many of those relationships are developed very far past the acquaintance level, which is by my own doing and lack of willingness to commit to a single group of friends. This leaves me occasionally feeling lonely or bored, even while I'm at the country bars. A bigger source of loneliness, however, comes from my love life. I'm currently in a spot where my love life holds a primary focus in my mind, in that I tend to allow it to have heavy influence on much of my emotions and my happiness. I know this should not be the case, and that I need to put my main focus and find my happiness from other sources and let love take care of itself and happen in it's own time. I'm just a little tired of waiting, as I have yet to have my first girlfriend or even my first official date. I'd love for 2013 to bring me success in my love life, but I know I just need to be patient and confident, and the success will come sooner or later.
As far as resolutions go for the New Year, I actually made a list with as many as 10 resolutions. I was planning on sharing them by way of a blog post, but after a friend advised me that it would be very unlikely that I would keep all of them, I'm going to choose to officially state only one: to improve my punctuality. If you know me, you know I stink at punctuality and timeliness. I'm last minute or late to literally almost everything. So over the next year, I'm going to try to improve with that. I'm not saying I'll get rid of it completely. But if I improve, I'll consider that a victory.
Well, there's my recap of 2012 along with an outlook into 2013. Hope y'all have had a good year; here's to what will hopefully be another and perhaps even better one!
Friday, December 21, 2012
Winter: My Favorite Season of the Year
For most people, summer is their favorite time or season of the year. Hot days, warm nights. No need for much clothing. Spending the day outside, whether at the beach, lake, river, or elsewhere. School is out. Lots of events are happening outdoors at night. Vacations and trips. Summer is quite the enjoyable time of year.
But for me, my favorite season would have to be winter, at least when it comes to weather. I agree, summer, weatherwise and otherwise, is a great time of year. But for me there's nothing more beautiful than a winter landscape, especially one that includes mountains, with fresh white snow against a clear blue sky.
If you know me, you know I have a fascination or strong fondness for cold and snow. This is the simplest reason why I love winter. Cold temperatures, below freezing, subzero, I love it. Snow, lots of it, everywhere, almost every day, I love it. So give me a place where both of these exist during the winter, and I want to go there.
I also love winter recreation. Skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, ice fishing, ice climbing, dogsledding, snowmobiling, I love it all. I have not done all of these activities, but I've done five of them, and would love to do the other two. This is part of the reason why I love winter locales that have mountains. The other is that I just think mountains with snow on them are beautiful.
Now I don't like rain. Rain is certainly part of winter, but for me, it's just a nuisance. It's not all that pretty, you can't really do any kind of winter activity with it, it's just gloomy and wet and I don't really like it. Unfortunately that's all we have here in southern California, and I'm glad to say that we don't usually have to deal with that much of it. This is bad for solving our drought, but good for keeping me happy haha. I could never live in a place like Seattle, where it's pretty much all rain, pretty much every day, all winter long.
But give me a place where it's snow, and snows a lot, and snow is on the ground and temperatures are at or below freezing pretty much all winter long, and I'm a happy man. And thankfully, I found and have lived in such a place. This place is a town by the name of Driggs in southeast Idaho. I have already written and published a separate post about this place and why I love it so much, so I won't go in depth here, but that town and the surrounding area is one of the most beautiful, iconic, scenic winter locations have ever seen, at least in person. The town lies in an alpine valley at an elevation of about 6,000 feet, and it has everything I want. Snow, cold temps, mountains, winter recreation activities, everything. The snow is light and dry, which makes it easier to brush off and doesn't get you as wet (compared to snow in other parts of the country), and is a ton of fun to ski or snowboard through. I only lived there for one winter, and then chose to move home (though it wasn't an easy decision and wasn't because of the weather), but I completely intend to go back there someday, if not to live then at least to visit.
