My Own Slice of the Earth

I sometimes feel like my life is a merry-go-round. I never did care for rollercoasters too much. While life is fast moving and the scenery frequently changes , I seem to re-visit periods of my life, revolving hobbies and interests, and friends come and go only to make an appearance on the next revolution.

For instance, my wife and I took a family vacation to Boston for 4th of July. I missed a phone call and when I checked messages, it was from a phone number I wasn't remotely familiar with. Plus, I forgot to change my plan to a national plan and I didn't care to pay ten dollars to check a message I thought would turn out to be a wrong number. Well, curiosity got the better of me and the message was from my college roommate who had tracked down my parents (not difficult to do - they've been in the same house for twenty years) and got my cell phone number. I hadn't spoken to him since our wedding reception four, almost five, years ago so I knew this was a call that would take plenty of time to return. I finally waited until today when I had unlimited minutes and I wouldn't feel rushed. Like I said, it took the merry-go-round four years to make its circle, but it finally did and I'm glad.

My story isn't too interesting but it is mine, all mine. After working in politics for the past five years or so, I decided to make a change. I now work for a non-profit in Dallas. The same month, we got a house in the suburbs. No kids, but we do have Logan the Dog, age five. I'm constantly trying to expand my interests and views, so my passions change with the wind. Last month, it was learning the stars and constellations. I bought a pair of high-powered binocs and every night for two hours, I would lay on the blanket in the back yard and attempt to identify what was above. I haven't given that up- only found the next thing.

I read, watch sports (baseball, golf, and college anything), do yardwork on the weekends, and try to keep up with technology, which is a challenge for me. Since I have no mechanical inclinations, I often feel inferior and incapable of learning new technology-related advancements. But I conquered my scanner and now feel incomplete without my iPod so I'm ready for the next step. I've read a few blogs from people I know and try to keep up with and thought they were pretty cool. Not to mention, I have been meaning to keep a journal of sorts for the past several months. Kinda like mixing peanut butter and chocolate. I can do something technological and keep a journal (of sorts). I don't lead a particularly interesting life, but every once in a while I do have a random thought or experience I'd like to share.

What finally inspired me (and this is so pathetic but meant to be flattering) was somebody I barely knew (even less than that, actually) fifteen years ago. I was checking out different blogs and I came across somebody from my previous hometown of Wimberley who has her own blog. Now, I have no reasonable expectation that she remembers me at all- it took me a while to come up with a name even after seeing a picture. She was a year younger than me (probably still is) and we hung out in completely different crowds back then. Anyway, her blog was witty, clever, and made me feel like there was a new world to conquer. So to my inspiring merry-go-round person from fifteen years ago, thank you.