Towards the end of 2013 I saw a blog post that suggested writing down good moments as they happen throughout the year. What an adorable idea. I was really looking forward to measuring some of the progress and highlights of 2014 this totally sweet hipster pinterest way. Every time I put a slip in, I thought of the glorious New Year’s day I’d open them up and look back on the memories. Oh man. One year is not long enough to fix my life. I thought all those first dates and stressful interviews would pay off (I’m still trying to unlearn the theory that hardwork guarantees success and other harmful fairy tales of my childhood). I thought all those ups and downs would be viewed by a future me that had attained either a job or a partner, or some temporary version of one. Soooo here’s the adorable asshole jar:
Having a journal, a blog and hundreds of pictures wasn’t enough. Here’s my year in scraps of neon paper!
And here’s the annotated data which probably a bit redundant to anyone that’s read my blog (anyone?). Note: I left out the even more boring ones and the way too personal ones. My year was not as bleak as this timeline suggests. But….my blog, my filters, my edits, my narrative, my innocents to protect.
1/1 Made plans to go to New Year’s Party and followed through. Spent the countdown with friends. (Declined to return this year. What is the point of a party where you don’t know anyone, can’t hear anyone speak and don’t drink enough to dance.)
1/13 Joined okc maybe it’ll lead somewhere, maybe not
1/16 Asked in for an interview at (doesn’t matter anymore)
1/22 Went to job interview. Did my best.
1/23 Taught valentine’s day card making class while uber-depressed. (These are the details I’m glad I wrote down, I would have never remembered that.)
1/29 Phone job interview, moved on to next round
1/30 Sent pic of self to ****. (It was what I considered to be naughty). Yay for trying new things. (It’s now available to anyone who sees my dating profile.)
2/1 Great date, cupcakes with *****(yeah…..she never responded)
2/3 Had a superb second interview! (never heard back)
3/6 Date w/ pretty girl. 2.5 hours at (ice cream shop, we had a second date and for whatever reason, I forgot to right down the date, never heard back).
4/4 Four cavities filled but no root canal. Good times please come
5/4 Blown off by 3 dates 3 days in a row. Didn’t smash bitchy bride’s skull. (Not typically something I’d even write down I must have been PISSED).
5/12 Unexpected phone interview with (some place that never got back to me). Moved onto next round.
5/14 Interview with !@#$% (it was to volunteer, which I’m still doing.)
5/15 Amazing interview for dream job. Maybe I won’t get this job but at least there’s dreams.
5/20 Sent in references. Basking in Possibility. Dangerous hope.
6/2 Breakfast Date w/ (let’s be friends, do you want to sleep together? ugh).
6/6 turned 29. Birthday not bad. Not as lonely. (Date cancelled on me that night and I happened to get sick and cancel all plans but seriously it was the best birthday I’d had in ages.)
6/9 Long Day. Inventory + wedding invites. Came home and had an amazing chat with $#$ :). Maybe this is what it feels like?
6/19 Finally went on date with @#$. Best date of my life so far. If nothing else-that.
6/28 Dinner with %$#! 2nd date
This was about my mid year climax: I interviewed twice for an awesome job that seemed to be a real possibility and I had met somebody that I was super into. Both fell through.
7/5 My head hurts. I got my expectations up too fast. Probably doesn’t belong here. But nothing can distract me enough right now.
Pilgrimage (no not really):
7/8-7/24 Drove 3,000+ miles on a road trip.
8/14 First night at # #$%^^% street. Moved, furniture constructed, basement painted.
8/16 Date w/ (lost touch). Went very well. She’s adorable!
9/14 Date w/ (lost touch).
9/19 Date with (talked to all summer about life and then never saw again after first meeting).
Slips on the dating and job front are entirely absent from this point on in the year because this is when the two collided. That is a separate post because I’m still dealing with it. But cautionary tale: if your boss pursues a semi flirtatious inappropriate relationship with you outside of work, they might not be the right person to trust to make a distinction between appropriate and inappropriate, professional and unprofessional, ethical and unethical…things you say to a friend and things you say to a lover. And, no matter how hard someone seems to want to know about your passions, only engage in a discussion about institutionalized racism if you can handle the potential wrath it incites. And, in this case, burnt bridges between you and a job you had for 2.5 years.
Bull Dyker 