6 Years Old

My first post was six years ago today.

I think I might have forgotten this milestone, like most other years, if not for the fact that Raymi celebrated her 10 year anniversary yesterday and it was promoted all up and down the internets. Congrats to her. She's a blogging machine. I've never really become a blogger. I do it once in awhile and have never thought it would be a great idea to attract a large following. I've been content, mostly, to toss my ideas into the void to simply know a place where they're together.

In 2004 I was a live wire. I wanted to write and the life I had for myself in Ottawa was holding me back. I felt desperate and my move to Toronto was the most visceral change I've ever made in my life. I had to swallow a lot of pride and accept a lot of help to get out of there and to plant myself here with my dream and nothing else. I started this blog because I had no social life and I liked that I could talk about what I wanted and still get a response. I was worried that cultivating a comfortable close-knit social life like I had just left would ensure that I would never get to writing. Well, it turns out that I did focus with a sickening determination for a couple of years on making something of myself. But, then I "lost the plot" as they say. Who says that, you ask? I don't know. British journalists maybe?

I was living too much in my head and I was running out of experiences to fuel my imagination. Plus, living the monk life for so long was starting to make me strange, I think. Anyway, the pace dropped, I found a few friends & I enjoyed a bit of my time here. Now here we are looking at a stale old blog and and stale old guy. Welcome!

I've somehow managed to find myself in a stable and happy relationship with Shannon. I've gotten pretty interested in food, gardening and cooking. I don't show up at work hungover more than once every six months. Not everything feels like a compromise or sacrifice. After six years of roommates, booze and prostitutes living upstairs I am happily living in a great place in a great area with a fantastic girl. Surprisingly, I find myself still wanting to write. I haven't talked about that very much since jumping on the photography bandwagon but it was always a backburner thing for me. I'm glad it's lasted through all of this and that I'm not just totally spent and willing to give in and let the malaise of middle-age settle over me.

All this is just to say that I feel like this change will be good for my writing as well as my photography. I'm less the rabid dog and more the wily sheriff. Yup.

I have to say that my playlist has gotten exponentially better since November 2004. Listening to Damien Rice and Norah Jones on repeat for hours on end really had an impact on what words sprung forth from my overwrought fingertips. On deck today: Broken Bells, Gorillaz, Massive Attack, Sarah Blasko, Holy Fuck, John Coltrane, Sarah Harmer, Arcade Fire, Bill Evans, Balmorhea, John Legend & The Roots, Cee-Lo Green and Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings.

P.S. - Here are some of my favourite posts, from that time mostly.