A Look Back at the Last Month

One month ago, I took one of the biggest risks in my life. I left a job in Rochester, NY, to head home to Denver. I didn't have a job, I didn't have much in my savings and I wasn't sure if Denver was even the right place to be going.

There were a lot of things happening to me internally that prompted the move. Above all, I missed my family. Working with people who had their families to go home to made me want that same thing. I missed being able to stop by for a home-cooked meal. I missed seeing the people I wanted to see whenever I wanted. True, my family was only a phone call away, but after four years, that just wasn't enough.

So I decided to hop in the car and drive my life back to Denver. All I can say is that things are working out. I am now working full time at KUSA/9News in Denver (that's the NBC station in town for those of you who don't know). I was first hired as an editor. Before even going through orientation, I have already been moved to the assignment desk. It is a full-time job with awesome benefits. I can honestly say that I am completely excited. I can use my editorial judgement in my work. I will be starting up classes in the fall at the University of Colorado at Denver. Moving back has also introduced me and reintroduced me to some great people, some which will become a much bigger part of my daily life.

Overall, I can say this was a great move mentally and professionally. This doesn't discount the move to Rochester. I learned more than I ever could have imagined about myself and the business. I also made some incredible friends who will forever be in my heart and soul. All I can say is listen to your heart and soul. Things happen for a reason. You just have to be open to change and ready to take a leap of faith.

Hesitation...

I have to admit, there was some hesitation on going back to Bismarck this past weekend. I wasn't so much worried about the people I was going to see, but worried about the emotions I was going to feel.

The people I saw are people I have been missing over the past year. They are people who I can lean on in a time of need and who are always around to hear my thoughts (even if we will never see eye to eye on some of them). They are the friends I made over the past three years in Bismarck and they are the ones who have stuck by me. They welcomed me with open arms. As my friend said, it was just like time was put on hold. Things just fell right into place and picked up where they left off.

The big revelation came to me in the shower (where I do most of my thinking) about this very topic. I realized I made plenty of memories in that city. Some of those memories involved people no longer a part of my life in one capacity or another. Those memories are worth remembering, but they aren't the only memories. There are plenty of other memories that outnumber the ones creating the hesitation. What I had to do is face those memories conjured up by certain locations - such as eating at the place of a first date or driving past the ex's house - and continue creating new memories.

Let me end by saying it was a great weekend. There are people I didn't get a chance to see and others I wanted to spend even more time with. I know, after this visit, I will be back many times over, creating new memories for years to come. As for those old memories, I will remember all of them, learning from them and growing.

What A Week...

I realize this post should have been posted on Wednesday, but it's been a crazy week of events. I can honestly say this has been and is one of the best weeks I've had in a VERY long time. The icing on the cake... Bismarck, ND.

So, Wednesday evening, my dad and I finally got my power window situation fixed. I had to log onto a Jeep forum to find the solution to the problem. Turns out a very common problem on Jeep Cherokees is that the master switch for the power windows starts thinking the windows are on child lock, thus making the windows operable from just the driver side. Well, after hours of working on it, we grounded that wire. As luck would have it, now the windows work! It is still being a little testy at the moment, but now each window operates on its own for the most part.

It got me thinking about the move home and the self-reflection I have been doing over the past few weeks. My last post referred to the windows in a way that was holding me back, leaving my life in the hands of another. Now, with the windows opening on their own, I do feel a sense of relief, of accomplishment and of freedom. I am no longer bogged down by one control determining how much air each window allows.

On top of that, and some of you may think I should have started the blog with this tidbit of news, I got a job! I am, what the news business calls, a Multimedia Journalist/Editor for the NBC station in Denver, Colorado. You may have heard of it. 9News. KUSA. THE best shop in town some may argue. Anyways, I start next week, as long as the background and drug screenings come back clean. I am extremely excited and extremely grateful for the job and everyone who was integral in making it happen. I won't be on the air, but I will be editing video from NBC National, in-house video and playing photographer and writer. I can say I am honestly blessed.

