ReBirth of the Blog?

I haven't written in a while- this self serving, literary vessel of catharsis, doesn't rank real high on the list of priorities; but, after hearing about some people checking it to see the "Chip tha Ripper" video, I am driven to add something delectable. I'm going to call it a 'bromage,' but really it's an account of the college-real world transition that departs from the typical, pessimistic, nostalgia that you typically hear. I prefer to celebrate the new opportunity, not to mourn the loss of the last.

The inspiration for this piece come from twitter. While I do use it as an instantanious news feed, I will also admit that I have embraced it as a social networking tool to keep in touch with friends and collegues across the states. I can daily expect the typical post college tweet, usually from Drew, about training, or the move, or an expense, or any other indicator of "being old;" but, for the most part, it seems the group of people I keep in touch with have moved on. The eye openning part of this, is that I suddenly realized I am involved with a wildly talented bunch of people.

I think it would be rare that someone admits that their friends and aquaintances are talentless or uninteresting, but the fact is, that has to be the case. I mean I am sure everyone is unique and interesting in their own way, but if they were all truly talented, there is no way my rag tag bunch of friends could be doing so well. This hit me as I tried to write an introduction for a friend's 'about' section on his new portfolio website. The thing is, I didn't have to lie. I have been impressed with his work for the last couple of years, but it has recently become (at times) astounding. And, though I felt this way, I was floored to see that others feel the same way. The wealth of admiration and compliments he was recieving made me realize that I didn't like his work because he is a friend, but because he is an amazing photographer. This got me thinking about other friends: there's Paul, a scholarship goalie at a hockey powerhouse in New York and former MVP on a Championship Canadian team; Jason, who's video work garned the attention and commission of Ben Folds; Drew, who's frat-tasticness landed him in NYC with a great signing bonus (along with a wealth of other friends- Adam, Scott, Sean, etc.); Nate, who is moving to San Diego to throw shot all year around because the word "Olympics" isn't crazy to mention with his name; Lauren, an All-American soccer player; Dave, who is serious enough about cooking to suffer through shitty jobs because he will have his own kitchen one day; the wealth of Medical and Law School friends; a pal taking advantage of the crappy housing market to build up a portfolio of real estate; A Teacher for America who started his own non-profit social networking site and will certainly someday be a name in D.C; a party planner friend, turned #2 in the company, who is powerfull enough to get ME in VIP; some burgeoning journalists; Poets; an Author; PHD bound class mates; the team at StudioSTL; even a Jesuit in training.

That list is far from exhausting and I'm sure certifiably annoying, but that was its intended place. Leaving the safety of college and your parents' care is an alarming time, particularly during an economic recession. I hear friends worry about the future, if they will make money, or rise through the ranks, or meeting someone- in short, being happy in its many shapes. Or, I hear about people jobless, with no prospects, doing nothing but wasting time. But, when I think about the people I know, ther is no danger of this- they are all succeeding, in fact flourishing, in whatever they choose. I don't know if it's an anomoly or what- many times during college Travis and I discussed the fact that we no longer could consider ourselves top of the class, or gifted. We thought about grade school and how we were in special programs, or always got Os, and everything was easy and we felt that we were extrordinarily witty- and how it seemed that was all in the past and that our friends were much of the same, completely "normal Joes" who drank a lot and were in no way inspiringly special. I see how wrong we were. Whether or not the people we knew were the top 5% intellectually (who were all probably in teh Ivy League), top 5% most driven (who all made smart choices and went to State schools with research programs), top 5% creatively (who were in liberal arts colleges on the East Coast) or top 5% happy (certainly on the west coast), the people we knew were more balanced than we thought. People who successfuly loved 4 years of college and did them in all the success they needed, but also got business taken care of. Weather it was Athletically or artistically. In fact, it boggles my mind that I was unable to notice what they were accomplishing over the last four years.

I don't know what this blog was supposed to accomplish, but it has been something clanking around in my head for weeks; something I had to get out. I hope those who recognize themselves are re-encouraged and feel good about what they're doing, I hope others realize how talented some of the people they have grown comfortable with are, and I hope everyone realizes that all and all, things are pretty good right now. I mean things are good enough that my backyard doesn't look like the world in "The Road," that we can exhaustingly focus on celebrity deaths and reality T.V stars' lives, and that our future movers and shakers, those who just graduated or that are about to, are inspiringly capable and special.