27 No More...

As I sit here, 1 hour away from being 28, I can't help but think how much has changed in this last year if my life. I started the year living in Manhattan, moved to Chicago, decided to go back to school, started school and as of this Thursday will be halfway done with school. In the middle of all that, I made new friends, Tiger Woods slept with some ugly chicks, multiple friends got married and all the while I kept getting better looking.

I realized two things in the last couple of days. The first I learned last night while waiting in line at Game Stop at midnight for the release of Halo: Reach - no matter how nerdy I am in how I live my life, I do not belong at a Game Stop at midnight. Those people were insane. White guys with dreads, fat kids who don't user deodorant, kids who still dress all in black and then about 45 people deep in the line was me, clad in sweatpants and a t-shirt, just waiting to pick up the game and get out. I might be a nerd, but I'm a also pretty awesome and I'm glad I'm not like them.

The second is that no matter how much I hate getting older, I really don't feel any older. I suppose this goes along with the old adage that you're only as old as you feel and in my case, that's right around 21. Granted my knees and my back keep me from believing it, but I firmly agree with the sentiment. I would surmise that it has something to do with the fact that I'm not any more accomplished at 28 than at 21, at least financially and in fact was making more money then than I am currently. But I also think that maturity isn't something you attain, but rather something that evolves around you. I'm always going to laugh at farts and think hitting things out of people's hands is funny, but I also don't act like I'm 12. I still watch cartoons and still play video games, but I'm capable of being fastidious and paying bills.

The moral of today's rant is this, and this goes to my contemporaries and those readers who have recently delved into the realm of being a 'Thirty-Something': it's okay to grow up, but never grow old.

I'm out. As always, go big. Keep your feet on the ground but keep reaching for the stars. Life's short, live large. Pain heals, chicks dig scars and glory last forever. Your heart is free, have the courage to follow it.

I'll catch you all on the flip side.

-M, p, z & shredder