So, on this first official day of winter, I'm excited for another season of seeing cold temperatures and snowy landscapes. I don't know how much of these things I will see in person, but if nothing else, I will enjoy viewing them in pictures and videos. If you're like me and love winter, great, we should talk. If you don't, hopefully you live somewhere like I do here in southern California.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Who Wouldn't Want to Be Me
And the sun is shining
And this road keeps winding
Through the prettiest country
From Georgia to Tennessee
I got the one I love beside me
My troubles behind me
I'm alive and I'm free
Who wouldn't want to be me
This is the chorus of Keith Urban's song "Who Wouldn't Want to Be Me"
This happens to be one of my favorite songs by Keith Urban, but the reason I'm quoting it is because right now, I'd say it applies to my life.
Life is good right now for me. My health is good, I have a job, I have family and friends who love me, I have a date this weekend, I get to do what I love every night with dancing and concerts; I can't complain.
But one area in particular has been especially exciting to me lately. That would be my dancing, specifically two step. This is because I am in a place where I seem to be desired by several girls as a dance partner, some of them even to the point where I'm their favorite or primary dance partner. I even have two friends right now (girls) whose profile picture on Facebook is me dancing with them (one of them is my primary dance partner, who I also have in my profile picture). I have girls tagging and sharing photos of me and them dancing together, asking me to dance, and telling me they love dancing with me and that I'm one of their favorite partners. And these aren't just any girls. These are some of the best dancers and most attractive girls I know. Needless to say, as a guy and as a dancer, this is thrilling to me. I just love the idea that these girls want to dance with ME.
I mean, let's analyze this a bit. I'm not the most attractive guy at the bar. I'm not six feet tall and 175 pounds, with model-good looks. So, while I know I'm not the best dancer at the place, the reason these girls are wanting to dance with me has to be because of my dancing style and ability (and maybe a little of my nice personality). And to think that they want to dance with me despite the fact that they may not necessarily find me physically attractive (or even be taller than them) makes me feel good, and gives me a good amount of confidence (more on that in a bit). It also says a lot about the character of the girls I'm dancing with.
Alright, time for a disclaimer. While it is thrills the heck out of me that I seem to be so desired as a dance partner, particularly by some of the best dancers I know and most attractive girls I know, I don't mean to sound arrogant, cocky, or full of myself. While I love being desired, and love all the compliments I get about my dancing (both two step and line dance), I keep my feet on the ground and don't let it get to my head. While I may try to show off a bit (particularly with line dancing), for the most part I'm just going out and doing what I love and having a good time. I'm also a competitive person, and I look at dancing as a sport, so I'm constantly trying to practice out there and get better and execute my moves as best as I can.
Additionally, these girls who I'm dancing with are not just random girls or people I meet once or twice and never see again. They're my friends. They may be great dancers and they may be attractive, but they're also very nice. They're fun to interact with, I see them more-or-less all the time, some of them I've known for a year or longer.
Also, I know I'm not the best dancer at these places (either two step or line dance). I have friends who are certainly better than me. And while I may have a few girls who consider me their favorite or primary dance partner, I know that for most of the girls I dance with, I'm one of several dance partners they have, and that they probably don't prefer me over anyone else.
Also, sort of a side note, it's taken a long time for me to get to this point. I've been dancing every week for almost two and a half years now, and it's only probably within the last year or so that I've gotten to the point where I've had what I would call a semi-established dance partner. Part of that was because I was afraid to ask and was probably less proactive about asking girls to dance, period, in the first year or so, and also because I've met more and more girls as time has gone on (both in general and girls who I've found to be really good dancers). But it's also because it takes time to get better, and to get to the level (or close to it) of the best dancers at these places, and to be able to lead well and teach the moves to girls who don't already know them. I dance all the time, hence I'm consistently getting better. I guess that adds up and pays off, because I'm probably better now than I've ever been, which (combined with how many girls I've met and danced with) maybe explains the number of girls who want to dance with me and the number of girls I have that I consider quality dance partners.
I should also mention that I owe a lot to a few friends of mine who have taught me most of the moves I do during two step. I've taken several lessons and received help and tips and instruction from several people, but the three people I feel that I owe the most gratitude to are my friends Donny, Savannah, and Alina. Donny is one of the best male dancers I know, and Savannah and Alina, who dance with Donny often, are two of the best female dancers I know. While I did not learn the basic two step from them (I learned that most recently from a lady by the name of Candy, thank you Candy!), they taught me a style of dance called country swing. This is the style of dance I do during two step, and almost all the moves I do are ones I learned from them. So big thanks to all three of them!
