Saturday, September 4, 2010

Beginning

There's no way for me to pass this off as something other than what it is: a self-gratifying means for me to exercise my writing skills and discipline myself to regularly translate my thoughts and the daily occurrences of my life into words.

I'm a writer. But I'm not a very good one. And, by that, I mean that I'm not very dedicated to being that which I claim to be. I don't really deserve to rank myself among those who call themselves "writers," because I don't write on a consistent basis.

Yet.

On this day, as I round out a full quarter century of existence on this planet, I begin a project--embodied and allied in this very website--to think more deliberately and actively about whatever the hell it is I'm supposed to be doing with myself now that I guess I've basically made it to adulthood. Every day, for 365 days, I will compose and post a new entry that attempts to reflect on my current situation in life and thereby assists me in assessing my progress toward creative, professional, and relational goals. But, because this is not a private diary but a public weblog, I will not, for the sake of my readers and my own reputation, allow myself to dwell in self-berating and pessimistic drivel but to comment positively and progressively on whatever topic is at hand.

To catch everyone up to date: exactly one month ago I returned to my childhood home in San Diego after having spent two years living and working abroad as an assistant English teacher in the small city of Moka, Japan. Since this seems to be the first item people always inquire about once they hear where I was: Yes, I can speak Japanese now, but not very well. I enjoyed living in Japan, but life there was also very difficult. For lack of a better word, I "grew" a lot while I was there. If you want to know more about my time in Moka, I recommend taking a peek at this blog.

Over the past month, I have not begun the search for a new job. And I do not intend to begin it quite yet, as there are still quite a lot of fun things I want to do and places I want to visit before I once again submit myself to the yoke of employment. It is possible for me to live like this for the time being, since I was able to save up quite a lot while working in Japan; but, in a couple of months, it will be time for me to start seeking a consistent means of income.

A goal I have set for myself this year is to enter graduate school, or at least set the course to do so. At this moment, I desire to pursue a Masters in Intercultural Studies, and I have a fairly good feeling that I will continue to desire as much for as long as is necessary for me to carry out that goal.

Though both these items fall under the category of "vocational" goals, they promise to have significant influence on the more personal, emotional, and creative aspects of my life. I am grateful to anyone who is willing to accompany me on this ambitious attempt to "figure it out," and to construct myself into a writer in the process.


Cheers!

(Free coffee because it was my birthday! Woohoo! This year is off to a good start!)

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