July 12, 2010
As long-winded as it was, the rundown of my plan to move to Chicago did leave a few questions unanswered. An oversight that I would like to take this opportunity to rectify.
Why Chicago?
Why not Chicago?
I didn’t have any specific city in mind; I just wanted one with a solid urban infrastructure. New York came to mind first, but it’s is just too big. I wanted a city that I could actually digest. Seattle, Boston, and Chicago came to mind next. For some reason Chicago just stuck out. It seems like a charming town, and I’d heard good things about it. Ok, sure! Let’s do Chicago!
Since then, I’ve heard phenomenal things about it, only solidifying my decision. But initially, it was a pretty arbitrary choice. I’ve never been to Chicago, but I’ve never been to any of the other candidates either.
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Posted in Personal | Chicago | Follow-up | Lincoln Park | New York | Planning | Questions
July 11, 2010
One month from now, I’ll be writing a blog post from a coffee shop in Chicago about life in the Windy City. Seven months from now, I’ll be right here writing a blog post about moving back.
Lord willing, of course.
A few weeks ago, I pulled the proverbial trigger on something I probably should have done years ago: Taking a risk. Doing something reckless. “Giving it a shot.”
Having been birthed and raised in the suburbs north of Dallas, I’ve never lived outside of a circle 20 miles in diameter. I went to a local college, living with my wonderful parents (and sisters) until six months before graduation. I took jobs always where close friends worked. It’s been great, and I wouldn’t change the past decade even if I could. But nowhere in all of that have I ever really done anything a little crazy or risky. Nothing that put me outside of the comfortable world I’ve always known. And having no reason to move or branch out, I’m on track to stay here for my entire life.
And don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with that. But as I get a bit older and I look back on my adult life, those little “what ifs” start to rear their heads, and I can’t help but wonder how things would have ended up if I had branched out a bit. Normally I would internalize all of that and use it as fodder for future self-loathing. But not this time.
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Posted in Personal | Chicago | Comfort Zones | Flexibility | Freelance | Moving | Prayer | Regret | Risks | The Unknown | Transition