Lastly, as I alluded to earlier, one really nice benefit of all the positive attention I'm getting for my dancing (both two step and line dance) is the confidence it gives me. The fact that I get to dance with and am desired as a dance partner by so many attractive girls gives me confidence as a man, which is great and helpful, cause the fact of the matter is, I struggle sometimes with self-consciousness and even maybe a bit with self-esteem because of my looks. So to think that I have these beautiful girls that enjoy dancing with me helps me out a bit in that respect. It may just be dancing and not dating, but nevertheless, it gives me confidence (and who knows, maybe that success will carry over into dating too). And the fact that I get complimented so often on my dancing gives me confidence in general, which, right or wrong, has resulted in me priding myself on my dancing ability.
So, when it comes to my dancing life (and my life in general), life is good right now. I'm confident and happy, looking forward to the next great night of dancing (and even the prospect of dating). Maybe I'm not the best dancer, and maybe I'm making this dance-partner-desiredness thing into more than it really is, but nevertheless, it's fun to be wanted :-)
And this road keeps winding
Through the prettiest country
From Georgia to Tennessee
I got the one I love beside me
My troubles behind me
I'm alive and I'm free
Who wouldn't want to be me
This is the chorus of Keith Urban's song "Who Wouldn't Want to Be Me"
This happens to be one of my favorite songs by Keith Urban, but the reason I'm quoting it is because right now, I'd say it applies to my life.
Life is good right now for me. My health is good, I have a job, I have family and friends who love me, I have a date this weekend, I get to do what I love every night with dancing and concerts; I can't complain.
But one area in particular has been especially exciting to me lately. That would be my dancing, specifically two step. This is because I am in a place where I seem to be desired by several girls as a dance partner, some of them even to the point where I'm their favorite or primary dance partner. I even have two friends right now (girls) whose profile picture on Facebook is me dancing with them (one of them is my primary dance partner, who I also have in my profile picture). I have girls tagging and sharing photos of me and them dancing together, asking me to dance, and telling me they love dancing with me and that I'm one of their favorite partners. And these aren't just any girls. These are some of the best dancers and most attractive girls I know. Needless to say, as a guy and as a dancer, this is thrilling to me. I just love the idea that these girls want to dance with ME.
I mean, let's analyze this a bit. I'm not the most attractive guy at the bar. I'm not six feet tall and 175 pounds, with model-good looks. So, while I know I'm not the best dancer at the place, the reason these girls are wanting to dance with me has to be because of my dancing style and ability (and maybe a little of my nice personality). And to think that they want to dance with me despite the fact that they may not necessarily find me physically attractive (or even be taller than them) makes me feel good, and gives me a good amount of confidence (more on that in a bit). It also says a lot about the character of the girls I'm dancing with.
Alright, time for a disclaimer. While it is thrills the heck out of me that I seem to be so desired as a dance partner, particularly by some of the best dancers I know and most attractive girls I know, I don't mean to sound arrogant, cocky, or full of myself. While I love being desired, and love all the compliments I get about my dancing (both two step and line dance), I keep my feet on the ground and don't let it get to my head. While I may try to show off a bit (particularly with line dancing), for the most part I'm just going out and doing what I love and having a good time. I'm also a competitive person, and I look at dancing as a sport, so I'm constantly trying to practice out there and get better and execute my moves as best as I can.
Additionally, these girls who I'm dancing with are not just random girls or people I meet once or twice and never see again. They're my friends. They may be great dancers and they may be attractive, but they're also very nice. They're fun to interact with, I see them more-or-less all the time, some of them I've known for a year or longer.
Also, I know I'm not the best dancer at these places (either two step or line dance). I have friends who are certainly better than me. And while I may have a few girls who consider me their favorite or primary dance partner, I know that for most of the girls I dance with, I'm one of several dance partners they have, and that they probably don't prefer me over anyone else.
