Before I dig in to this post like a underpaid graveyard groundskeeper, I want to direct you guys to travel back in time with me to the end of 2008.
There are some pretty interesting things in that post, namely the part where Arnold Schwarzenegger apparently appears to me in some dream or vision or premonition or something and tells me that the upcoming year is going to suck.
Well guess what? Next time you have a premonition from Arnold Schwarzenegger, you better freakin' listen. The exact quote from my blog:
"2009 is going to be a big ass bottle of lemon juice splashed into my eyeballs with a fire hose."
Yeah, for the most part... it sure as hell was, Mr. Schwarzenegger.
This was a bit of a rough year in McClane Territory. While I could easily go through all the stupid decisions, mistakes, deaths, tragedies, missteps and screw ups, I'll instead carry a ten-ton bag of lessons learned into 2010. Because even though 2009 was a lame year all around, I did in fact learn some pretty awesome lessons.
See, I didn't really learn any important life lessons in 2008 to carry into the new year. 2008 was sort of the year that time forgot. I don't even remember what I DID in 2008. Was I trapped in some bunker that entire year while my robot clone was out living my life? Apparently it's shrouded in mystery or something.
I think it was pretty horrible, but I just let it go and buried it away.
I didn't take any valuable life knowledge into this year, I just sort of fell into it. I was pushed into this big pit of lions without any knives or guns or weapons. Schwarzenegger knew it. He knew I should have had at least a bo staff or something. But I didn't. I just wondered into 2009 like an escaped nursing home patient on the lamb. In a freakin' hospital gown.
Well, by God, not THIS time. 2009 put me through all kinds of hell, and that's what leads me into my NEXT statement:
2010 is going to be a whole world full of opportunity, excitement, change and personal achievements. I will experience diversity, death and challenges... but unlike 2009, I will meet any experience head on like a professional and turn every single setback into a strength.
I will endeavor to quickly remove any element in my life that's either holding me back, wasting my time, spitting negative energy at me like a fire hose or dropping red flags like an escaped special needs kid at a construction site.
Because 2009 was the year of red flags. And me carelessly ignoring them.
This year, if I see a red flag, even from a mile away, I will have already driven 10 miles around it and picked up a tasty milk shake from Hardee's en route.
I'm going to work super hard at my job in 2010 and learn as much as I can about an entirely new medium. For the first time in years, I have an opportunity to learn something 100% new in my career. That's a pretty exciting thought!
I'm going to invest more time in family. My grandad has been bouncing back and forth between hospitals and nursing homes throughout the past three months. Shattered hip, pneumonia, malnourishment, absolutely dementia and depression. It's incredibly tough to see a man go from a highly intelligent, thoughtful, amazingly talented and confident man to a guy who can't even remember your name, why you're there or where he is in the world. While lying in that hospital bed, he lives in dreams these days. Last week he was worrying himself sick about whether or not he'll be able to compete in a huge golf tournament in Texas.
I don't care where his mind is or what he sees. He's my grandad, he's an amazing human being, and I'm going to be there with him all the way 'til the end.
I'm going to stick close to my mother in 2010. She's one of the best friends I've ever had, and she's having to manage and deal with so many difficult things right now. In 2010 I will be her support, her life raft and her friend. Whatever she needs, she'll have it from me in a heartbeat.
There are a lot of other targets that I have my sights set on this year, but I'm not jinxing anything. Amidst all the chaos of finally wrapping up a year of crap in 2009, this new decade will bring success, confidence, new adventures and new perspectives.
In the month of January, 2000, I moved to a new city all by myself and re-built who I was from scratch. The first four years of this decade were incredible. If I knew then what I know now... the rest of it would have been just as great.
This time, I'm surrounded by amazing friends, an inspirational family and wonderful professional opportunities. I have bucket loads of lessons & changed perspectives in my pocket with an open mind full of ideas, aspirations and attainable goals.
My grandad might not be able to see this new decade coming, but he's inspired me more than he'll ever know to live it up, breathe it in and make it the best.
Here's to the future, y'all. Let's follow my friend Margaret's comment from the 2009 blog post:
"2010 is going to rock!"
Cheers!
-McClane V.2
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2010: Kickin' balls and takin' falls!
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