Oh look, it’s a 2011 retrospective post! Hurray!!
This year, I broke free.
This year, I learned the meaning of trust.
This year, I realized dreams.
This year, I broke hearts and had my heart broken.
This year, I laid the foundation for the rest of my life.
So…. 2011. Yup.
When I think back through all the things I’ve been through this year, I realized that I ultimately achieved what I wanted to when I moved to Chicago: I began to live an interesting life. Maybe, for all the things I experienced here, it serves as but a taste of what’s to be my first full year here.
Chicago’s the biggest thing to happen to my life…well, ever. But before that, let’s go back to winter 2011. After all, I was still in Atlanta, and a lot of things happened then as well. Probably the most important was my car accident in January. It prevented me from moving to Chicago quite when I wanted to, but I think it benefitted me in the long run for 2 reasons: I got to go to Final Round/Momocon, and I got to dodge the huge blizzard that took down Chicago. So I had that going for me. If I had known not being around my close friends was going to feel so lonely, I think I would’ve opted to spend every single second with them leading up to my departure. I mean, I’ve been back since, but it’s more the fact that it’s in a past I can’t recover now.
Of course, we can’t do this without focusing on the main event.
April 5th. The day I moved to Chicago. The day is forever etched in my memory as my one true liberation. The day before was my mom’s birthday, and we had lunch together at the Thai place near the family’s house. I couldn’t decide between the pad thai and the yellow curry, but ultimately went with the pad Thai. I never finished it.
Transferring to Starbucks wasn’t a mistake – after all, I needed a steady source of income when I got up here, and didn’t have any other method of making money at the time. Transferring to the particular store I did, however…. I profoundly regret it. I’ve never been so unhappy before in my life, and the only thing that keeps me going now is knowing that the end is near. That said, I love my co-workers, past and present, and a (very) few of my regulars are pretty righteous.
Things have been up and down throughout my time in Chicago so far. Probably the worst was when my laptop, PSP and camera were all stolen from my room. My old roommate really should have paid for it.
Speaking of roommates, the roommate situation at my old place got really bad around October. The two of them were constantly arguing, and then one of them kept asking me for money and food every. Single. Day. It was so freaking annoying! Sorry, dude. I’m not made of money. And the money I have goes towards me and people that I actually give 2 shits about. He’s in California now, where I expect him to call me asking for money within a week. If you don’t have money, why are you going to a state with an even higher cost of living than Chicago?
Whatever. Bitches ain’t shit.
I know it’s going to sound like hyperbole, but PAX was literally the most fun I’ve ever had in my life. I mean, I’m nowhere near as much of a gamer as I used to be, but it was nonetheless fun, creatively inspiring, and a huge networking opportunity. I met Haunts from iplaywinner, who is, as the kids these days say, a “pretty cool guy”. Though the real star of Seattle is Top Pot doughnuts. Every morning. Every fucking morning.
Dragoncon was also nice, of course. My friends were awesome, the place was awesome, and any and all attempted drama was thwarted. I took time off the con to hang with Amber and Dass, and spent time with my family and friends for a weekend. And got lit up in a Street Fighter tournament.
Writing has taken a big presence in my life, even as my translation work is just beginning. I came up with an idea at the end of 2010, and began writing that story this year. I’d really like to publish it some day, but we’ll see about that. The extremely positive response my work has been getting has really motivated me to work on some of my other stories. Mind you,I don’t want to make a living doing this: translation will always be where my heart is. I don’t even expect to make chump change from this. But since I’ve had all these stories in my head, I feel now is the time to share them with the world. It’s now or never.
Since moving in December, things have taken a marked upswing in my life. I now live in an awesome neighborhood, with a nice roommate, doing something I love. It makes me excited for the potential that 2012 holds.
To everyone who made this year my best year ever, thank you. And to all my friends in my new city, the story has just begun.
Marc Chima, 2012.
Personal | Marc | 
04/03/2012 1:15 am | 
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