Also, sort of a side note, it's taken a long time for me to get to this point. I've been dancing every week for almost two and a half years now, and it's only probably within the last year or so that I've gotten to the point where I've had what I would call a semi-established dance partner. Part of that was because I was afraid to ask and was probably less proactive about asking girls to dance, period, in the first year or so, and also because I've met more and more girls as time has gone on (both in general and girls who I've found to be really good dancers). But it's also because it takes time to get better, and to get to the level (or close to it) of the best dancers at these places, and to be able to lead well and teach the moves to girls who don't already know them. I dance all the time, hence I'm consistently getting better. I guess that adds up and pays off, because I'm probably better now than I've ever been, which (combined with how many girls I've met and danced with) maybe explains the number of girls who want to dance with me and the number of girls I have that I consider quality dance partners.
I should also mention that I owe a lot to a few friends of mine who have taught me most of the moves I do during two step. I've taken several lessons and received help and tips and instruction from several people, but the three people I feel that I owe the most gratitude to are my friends Donny, Savannah, and Alina. Donny is one of the best male dancers I know, and Savannah and Alina, who dance with Donny often, are two of the best female dancers I know. While I did not learn the basic two step from them (I learned that most recently from a lady by the name of Candy, thank you Candy!), they taught me a style of dance called country swing. This is the style of dance I do during two step, and almost all the moves I do are ones I learned from them. So big thanks to all three of them!
Lastly, as I alluded to earlier, one really nice benefit of all the positive attention I'm getting for my dancing (both two step and line dance) is the confidence it gives me. The fact that I get to dance with and am desired as a dance partner by so many attractive girls gives me confidence as a man, which is great and helpful, cause the fact of the matter is, I struggle sometimes with self-consciousness and even maybe a bit with self-esteem because of my looks. So to think that I have these beautiful girls that enjoy dancing with me helps me out a bit in that respect. It may just be dancing and not dating, but nevertheless, it gives me confidence (and who knows, maybe that success will carry over into dating too). And the fact that I get complimented so often on my dancing gives me confidence in general, which, right or wrong, has resulted in me priding myself on my dancing ability.
So, when it comes to my dancing life (and my life in general), life is good right now. I'm confident and happy, looking forward to the next great night of dancing (and even the prospect of dating). Maybe I'm not the best dancer, and maybe I'm making this dance-partner-desiredness thing into more than it really is, but nevertheless, it's fun to be wanted :-)
Friday, November 2, 2012
One of the Most Beautiful Places I've Ever Been
Today (November 2nd) marks the three year anniversary of the day that I loaded up my truck and drove 975 miles to move to a small town by the name of Driggs in southeast Idaho. The town has a population of only a thousand or so people, two fast food places, a couple gas stations, and the nearest bowling alley and indoor movie theater are an hour away. Why on earth then would I want to move there? I moved there for a job (housekeeping at a ski resort in Wyoming), but that was just the means for me to fulfill a bigger purpose and passion of mine: To experience living (for at least an entire winter) in a place that has a real winter climate.
I have a fascination/passion for winter weather. Cold, snow, I love it. Give me freezing temperatures (even subzero), snow-covered landscapes with snow on the ground all winter, snow falling nearly every week (sometimes feet at a time), and I'm a happy man. This may sound crazy. Most people, both those from here in southern California, and those who live elsewhere, hate winter weather. People from all over the country move to places like southern California, with it's "ideal" climate, to get AWAY from winter weather. But that may be a big part of the reason why I love it [winter weather] and gravitate toward it--I've grown up with it. Southern California really does have what most consider an ideal climate; 75 and Sunny is a pretty accurate stereotype for the weather here. I'd say it's arguably the best, most ideal climate in the entire U.S., including Hawaii.
