2 shots Ten High bourbon
1 shot Martini & Rossi sweet vermouth
1 shake of aromatic bitters
1 maraschino cherry with a little bit of cherry juice
Ice

It was almost exactly two years ago that I posted my break up letter blog post with California. I don’t think that I’ve read through that post again until now. It’s very interesting to look back through my own words and see what my mindset was two years ago when I about to make a pretty significant life change. It’s pretty clear now that I was just a young, uncertain lad still trying to figure out what to do with my life. I’m not claiming that I’m all that different today, but I’m pretty sure that I’m two years older and two years wiser now.

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned in the past two years is that you need to take opportunities when they are presented to you, otherwise there’s a very good chance you might not get another shot. I had the opportunity to move to New York City two years ago and I took it because I knew the older I got the more difficult it would be to make that drastic of a change. New York City is a wonderfully unique, lively, surprising and beautiful city. I wanted to experience that kind of energy before I got old and crotchety and desired a lawn so I could yell at kids for being on it.

Okay, maybe I’m getting a little ahead of myself but you see what I’m getting at.

The point is I got to live in the greatest city on Earth for a substantial amount of time. How many people get to say that? But all good things must come to an end. I will be moving back to California to take on a new role at Google. I’ll be joining the Google News team as UI Designer. My last day in NYC and first day back in California will be July 24.

Would I have preferred to stick around NYC a couple more years? Absolutely. I love it here. My original plan was to live in NYC for at least three years, preferably four or five. I feel like you could live here your entire life and still barely scratch the surface of everything this city can offer. I knew I couldn’t live here forever, though, and when a really good career opportunity became available that happened to be back in California, I felt that if I didn’t take it I might miss out.

I know that I may have been a teeny bit vocal about my dissatisfaction with living in California the last time, but I honestly feel the situation is significantly different this time. For one, my financial situation is much better now. I can afford to live on my own, do some traveling and enjoy more of the nifty things that California has to offer. I also feel like I’ve grown up quite a bit in the past two years. I’m no longer in the post-college panic, constantly wondering what the hell I’m doing with my life and worried that I’m wasting precious time. I’m much more content with taking things one day at a time now and enjoying life as it comes. I’m optimistic that my second stint in California will turn out much better than my first.

I’m also not going to put any self-imposed duration goals on my second stay in California. If I have a reason to leave at some point in the future then I’ll leave again. And if I have a reason to stay then maybe I’ll even stay forever (gasp!).

One thing’s for sure, using “One thing’s for sure” is a great way to end a introspective piece of writing like this one.

After an especially painful dislocation, I eventually had my shoulder operated on. It’s been problem free ever since. While consulting with the surgeon prior to surgery, I mentioned that I also had an elbow problem in both my elbows but significantly worse in my left elbow. Turns out I had ulnar nerve sublaxation which is when the ulnar nerve that runs along the elbow will snap out out of place, essentially dislocate, when the arm is moved. This is the same nerve that causes the “funny bone” sensation so it’s not a pleasant disorder to say the least.

But no worries! The surgeon said he’d give me the 2 for 1 deal (not really, I’m sure it cost my parents’ insurance quite a bit) and fix both the shoulder and elbow at the same time. He batted .500 that day; the elbow problem was never corrected. I’ve managed to live with it since then, but recently, in the past few months, it’s become progressively painful and annoying. I was getting concerned that I might be doing some permanent damage if I didn’t do something about it. I figured it was about time to get it looked at again.

I found an NYU orthopedist online with good reviews (yay internet!) who specializes in elbow and shoulder disorders. He basically said that the surgery failed because my previous surgeon wasn’t experienced (and possibly wasn’t skilled) enough to do the required procedure. Regardless, surgery is the only way to correct the problem so it looks like I will need to have the same operation again sometime in the future. Luckily, he said I’m probably not doing any irreversible damage by prolonging the operation so I can safely wait a bit longer.

He gave me the name of the best elbow surgeon in the area for this procedure, so now I just need to figure out the best time. I’d rather not spend six weeks of summer in a sling so maybe fall or winter.

There’s never really a convenient time to have only one useable arm. I have enough trouble dressing myself as it is.

Step 2: Cook pasta on stovetop.

Step 3: While cooking pasta, open jar of tomato sauce and pour small amount into microwave safe vessel for heating.

Step 4: Place lid back on jar of tomato sauce.

Step 5: With firm grip, twist lid to secure seal on jar.

