8 Summers

8 Summers ago….

I had FINALLY moved out of my parents house and moved in with a few friends from work. Times were great then. For the first time in so long I was genuinely happy. I no longer had to do things on anyone else’s time but my own. I didn’t feel so alone because I finally had someone to talk to and hang out with. I got to meet a lot of new people because we would have parties almost every weekend. It’s been 8 Summers since I smiled… I miss happiness.

8 Summers ago…

 I had FINALLY got my drivers license. My dad had been trying to teach me how to drive since I was 15. I hated learning from him. He made me nervous as hell because he would yell so loud if I even went ONE MILE over the speed limit. It took so long for me to gain the confidence to have my dad take me to the DMV. Since I was over 21 at the time, I got to do the written and drivers test on the same day if I wanted. It took me 3 freakin tries to pass the written test. Once I finally passed it, I decided to wait to take the drivers test. I failed the test the first time because I accidentally went 45 in a 40 and I turned the wheels the wrong way hill parking. I got to take it the next day thankfully and I passed. I was so happy. It was my birthday when I passed as well and as an added bonus, my parents gave me my first car that day. It’s been 8 Summers since I did that… I miss freedom. 

8 Summers ago…

 I got the courage to finally start talking to girls. I hadn’t had a relationship since high school and the breakup was pretty bad. I ended up meeting the girl that would change my whole outlook on life since then. It was crazy at first. At the time, she was already taken, but for some reason, I still wanted to pursue her. It took a little over 6 months until she was single and we began to talk. When we finally made it official it was so great. She actually asked ME out. She would always come over. We would stay up late just talking. We didn’t even have to be talking about anything specific. We dated for 3 years before it ended. To this day, it was the worst breakup I ever had. It’s been 8 Summers since we first kissed… I miss comfort.

8 Summers ago…

I was 22 then. Time didn’t seem to pass by as fast in those times. I had a car, a girlfriend, and my own place. I couldn’t have been happier. Why did I screw that up? Why did I make it so I lost all of that at the same time? I really need to stop beating myself up about it. I learned a lot of valuable lessons in those times. I finally learned how it was in the real world. I finally learned what most people’s intentions were. I’m 30 years old now. A lot has changed, but not really at the same time. I’m still trying to figure put my life. It sucks, but I just have to keep moving forward. It’s been 8 Summers since my life officially began… I miss who I was back then. 

-Valken 

Day 59: Where Was I Again?

Oh yeah…

So… It’s terrifying walking in my neighborhood at night.  I live off of a highway in a very small town. There are a lot of woodsy areas around me filled with animals that I really wouldn’t want to have attack me in the dark. Mainly skunks and raccoons, but we sometimes get the occasional coyote. There are also no lights until you get close to the Walmart across the street from me and it’s a ways down. It’s odd though… It’s not the sounds at night that creep me out. In fact, there really isn’t any sound at all. It’s always pretty quiet. That is what freaks me out the most. I would never walk or ride at night if I didn’t have my Motion City Soundtrack playlist.

They have become my new favorite band. Never have I listened to an album where I relate to EVERY song. I have listened to all of their albums to date and that is still the case. It’s actually interesting how I found them. No one told about this band. Let me take you back to 2010.

I was working at Wal-Mart at the time. Life was a hell of a lot harder than. I had just recently moved out of my parent’s house and moved in with a few people that I worked with. It wasn’t long before all of my roommates ditched me in an $1100 a month house that I couldn’t afford to pay for by myself. I worked in Electronics, so I got to be next to all the CDs and DVDs. 

Anyways, I had kept walking by a specific album by Motion City Soundtrack titled “My Dinosaur Life.” The cover art was kinda cool. It had this green cartoon Dinosaur on it. I thought it looked pretty cool, so I bought it. 

Usually, I check songs out before I just buy full albums, but I thought “What the heck. I’m just gonna give it a shot. They had me hooked from the very first song. It was titled “Worker Bee.” The first verse goes like this. “It’s been a good year. A good new beginning. I’m through with the oldschool, so let’s commence the winnings. I’ve been a good little worker bee. I deserve a gold star.” 

These guys are all adults singing about life and how they haven’t quite figured it out yet. I relate to that on a spiritual level. Every song on their first CD depictided my life to a T… It was almost as if they were singing about me and my life. 

This band has made my life 1000% easier to deal with. It basically teaches me that it’s not really that bad that I still haven’t figured life out yet. Anyone who reads this should really check them out. My favorite song by them is titled “Timelines.” It’s a song off of their album titled “Go.” Check them out. 
-Valken The Centenar