And therein lies the problem for me. I'm used to the same wonderful weather all year long, with little-to-no real cold in the winter, no snow, and hardly any precipitation of any kind. It makes things comfortable for sure, and easy to live in, but for whatever reason, I'm drawn to cold and snow. Many of you may be thinking 'Ok, well you have cold and snow only an hour or two away up in the mountains. That's the beauty of southern California, you're close to everything!' This is true, but the cold isn't as cold as other places, and the snow isn't as frequent (or as light and dry as places like Wyoming). Plus, I don't want to just be able to visit the snow, I want to LIVE IN IT. Really, I do. I find it enjoyable to be outside in bitterly cold temperatures, deal with road closures, put on and take off four layers of clothing, and spend time shoveling my driveway. I may not enjoy these activities while I'm doing them, but beforehand and certainly in retrospect, I do.
This was one of the most, if not the most, beautiful places I've ever been. Located in an alpine valley 6,000+ feet above sea level with a mountain range in the middle (and at least two others nearby), Teton Valley, Idaho (and Wyoming, the county apparently crosses the state line, or just has the same name) is a spectacularly scenic place. Speaking specifically of the Idaho side where the town of Driggs is located, you have wide open flat land all around, but also have mountains very close by in three different directions. There are two national parks (Grand Teton and Yellowstone) within a few hours drive. Snow covers the landscape in the winter, temperatures can be below zero in the morning, and may not reach freezing if it's between December and February (sometimes some really cold air will come in and it won't get out of the single digits all day). The snow is light and dry, which makes it (I assume) easier to move if you have to (e.g., shoveling), and makes it great for winter recreation activities like skiing and snowboarding.
Speaking of which, the recreation opportunities here (all seasons of the year) abound. Focusing specifically on winter, you have skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, ice climbing, ice fishing, and even dog sledding are all available nearby. And the mountains receive up to 500+ inches of snow per year, which I love (that's among the top in the country). Personally, I participated in all of the above activities except snowshoeing, ice fishing, and dog sledding (but I wanted to do all of them).
I could talk to you all day about this beautiful place and my amazing winter recreation experiences there, but the most effective way to communicate it would be through pictures. I have a few on Facebook, but my best ones are not. I'll have to look into changing that.
But before I finish, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the people and the culture of the town and the area. When it comes to people, there aren't many. Like I said, the town of Driggs is about 1,600; the two closest towns, Tetonia and Victor (both in Idaho) are even smaller. Jackson, WY (about an hour to the east) is about 8,000, and Rexburg, ID (about an hour to the west) is about 25,000. It's funny, it just occurred to me that you could combine the populations of all of these towns (plus Wilson, WY, a town on the way from Driggs to Jackson) and it probably wouldn't even be half the population of Burbank (CA), my hometown. But though the populations may be small, and consequently the entertainment be limited (other than outdoor recreation activities, which all are pretty much limited to the daytime), it's still a cool place to live. The people are nice and friendly, and the culture is much like what I assume is the case in small towns in other parts of the country, such as the midwest and the south. This of course excites me, because with my love of country music, I love to think that I lived in a type of town and experienced the type of culture and lifestyle described in country songs. Speaking of country music, they like it and have it there. I heard it playing as background music in stores, found a country station on the radio, and even found a country bar over in Jackson, WY.
All in all, Driggs, ID and the surrounding area is a beautiful and nice place to live. It's a little too slow for me to enjoy at my current age (unless maybe I was married or moved there with a roommate), but in another 10 or 20 years, I could see myself possibly moving there or someplace like it, either to retire or maybe to start a new life. But regardless of whether I ever end up living there again, I definitely want to visit, because the beauty of that place has left an indelible memory in my mind.
.
I have a fascination/passion for winter weather. Cold, snow, I love it. Give me freezing temperatures (even subzero), snow-covered landscapes with snow on the ground all winter, snow falling nearly every week (sometimes feet at a time), and I'm a happy man. This may sound crazy. Most people, both those from here in southern California, and those who live elsewhere, hate winter weather. People from all over the country move to places like southern California, with it's "ideal" climate, to get AWAY from winter weather. But that may be a big part of the reason why I love it [winter weather] and gravitate toward it--I've grown up with it. Southern California really does have what most consider an ideal climate; 75 and Sunny is a pretty accurate stereotype for the weather here. I'd say it's arguably the best, most ideal climate in the entire U.S., including Hawaii.
