Timelines

(jumping on this bandwagon, which has been circling amongst the journals lately...)


Timelines


**25 years ago**
1980: I was five and enjoying my last couple months of pre-school. I was to start kindergarten in the fall. I'd returned in January with my parents from a rather dangerous vacation to Hawaii where we landed in Honolulu just prior to a hurricane hitting the island. We spent the first night in Hawaii on cots in the baggage claim area of the airport because the roads were too unsafe to drive. All I envision from that trip was the sight of the sliding doors to the baggage claim being blown open more than once.


**20 years ago**
1985: The year of nearly ALL of the movies of my childhood. The year where my parents finally decided that I could go to the movies with a friend on my own. I must have seen Back to the Future four or five times in the theater. A Chorus Line introduced me to Broadway (beyond Annie). Cocoon's theme song got stuck (and to this day, still gets stuck) in my head. My recitation of "one plus two plus two plus one" began that year while watching Clue. Goonies WERE Good Enough. The Journey of Natty Gann introduced me to a softer side of the Depression, as well as a young drool-worthy actor named John Cusack. Witness fascinated me, since my grandmother lived next door to an Amish family. And by the end of that year, I was attempting to imitate Gregory Hines' solo tap routine in White Nights... and had it down as best as a ten year old could.


**15 years ago**
1990: I get my driver's license, and my father rejoices not having to shuttle me around to dance class and piano lessons. To this day, i don't know what the HELL my father was thinking allowing me, the 15-year-old, to drive the SPORTS CAR to school. But hey, it was cool. I transitioned from freshman to sophomore year. I was well into my first long-term relationship with Darren, the Good Mormon (when it suited him to play that role), and the tight circle of Mormon-only friends around me was fairly set by the end of that year-- a development that in hindsight played much more of a role in my religious development than I would care to admit... and in a way that they would definitely not have liked, if they were still in contact with me.

By this time, my parents had been divorced for a year. Mom was living in Danville, California, and was transitioning to having no kids in the house when my brother had decided to move back to Montana. As an adult, I can see how painful that was to her. At the time, though, I was such a clueless teenager absorbed in my own world that the only thing I saw was the annoyance of Scott's return to the house.


**10 years ago**
1995: Now living in Boston, I'm a sophomore in college, well-settled into my quiet little corner of Warren Tower's 11C. I meet Jason, and most of the rest of the Boston crew that I'm still in contact with. I've been a member of TBS now for about a year, and the struggle to survive is on. Ivanna and I begin our close friendship.

And I've become completely, utterly addicted to the X-Files.

No. Really. Let's discuss disturbing addictions (and poorly written, sappy, teenagery fanfic). Heh.


**5 years ago**
2000: I started out the year with a vicious case of pneumonia and a high fever that made me think it was a great idea to go wandering around Boston after midnight in my PJ's and Birkenstocks in the last hours of First Night. It was below zero, and steadily dropping to the coldest windchills I've yet experienced in the city (neg fifty by mid-January).

2000 was a dark, dark year, and I honestly don't remember all that much of it past that illness at the end of 1999 into 2000. I was ill for a good portion of the year, due to that bout of pneumonia. I think I had a dry cough well into May. That was nothing compared to what was going on in my head.

I'm 25... three years out of college, and my life was a complete wreck. I spent a lot of it crying and swearing at myself for being a fuck up. I was still trying to get past the grieving and anger from three years prior. I shut everything out, and everyone down. It probably wasn't the best choice, but at the time it seemed like the only one I could manage to do.

I was horribly lonely, living in my Blackwood Street studio apartment (aka The Beast), and feeling like life was completely worthless. I'm convinced that the reason why Colley is so laid back and pliable as a cuddle cat was because I forced him to be a living stuffed animal that year-- he got cuddled. A lot.

I change jobs halfway through the year, and it's a turning point that starts putting things back on track.

It's strange how things turned around in a year. It really, truly is, looking back. I'm not sure how the hell it happened.


**3 years ago**
2002: I'm one year into my relationship with Erich, and both excited and scared to death about being in a good relationship. We move in together in August of that year into our current (but soon to be former) apartment. I'm coming to terms with myself and finally feeling like I'm getting a sense of who I am and who I want to be.

I'm introduced to NaNoWriMo, and rediscover my love of writing-- as poor as it can be at times. I manage to get to the 50,000 word goal. I know there's more to tell to the story, but I'm mentally exhausted by it as the holidays approach.

Christmas leads to a huge falling out with my father, which creates a very stressful 2003 in my relations with nearly all members of my family, immediate and extended. I don't talk to my dad at all until 2004. Extreme? Yes. But it needed to be done. For my sake.


**Last year**
Superbowl.
Happy 30th, Erich.
World Series.
Goddess, no. Four more?
Hmm... go Pats?

end of line.


**This year**
Mmmm... defintely Go Pats!

I turn 30.
We get engaged.
We put an offer and get said offer accepted on our first house

(all within a 65 day stretch)

No hurry or anything. ;)

We move in mid-June, and I no longer will be a Massachusetts Resident. Strange to think that.

What else can happen this year? Let's just say that we're being VERY careful with the protection stuff, eh? ;)


**Yesterday**
Worked all day, followed by a dinner of Scoops chips and garnished Velveeta cheese. And I was amazingly techy and figured out how to install a Php discussion board on my website. Erich says that I've outgeeked him.

I'm so proud!


**Today**
Spent the morning at home dealing with bank stuff. Working a half day. Will go home and finish up all of my owed organized swaps while Erich blows people up in the weekly Clan Night on Halo 2. Probably some brief cleaning, too, since my mom's coming for the weekend.


**Tomorrow**
Another day at work, followed by drinky things, catching up with an old college friend who I haven't seen in years, followed by a sneak preview showing of the still-in-post-production Serenity movie at the downtown Boston Loews theater.

And a very, very happy 30th birthday to Minarae, who has the odd celebration date of 05/05/05.