It isn't a very interesting story. Why am I blogging about it then? Because it contextualizes the interesting stuff that I got up to later. I'll keep it short and sweet though. I was a senior cadet at the Virginia Military Institute. I had lots of great friends and teachers, I was the leader of the our bagpipe band, and a mostly passable student. However due to a late game major switch I doomed myself to a dreaded ninth semester. I tend not to speak or write extensively about VMI because it bores people who are not familiar with it. Suffice it to say it is not a fun place to be most of the time, and when it rains there, it pours.
Despite seeing a psychologist at school, having a great support network of friends, and a supportive girlfriend, I developed pretty severe depression during the spring semester. The kind of depression where you would not get out of bed if there was a fire (there actually was a fire alarm one time and I did not even roll over). I decided to head on home before I got kicked out of school for acting like some kind of sloth/slug hybrid instead of a human being. Even when I had left the environment that was driving me insane, I still did not feel too great about myself.
However, I turned things around after some time at home. After some couch time with a shrink I was diagnosed with ADHD. The tendencies that come along with that had made it impossible for me to juggle my school work, my social life, my semi pro musician gig, and the numerous inane responsibilities of being a cadet. Teachers have been telling me that I probably have ADHD since I was in the first grade. I had resisted diagnosis or medication because I did not want to be stigmatized as a "special kid". I am sort of proud that I made it all the way through 15th grade without any extra help. But my life probably would have been much easier if I had not resisted the help that educators tried to give me. Even though I did finally accept treatment, when I applied for re-admittance to my school I was not medically cleared. A combination of bureaucratic red tape, and the fact that my re-admittance document had a flagrant Catch-22 stalled my clearance until the semester had already begun . So I'm stuck at home for another semester. I am fine with that. Really.
With the help of therapy and medication in the form of Adderall, I was able to overcome my depression. If you are experiencing any sort of depression I cannot recommend seeking professional help enough. It helped me to gain a positive outlook on life, even as things seemed to be crashing and burning around me. My recovery is not the subject of this blog, but it is the catalyst. Once I got my head screwed back on right, I got around to doing some great things. I took some classes at a local school. I got a motorcycle permit. I backpacked around Europe for almost no money. I caught many large fish. I got pretty good at cooking (because my mom hates cooking and made me do it and my dad only eats yogurt). I started this blog! (Am I famous yet?)
Turns out when you have nothing but time on your hands and the right attitude, there is a lot that you can do when you are stuck at home. I know that you are tired of reading about me by now, so it's time to get to the point, the thesis statement of this blog, if you will. I want to share my interests with other people. So that means posts about music, shows, food and drinks, restaurants and bars, exercise, motorcycles... etc. Pretty much whatever I am into at the time. I am a cis white dude in his early twenties, so things may skew a little that way culturally, but I'll do my best to try to make all my posts about things anyone can enjoy. Like I said before I have a lot of interests, I am sure that no matter who you are we have a few in common.