And therein lies the problem for me. I'm used to the same wonderful weather all year long, with little-to-no real cold in the winter, no snow, and hardly any precipitation of any kind. It makes things comfortable for sure, and easy to live in, but for whatever reason, I'm drawn to cold and snow. Many of you may be thinking 'Ok, well you have cold and snow only an hour or two away up in the mountains. That's the beauty of southern California, you're close to everything!' This is true, but the cold isn't as cold as other places, and the snow isn't as frequent (or as light and dry as places like Wyoming). Plus, I don't want to just be able to visit the snow, I want to LIVE IN IT. Really, I do. I find it enjoyable to be outside in bitterly cold temperatures, deal with road closures, put on and take off four layers of clothing, and spend time shoveling my driveway. I may not enjoy these activities while I'm doing them, but beforehand and certainly in retrospect, I do.
This was one of the most, if not the most, beautiful places I've ever been. Located in an alpine valley 6,000+ feet above sea level with a mountain range in the middle (and at least two others nearby), Teton Valley, Idaho (and Wyoming, the county apparently crosses the state line, or just has the same name) is a spectacularly scenic place. Speaking specifically of the Idaho side where the town of Driggs is located, you have wide open flat land all around, but also have mountains very close by in three different directions. There are two national parks (Grand Teton and Yellowstone) within a few hours drive. Snow covers the landscape in the winter, temperatures can be below zero in the morning, and may not reach freezing if it's between December and February (sometimes some really cold air will come in and it won't get out of the single digits all day). The snow is light and dry, which makes it (I assume) easier to move if you have to (e.g., shoveling), and makes it great for winter recreation activities like skiing and snowboarding.
Speaking of which, the recreation opportunities here (all seasons of the year) abound. Focusing specifically on winter, you have skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, ice climbing, ice fishing, and even dog sledding are all available nearby. And the mountains receive up to 500+ inches of snow per year, which I love (that's among the top in the country). Personally, I participated in all of the above activities except snowshoeing, ice fishing, and dog sledding (but I wanted to do all of them).
I could talk to you all day about this beautiful place and my amazing winter recreation experiences there, but the most effective way to communicate it would be through pictures. I have a few on Facebook, but my best ones are not. I'll have to look into changing that.
But before I finish, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the people and the culture of the town and the area. When it comes to people, there aren't many. Like I said, the town of Driggs is about 1,600; the two closest towns, Tetonia and Victor (both in Idaho) are even smaller. Jackson, WY (about an hour to the east) is about 8,000, and Rexburg, ID (about an hour to the west) is about 25,000. It's funny, it just occurred to me that you could combine the populations of all of these towns (plus Wilson, WY, a town on the way from Driggs to Jackson) and it probably wouldn't even be half the population of Burbank (CA), my hometown. But though the populations may be small, and consequently the entertainment be limited (other than outdoor recreation activities, which all are pretty much limited to the daytime), it's still a cool place to live. The people are nice and friendly, and the culture is much like what I assume is the case in small towns in other parts of the country, such as the midwest and the south. This of course excites me, because with my love of country music, I love to think that I lived in a type of town and experienced the type of culture and lifestyle described in country songs. Speaking of country music, they like it and have it there. I heard it playing as background music in stores, found a country station on the radio, and even found a country bar over in Jackson, WY.
All in all, Driggs, ID and the surrounding area is a beautiful and nice place to live. It's a little too slow for me to enjoy at my current age (unless maybe I was married or moved there with a roommate), but in another 10 or 20 years, I could see myself possibly moving there or someplace like it, either to retire or maybe to start a new life. But regardless of whether I ever end up living there again, I definitely want to visit, because the beauty of that place has left an indelible memory in my mind.
.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Nashville/CMA Fest- Days 13-17 & Trip Conclusion
This week (June 11-15) was the second part of my trip outside of the festival week--the week after the festival. My purpose for staying this far after the festival was that I wanted to experience Nashville outside of the festival and see what it's like on a normal week. I also wanted to use it to accomplish some things with songwriting. Now being home and having experienced it, I'd say I accomplished both of those goals.
