What a difference 5 years makes...

Last Saturday night I celebrated my 22nd birthday in New York City with some of my closest friends. We took part in the typical city scene --got to the bar at 9, paid $40 for top shelf open bar for 3 hours, danced the night away, closed the place down at 4 a.m., and after an early morning binge on left-over Chinese food, we rolled into bed around 6:15.

Last night, I went out in Massachusetts with my 27-year-old sister and her boyfriend and his friends who all fall between the ages of 30 and 40. We met them at a small sports bar to watch the second half of the Penn State-Michigan football game. This time around, we arrived at 5 p.m. Once the Nittany Lions sealed the deal, we moved on to another local dive bar which served the cheapest drinks I have ever seen ($2 for a beer and $2.75 for a martini--I'M SOLD!). It felt like it was 11 p.m., yet when I looked up, Alex Trebek's hairless face was staring back at me on the television screen. Yup, it was only 7:45 and Jeopardy was still on. A few martinis later, our group started dwindling. One guy--dare I say man--had to go home to his wife and three children, one couple went home because they were tired, and another guy had to go home because he had to attend church this morning. The four of us lone survivors left and went to one more bar. We decided the McDonald's drive thru sounded like a much better way to end the night so we hopped back into the car after one drink. I was sound asleep by 11:45 p.m. on a Saturday night. I don't think that has happened since I had mono two years ago and slept for 22 of the 24 hours in a day.

Both nights were equally as fun, but I couldn't help thinking about the differences between them. Us 22-year-olds who are fresh out of college and still not wanting to admit we are getting older, don't realize that in just a few short years our lives will be so different from where we are now. Something tells me that my Saturday night festivities will be more like last night's, sooner than I think. And I'm pretty sure I am okay with that.

Better Days, Better Things

"I know there will be better things. That's kind of the best thing about being young... knowing all these things are on their way... these better things."-One Tree Hill

I was never a big fan of One Tree Hill since my local cable company decided to take the station away from us right as the show moved its way up the ratings ladder. Once in a while my college roommates would turn it on in the dorm, but frankly all I could focus on was how grown up Chuckie Lee from Disney Channel's The Torkelsons (anyone else remember that show?!) had become. For those of you who don't remember, he also played Minkus on Boy Meets World. Regardless, I came across this quote today and decided that I agree with it full-heartily.

Not a day goes by where I don't think of the future. What company will I be working for in two years? What city will I be living in? Will I be spending my time with someone special or just continue to have a solid group of great friends? How will I have changed? There are thousands of questions I could ask about the future, but why do I concern myself with these when I should just be living day to day? I am trying my best to plan for what I think the future holds, but maybe it is out of my hands. What I do know, is that better things are on the way. It may not be exactly what I think I want, but it will hopefully be better than what I am doing now.

Of course everyone has their problems. We all go through our fair share of trials and tribulations, but I think people need to put more faith into believing that when things go wrong, better things are on the way. One door closes, and another one opens. At 22, I have my entire life to live. Yes, that scares the hell out of me in more ways than one, but how can I sit here and not believe that my life can only get better? My life is just beginning and the best is yet to come.