Step 6: Become convinced that seal is not tight enough as it should be (or at least, can be); tighten lid more.

Step 7: While exerting incredibly unnecessary effort, clumsily lose grip of both lid and jar.

Step 8: Send contents of jar (red tomato sauce) flying across kitchen, splattering on walls, countertops, appliances, self.

Step 9: Ruin pants, new sweater, chances of being on Top Chef next season.

Step 10: Stand motionless for several minutes marveling at elegant tomato splatter patterns and own stupidity.

Step 11: FFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

Step 12: Reflect on lessons learned.

I actually hadn’t planned on voting. I thought that I wasn’t registered to vote, but then I saw Nelson’s nifty I Voted Foursquare badge and got jealous. So I checked on the interweb and it turned out I was, in fact, registered to vote AND my polling place was less than one block from my apartment. So I got a nifty I Voted Foursquare badge as well.

My rent is too damn high

Also exciting: Jimmy McMillan, candidate for The Rent Is Too Damn High Party, was on my ballot. As high as my New York City rent is, and as much as I love handlebar mustaches, I will admit that I voted for a different gubernatorial candidate.

Hmmm, my rent is actually due today…I might be regretting my vote…

Meh, I’m sure you are who you say you are

I find it pretty crazy that a photo ID is not required. I just had to state my name and address after which they showed me my previously scanned signature (from the DMV) and then all I had to do was copy the signature directly below it. I guess if the two signatures look remotely similar then the trap door doesn’t open below you. My signature looks like two scribbles anyway so if someone wanted to impersonate me two years from now it probably wouldn’t be all that difficult.

Maybe they will be more daring than me and actually vote for The Rent Is Too Damn High Party…

Things are going great

There you go. Updated. Okay seriously, it’s turned out to be better than I ever expected. New York City is so much fun and there’s always stuff going on. Plus, you don’t have drive anywhere and worry about parking. Plus, there’s amazing food on every corner. Plus, the music scene is incredible. Plus, the seasons change.

In summary, I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather live at this stage of my life. But with that said:

New York City is expensive

I had been making steady progress on my student loans, but I feel like I’ve slowed down quite a bit since moving here. I’m not sure if it’s just the allure of a big city, but I find it harder not to splurge on things.

How long will I live here?

I don’t know, but I have no plans to leave anytime soon. I’m having too much fun and there’s a lot that I need to accomplish here. I’m guessing I’ll be a city slicker for at least the next four years. After that it might be time to mellow out in the suburbs somewhere, but then again, maybe not.

P.S. Gogo inflight wifi is pretty sweet.

P.P.S. The “Mile High” Foursquare badge I just earned is pretty sweet as well.

It’s been a long term goal to eventually buy a new electric guitar. I sold my previous one in California before I move back to the east coast and I’ve been meaning to upgrade at some point, but I’ve had a few other toys to keep me occupied for the time being and a few reasons why I shouldn’t be spending my disposable income on things that make me happy.

The Gibson SG Standard has always been my dream guitar, but they don’t make the natural sunburst finish anymore and that’s what I really wanted. It’s certainly not impossible to find, but it’s difficult to find new. My options were to either resort to buying it from some weirdo on eBay (ugh) or to search around in random music stores until I found it. I made a mental note to keep an eye out but I wasn’t in any rush.

But as fate would have it, I randomly wandered into the 30th Street Guitars and there it was. One of maybe four SGs that they had total. I was in shock for a few minutes. As I stood there staring up, with my jaw almost touching the floor, and the store clerk asking me to please stop drooling on amps, I remember vividly hearing Wayne Campbell proclaiming “It will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine.”

Or maybe I had actually said it out loud.

I knew I wanted it, but I still needed some encouragement to dish out a substantial sum of money. In the past I would have just flipped a coin or asked a magic 8 ball, but we have the Internet now and the Internet is never wrong.

So I asked the Internet.

And within a few minutes I got the answer I was looking for. “Outlook good :)”. Good enough for me!

“Not today, my good man. I’m feeling saucy. I think I’m gonna buy it. Do you accept…cash? Cha-ching.”

When I first started the site it seemed like a great idea and a good way to help other people out there in the same financial situation as me, but I just don’t have the time to work on it anymore. So rather than keep the site up collecting dust I decided the best thing to do was to just shut it down.

Well, not completely. You can still follow my up to date loan balance and I’ve also added a graph of my balance history, updated monthly (thanks Google Chart Tools). It was also a good opportunity to mess around with Google’s new Font API, which is incredibly simple to use.