OpenMike

Ch-ch-ch-changes…

Mike — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 23:45:30 +0000

Well, I know its been a few weeks since I last blogged. I promised myself I wasn’t going to let blogging fall by the wayside. Only I felt conflicted, as the biggest thing that’s currently happening in my life was something I wasn’t entirely comfortable sharing with the world. But I realized that this is coming into my life for a reason as part of my personal journey, so there’s no point in hiding it. Without going into too many details, I found out two weeks ago that my position (i.e. The Job) will be eliminated by the end of May.

Understandably, I’m quite conflicted about this. On the one hand, I could see this as something powerful, a door opening up to a new and potentially exciting opportunity yet to come. Then again, my natural inclination towards anxiety has me worried about the loss of what was a comfortable and familiar environment, the certainty of a job I knew and did well against the uncertainty of…the uncertain. How many times has fear of the unknown held people back, left them in the same place they’ve always been, just because it was something they knew. I had no plans to leave The Job on my own in the immediate future, but now that its happened, I have to assume the universe is sending me a message. I’d be a fool not to answer.

Still, if you’re going to have your life turned around, better that it happen on the cusp of spring, a time of year when everything changes. Even our weather, which seems to change every day lately.

Yes, the universe is definitely trying to tell me something.

Paying the Piper

Mike — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 15:02:03 +0000

The last few days were a painful reminder to me of the wages of procrastination. I had to catch up on ton of reading, reviewing and writing to make up for all the time I spent vegetating and inactive the week before. It wouldn’t have been so bad if I didn’t already have a full Presidents Day weekend and a flight to Florida today. As it stands, I’ll still need to make up some writing time while on vacation.

Lesson to be learned. Never assumed you’ll have time to work on something later. Things often take longer than planned and there are always unexpected hiccups along the way. And whatevers so great on television right now, it will always be on Netflix later.

Speak to you all soon from sunny Florida!

After the War of the Roses

Mike — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 23:08:08 +0000

Another Valentine’s Day has come and gone. VD 2012 had this much in common with 2011 in that it once again coincided with me not being in a relationship at the time. (Yes, I said VD. I’m sure I’m not the first person to point out the irony…)

What’s more awkward than being single on a day when every business is using romance as a sales tool? How about when you’re just at that early stage of dating, when you’ve just been on three or four dates and both of you are deciding “do I want to keep going with this or not?” Is that really the right time for one of you to spring the whole valentine thing on the other person? If the guy is pushing for the girl to “be his valentine” after three dates, it comes off desperate and clingy. And if the girl expects the whole Valentine production at that stage, then its a whole different kind of desperate and clingy.

And yet, I didn’t even have that dilemma this year. I spun the roulette wheel and it did not land on black. No bitterness, it just is. Too many other things to get in order these next few weeks. Of course, I chose to wait till after the big day to properly reflect upon it.

Oh well. Better luck with 2013.

Does Anyone Remember Winter?

Mike — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:11:45 +0000

I know I’m not the first person who’s commented on this, but whatever happened to winter? I mean REAL winter. You know the kind, one that would have at least two good-sized snowstorms per season, instead of a six month autumn with a freakish blast snow. This, today, is not winter. It feels nice, don’t get me wrong. But it really gives one the feeling that something is off kilter.

Greetings to the World

Mike — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 01:44:46 +0000

This is the first official post here at OpenMike. Allow me to welcome you all to the party. Stay tuned for more posts to come.