Two years ago, I was preparing for a couple of the craziest adventures in my life. I was about to get married and ship off for a teaching job in South Korea. The wedding, for me, was no big deal. My best friend and I were simply about to get dressed up and do the sprinkler, shopping cart and running man in front of everyone we knew. Our impending move to Korea, however, was another thing entirely. I was terrified, prematurely homesick and generally losing my mind with worry. Even in the airport, I was fantasizing that some external force (relieving me of all responsibility) would get me out of boarding what felt like my personal Tardis.
I may have not wanted to get on that plane, but it’s probably the finest decision I’ve ever made. I learned to work hard and take orders; two things, admittedly, I was not great at before that job. I also learned that if you want something, the best thing you can do is do it. Interested in travel? Buy the ticket. Have a deadline to meet? Start in on it now. That may sound too easy and sometimes it is. But, when Joss Whedon directs the musical version of my life story someday, it is that year and those lessons that the quirky female lead will daydream about and smile as she rides the Max to her awesome writing/editing gig in Portland (with an establishing shot of the Da Tung & Xi'an Bao Bao sculpture, simply because I dig it).
Though I studied creative writing in university, I feel like a closeted writer. I blog, sure, and of course I have plans to be the next Steinbeck, but it’s time to roll up my pant legs and wade into the lexicon for a living. I want to create, write and edit. And I want to be around folks who want that, too.