On top of all of that, a very, very good friend of mine is back in town visiting for the weekend. So, in true fashion, we wrangled up the original four to head out and paint the town red. We hadn't all been together in the same place for four years! Now, I am heading to Bismarck, ND, for a weekend of my own to see some very important people in my life. More on that when I get back!

The Stars

I spent my evening and night outside working on my car. (Yes, I can sometimes be very handy). I am trying to fix an electrical problem that prevents my passenger windows from being controlled by the people sitting in those seats. Needless to say, this has been a problem for quite some time. And given all this "free time" I currently have, I thought I would use it to my advantage. As I was calling it a night and putting the car back together, I looked up and saw something I hadn't seen, or maybe hadn't noticed, in a very long time - the Big Dipper.

It got me thinking about life over the past few years and how this electrical problem has mirrored life in Bismarck and Rochester. Each of those four windows represents something in my life, something about my character. One by one, each stopped working, until only the driver's side panel controlled them, leaving the passengers frustrated that they couldn't control those windows.

Looking back, that is how life was getting for me. I couldn't control those windows; I couldn't control certain parts of my life. I acted out, often inappropriately. I also fooled myself into believing that giving up on this, moving onto that or just focusing on one fantasy would give me that freedom again to control those windows. Needless to say, it left me feeling even more out of control, more helpless. My life was at the mercy of essentially one person, and it wasn't me. I let myself become wrapped up in a fictional story of a white picket fence, leaving reality to suffer.

As for the electrical problem, I might have to pay a pretty penny to get those windows working again. But I know that once each switch works on its own, life will be a little closer to the way it was before they decided to go out. Life has a funny way of going full-circle. Sometimes, however, you have to repair that circle to bring it back to its original glory.

Toy Story's Woody (yes, I went there) said, "Reach for the stars!" After all that has happened to me this past year, I starting to find it was hard to continue reaching. But I am slowly starting to settle into my life here in Denver, under the same sky as Bismarck and Rochester, but under more familiar stars.

Facebook and Friends

Something happened yesterday on Facebook that I am sure has happened to all of us. I had one less friend than I had the day before. I quickly went through my friends list. After a good five minute search, I realized who was missing. My ex's step-dad de-friended me.

Step-dad?!? You may be asking, "Why on earth would that matter?" But my gut instinct was to get upset and figure out why this had happened. Why was this so important to me?

After giving it some thought, I realized that it frankly doesn't matter. It's just another step in the process of life. But there was something else, something deeper in this meaning. It showed me that some people are in our lives, and in this case our Facebook lives, for one reason or another. My ex's step-dad was in my life only by association. He wasn't in my life because we were friends that would talk about cars, politics or life. We were two acquaintances who shared one common person.

Ex's aside, this does bring up an interesting thing about Facebook. Facebook, though important in keeping people up-to-date on all the happenings, has created a veil of anonymity. You no longer have to tell people to their faces you don't want to be friends or that there is something wrong with one or the other. Now, you just have to click two buttons. Two buttons. Seems a whole lot easier than ignoring or blocking or just telling them it is time to part ways.

I am not saying that you need to let someone know you are going to remove them as friends. There have been people I have added, never talked to and then removed without a simple hello or good-bye. My point is that you shouldn't get worked up over someone taking you off of his or her list. If it is someone important, pick up the phone and call. Find out what is wrong, or what their problem is.

Bottom line: Facebook is a great social tool that should be used as one of many tools to keep in touch with family and friends. And as far as ex's step-dad's go, best wishes!

Getting Started

Good Day All-

So, I have been talking about starting a blog for some time now. It seems I would get sidetracked once I got onto the computer and would never follow through. Well, I am starting one right now.

What to expect? You can expect everything from random thoughts and photos of the day to rants and raves. This is just a creative way to get all of my thoughts in my head on paper... er... or online.

Feel free to leave as many comments as you'd like.

Enjoy!

CG