2011: A Year in Review

      2011 Has marked a critical year in my life. It's been my first year Fully employed, and I'm extremely thankful for that. The choice I had to make a year ago between a job that made big money vs. a job that I loved doing. Most people would have chosen the first one if they looked at it just by the numbers. But I had something else sway me the other way. After trying to make the big corporate standard engineering job work, I found that it just wasn't worth it. Sure you'd make good money but you'd waste it all by the time you had it in hand. Your mental health is worth a lot more than you think as well.

       It's also been a year of great change.
Halfway through the year, I chose to move to a nicer area, forgoing cheaper rent, longer commutes, a garage - all of the sake of sanity as well. When you've lived in Texas with a house without A/C, heat, a kitchen, and only one working restroom, things can only go up from there. Again, another choice arises - do you stay cheaper and farther out? Cheaper with roommates and an apartment complex? After having bad experiences with both of them, I decided to go even more upscale than before. A place that is essentially a standalone 1-1, with all the amenities like a kitchen and my own washer and dryer.

       This choice in housing changed my lifestyle - I was going out less, spending less eating out, spending less on gas. Personal improvement was the focus, via cooking, working out, and keeping a clean and functional living area. Those skills were never as ironed out as they are now - and I guess it's because those places I lived at before didn't nurture that development. So I'll most likely stay until I get those parts dialed in.

       This year has seen me through some interesting relationships as well. Those relationships helped me understand more about myself, and what I want in a partner. But more so, it also showed me what I didn't want as well, and how to detect it quicker. Knowledge is everything, and you learn it fast especially if it hurts. Not always the preferred, but sometimes that's what's needed.

        I'm curious to see what next year brings. The year has a had a lot of ups and downs - emotionally, financially, and living situation wise. However, those ups and downs made me even more knowledgeable and mature in my life, and at the end of the day that's exactly what I need.

       You sometimes don't have a choice as to what happens to you - but you ALWAYS have the choice on how to react to it. It's those choices that define who you are.

Have a Happy New Year, and let's welcome 2012 with everything we got!

 -David