Ring In The New Year

In four days, it will be a brand new year. With that comes a clean new slate. Right? At least that's what we are all meant to believe. Now is about the time we start making those new year's resolutions. Resolutions to get slimmer, smarter, richer and laid more. Instead of making resolutions I think we need to gear up. Acknowledge the obstacles ahead of us and what needs to be accomplished in order to achieve a goal. The hard thing for me this coming year is that it's going to be my first year out of school. Going into every new year, the only thing I had to tell myself was to get all A's. You can't do better than all A's. But here I am on the cusp of 2011 with good grades no longer a priority. What's there to accomplish? I guess I can think of a few things.

I've got to work on making more money and saving it. The free ride I've got going in Gainesville can only last so long. I'll have to start paying rent soon and I can't do that only working my one job at the moment. Especially considering that I've received two bounced paychecks from my company since I started in September. I'll have to look for a second job in order to really start taking care of myself. I'm not doing that working 20 hours a week and making $8 an hour.
With two jobs, I'll have to be stricter on how I spend my time. That means no more laying to waste in front of the television. I need to be either making a paycheck or working on my writing. My leisure time will be reserved for pro wrestling and baseball once that's back in season. This is growing up.

I'll have to find new ways to comfort myself. My girlfriend of two years is moving back in with her parents and that means having to do a long distance relationship. That blows. I've done LDR before and it all couldn't have ended any worse than it did. All my friends who ever did LDR didn't make it out except one and she broke up with her boyfriend two or three times over that stretch. It's hard to remain optimistic when your experience is marred by unpleasant memories.
I'll miss her very much and I'll just have to lean on my friends more to keep from going crazy. This means being the third wheel for many of my friends who are couples. If you're reading this Sandra and Brian, get use to saying, "table for three," when you go to T.G.I. Friday's.

I've got to find more to do comedy wise. I've been doing stand up for a full year now and I feel myself getting stronger. Makes me want to go out of town and do open mics, just to see if I can connect with crowds who I know haven't seen my shit before. I think it will only help build up my confidence.

I've got to go back to school. Yeah, I said this is going to be a year where grades won't be a priority but I already miss being a college student. Also, you can't make any real money with a bachelor's degree anymore so I've got to get my Master's. I'm going to apply for grad school at Cal State. I have a great friend who lives out there. Plus, it's ripe for me to continue my stand up and other creative ventures. This may also be a product of me being sick of my old space. I could use a change of scenery. I love you, Florida but I'm afraid I'm starting to outgrow you. Sooner or later I've got to move on.

I want 2011 to be my year. A year in which I not only experience change, but also growth. I wish the same for all of you.

"You got two jobs; kiss good, and make sure my hair don't get wet."

A Decent Year

Hey everybody. I've been slacking in the blog entries as of late because there was a bunch I needed to get sorted out in my head and I didn't know how to articulate it in writing. I'm currently back home for the holidays as I'm sure a lot of you are. The vacation is sure to do me some good. 10 days where I don't have to worry about the present. This is me taking a 10 day break from the town that has become my world. The town of Gainesville. Gainesville has became the nucleus to my way of life. The chance to get away from it is a chance to put my mind on auto pilot. Yet, I continue to plot because a new year dawns upon us. Before I lay out my new year's resolutions I need to take a look back at everything I've accomplished in 2010.

First and foremost, I graduated from college. That's what sparked this blog. What with me and the post-grad blues. Graduating college is a four and for some a five year effort. This alone makes 2010 a year to remember. I only wish I had graduated with a degree in something other than English. Looking back, I should've done Telecommunications. I was already akin to the workings of a television studio and there are a few courses that allowed to do video projects. My friend Tim is a Telecom major and he made a buddy cop film as his final project. How I envy him. I only took one film production course and it was only experimental. We weren't allowed to make narrative films. I did some good work in that class but nothing like I really wanted to do. But going back to my original point; woo college.

I made some strides in my stand up performance. I feel a make for a great MC now. I also got to headline for my first time. I also got to do a ton of other things outside of stand up. I got to write and host my own talk show entitled People We Know with Wiley Albatross. I played a mild mannered television show host who through each interview process, finds out his guests are complete lunatics. It went over exactly how I had planned it.

I honestly feel I am a strong writer. Getting to do a project like that only boasts my confidence and makes me believe I'm destined for greater things. 2011 may just be the time for me to really break out.

2010 also gave me a slew of work experience. Between working the bakery at a Dunkin Donuts and being an office lackey, I did some things I never did before. The Dunkin Donuts gig will never go down on my resume though. Not with the way I unabashedly walked out of there. But the experience of working in an office is definitely helpful. Even if that office is probably a drug front. The explanation of that is worth an entirely new blog entry if not a brand new 15 minute routine. Work experience and education are the key to a successful foundation.

That's 2010 in a nut shell. I've got big plans for 2011. Especially because 2011 will come with even more bills to pay. Right now I'm waiting for that moment where I feel like I've got life by the balls.

"That's the answer to the riddle. Because that's what an 8000 pound mako thinks about. About freedom. About the deep blue sea."