disclaimer: nothing will beat the carefree, hose-water-drinking summers of the early 2000s (or the summer of 2009, following the release of COD: WaW)

in january 2023, i was mentally preparing to live in my two-door jeep when my midtown apartment lease ($1,134/mo) ended in May

• i wrote down an entire packing list & created a potential (minimal) budget for the year
• money was alright (made ~$3,000 in December) but everything was coming from freelance work, so nothing was guaranteed after the last invoice was paid
• i was estimating the monthly costs to be $500 and I could piece together enough creative work month-to-month to cover my living costs. if not, I’d eat less or go in temporary debt.

somehow, rather than living on the road, I ended up paying double rent in Kansas City starting in March..

• this odd decision unknowingly kickstarted what could end up being one of the best years of my life
• from march-may I paid rent on a new house and the existing apartment
• i made the move from an apartment ($1,134/mo) to my first house ($649/mo) to pay less rent going forward

‍march-april: started moving my belongings, started a garden, walked around the park with Tune regularly, explored the neighborhood, dreamed, golfed regularly

may: went to new york (trip #1), prepped converting attn: club for launch, went to a royals game

june-july: golfed almost daily, made more money than ever ($10k+ months), bought new clothes for the first time in years, went fishing, built a garden bench, morning coffee time on said bench ☕️, ate steak almost daily

august: went to new york (again), recorded & edited allstreet academy

september: went to Florida for chiefs vs jaguars game, went to new york (3rd time) for chiefs vs Jets with my dad

in 2020, when i was doing doordash and the business was losing money, i dreamed of these days.

and now they’re here.

what a time.