I don't know if this was a perfectly accurate example of a typical week in Nashville, but if it was, then Nashville is a pretty cool place to be. It's obviously not as busy as during the festival, and not all the bars are busy at all times on all the nights, but they were still pretty busy and stayed open til after 2am. There was still great music and good times and familiar faces.
In terms of songwriting, I didn't accomplish a ton this week, but I was fine with that. What I did do was go to a one-on-one mentoring session at NSAI, and meet a few more songwriters and industry people and hand out a few more business cards. I was going to also go to the weekly workshop at NSAI, but I ended up deciding not to go.
Now for the concluding remarks about my trip....
This was a wonderful trip. I had lots of fun and got to experience lots of great things and see and hear some great music. There were some points, just like I normally experience in my life, where I got a bit down or unhappy. This was (and usually is) mostly because I was lonely and not receiving the attention and affection that I desire from girls, or because I like a girl and feel (based somewhat on assumption) that she is not interested in me as more than a friend. This negativity and loneliness gets fueled a lot with the kind of lifestyle I live (on this trip and at home) where I'm at bars all the time and seeing all these attractive girls, some of whom I'm friends with, and seeing them giving affection to other guys, leaving me wishing I was them [the guys] and feeling like I have no chance with them [the girls].
Ok, back to the positive. This trip really was predominantly positive. And the biggest reason for this is the amazing people I met and became friends with. I've talked about it extensively, and it really was the headline of my trip. I was so fortunate to meet Bob, Wendy, Caitlin and Todd a couple nights into my trip, and from there be invited and continually introduced to more people in their group of friends. There's a lot of them, and every one of them was so nice, inviting, friendly, and welcoming to me. From what I've heard, it sounds like they really like me and enjoyed meeting me. They were so generous and took care of me and really showed it. Was their kindness at all motivated by pity, sympathy or charity (motives I always worry about when people are extraordinarily nice to me and which I strongly dislike and hope against)? I don't know (and like with anyone else I feel like I can't blame them if they were, and I'm sure they had pure motives regardless). But I'm going to choose to assume this was not the case, and assume instead that they are just extraordinarily nice and kind people. Again, from what I've heard, they really liked me and felt that I was a really nice guy. So I'm going to go off of that.
I'm very thankful for their kindness and friendship, and I plan on telling them so (and have done so a bit already). I really enjoyed hanging out with them literally almost every day, and look forward to doing so again in the future. They changed my trip and gave it a whole new shape and outcome. I spent much less time going to concerts and seeing all the live music during the festival than I originally planned, largely because I enjoyed hanging out with them and didn't want to leave them. It may sound a bit like a waste (financially at least), but the trip kinda ended up consisting less of me spending time involved in the festival, and more of me just hanging out and going out with these friends and drinking and stuff with them (albeit I'm sure more often than they usually go out). But like I said before about skipping most of the stadium concerts during the festival, I don't regret my decision and the way I spent my time. I'm sure I could and would have had fun on this trip if I had spent more time around the music or if I hadn't met them. But I think I had more fun with them. I would've been doing the music stuff largely by myself, and here, for one of the few times in my life recently, I (at least somewhat) realized and chose the companionship and fun of hanging out with people, instead of solitarily participating in interests I have. It may be worth noting that a significant part of my desire to hang out with these friends is that I view them as cool and popular and attractive (especially the girls), qualities that I tend to gravitate toward, perhaps because of my own insecurity and self-consciousness due to my appearance. But I don't want to knock them by saying this. Although I may have had somewhat self-serving motives for hanging out with them, they are all really nice and good and generous people, and treated me so well, for which I am so thankful.
So in the end, my trip consisted less of a typical CMA Fest experience, and more just going out and hanging with and making friends, which I found to be very fun. We'll see, maybe next year I'll sell my tickets for the stadium show and the Fan Fair Hall (unless maybe I have someone coming with me) and just go to the free shows and hang out with my friends. But as far as this year's trip, it was amazing, and I'm so glad to have so many new friends.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)