Same Team. Same Agenda.

I need to start this off by saying I'm currently in the teacher's lounge, with 3 other teachers, awkwardly crying and laughing at the same time listening to Kings of Leon thinking how awesome life is right now. It is so crazy that things could have worked out so well this far..

Over the past 8 months, I have certainly had a lot of time to myself. I have had a lot of time to get on top of my stuff and figure out which direction I want to move forward. And so far everything has gone according to plan. Im becoming less crazy, or at least trying to, trying to work on long term goals, and not giving in to what others want. Im the main character of "The Life of Jeff" so I really want the story to turn out well. I have had a lot of time to myself to think about how I want things in life to be. I haven't really thought so much about "the plan" before because I was always occupied with the moment. College really took a toll on me emotionally because my mind and heart were invested in so many areas, and I needed to give 100% attention or else those goals would not have been met, so I didn't always have state of mind to be thinking about the future. Now, I don't want to say life is on pause, because that is not what it is like at all, but rather, I eliminated a lot of the distractions so I could really focus on myself and what I exactly want. I have had a lot of time to myself to get in the best physical shape I have been in before, which has been like a 10 year goal coming full circle.  I have had a lot of time to start living the life I spent 4 years of college trying to script out; and things look pretty good so far. I have had a lot of time to myself to think about my role in my relationship with Bri, and how I see us moving on in the future. This is the girl I want to be with, so now its figuring out how we are going to move forward, not if. But this whole time that I have had to myself to do all of this, I haven't been alone. Not for a single second. Bri has been with me 100% of the time, maybe not in front of me with me, but her values and presence is forever instilled in me. I can't go anywhere without having Bri's lessons with me. She is someone who dares me to do the right thing, someone who doesn't expect anything short of my best effort. It helps me in more situations than you could imagine, where I really don't want to do something, or give less than 100%, and I just hear Bri saying "J......Come on" and for some reason it gives me the best motivation and strength that I have experienced before.

They do say Boston girls have an edge....

And that is certainly true with Bri.. Together we form a pretty intense couple who puts a lot of effort and energy into most things we do. And whenever you invest all of your emotional energy into something, there are bound to be times where the waves heat up and tensions rise. But that's the great thing about being in a relationship, at the end of the day, you are on the same team. And of course teammates fight, argue and battle, because they are around each other so much and investing all of their emotional energy into something. But as the saying goes, "It's about the name on the front of the jersey, not the back." Meaning the team is more important than the individual. Of course there is going to be tensions in the early going, look at any great duo in any facet of life. Especially two people with very intense personalities who like to take leadership roles. They didn't start off the best, they weren't always on the same page. Sometimes they would criticize each other to get the most out of the other person, to help the team. Greatness takes time. And when both people are trying to lead, you both get no where. That is what is so great about a great team, everyone is a star and a leader, but they know when to defer and let others lead, depending on the circumstance. And that can't be learned overnight, it takes many years and practice with the other person.

Bri, we are in the early stages of something great. We can't expect to be the best right now, but that can be a goal. We have to accomplish the current tasks at hand, and not look past it. Each goal and part of the relationship is just as important as any other part. They are ALL necessary in order to get that long term success.

You are the person I wake up thinking about, and the person I fall asleep to at night, you are my lover, my teammate, my driver, my cook, my everything.



Let's ride this wave out B. See where it takes us.

Certain 1970's songs really capture how a guy is feeling..

Sundays are a great time to rewind. When you can just kick back, get a little time to yourself and have a moment to take a deep breath before Monday morning comes around.  Sundays should be a day to focus on things, read a book and treat yourself with something you don't normally eat during the week. You should live simply and not always be focusing on goals or tasks, but doing something for yourself just to do it. Living in live.

 Doing things outdoors is always the right call. A good portion of Sundays should be spent outside.. temperature dependent of course. But crisp fall Sundays and football is probably my favorite time of year anyway...

"If love was a barrier, deep within the deepest sea, the challenge that rest upon us is destiny, so let it be."

 - Me...right now..


~trust.the.process~

Almost summer!

Even though I have been living in Bangkok, where an 75 degree day, feels extremely freezing, I am still pumped for summer back home in Boston. There really is nothing like a good summer in Mass. The perfect weather, long days on the beach down the cape, endless BBQ's, and beautiful sunsets. But in 111 days I will be home, assuming I make it through a 2 week excursion in Sri Lanka, and a 4-5 week cross country road-trip around Thailand.

But I am really excited to come home for a few reasons:
(in no particular order)

1. Cape Cod
2. Being around family.
3. Anna's burritos.
4. Competitive basketball.
5. Harvard Sq.
6. Morning run's on the charles river.
7. Roadtrips.
8. expensive, low quality food (kidding)
9. Home cooking.
10. O yeah...being around that girl named Brianna!



But as my time is winding down here in Thailand, something I'm trying to do is not look to far ahead in the future. The moment is where my life is at, and although so many good things are on the horizon, I cant lose sight of the opportunity at hand, and the moments that I will never be able to relive again. This past 8 months have been some of the coolest times in my entire life. And I have not regretted coming here for a milisecond. But if i could just push a button, fast forward 111 days and be hanging with Bri somewhere down the cape, I wouldn't. Even though I really would want to, I want to be here, in the moment, doing what I'm doing. And when I board the flight to head back to the US, then I will start thinking of the things at home, and getting excited to be back, but until then, appreciating Thailand for all it has to offer is my main goal.

How far can you love?

Its been a few days since my last blog post, but that has nothing to do with current levels of love. Life recently couldn't be better. Things in Bangkok are perfect...and the weather has even gotten a little cooler!

But I want to talk about certain moments in time. The moments where you are sitting out looking over the ocean, or at a bar, or just sitting on your couch and all you can do is look around and smile. One of those innocent "wow how did I get here" smiles.  I had one of these moments yesterday while out on a fishing trip with all of the guys. It was actually an awesome trip, around 15 of us guys headed out an hour outside of the city and had a blast catching giant Mekong Catfish. They were around 50 poinds! Which was by far the biggest fish most of us had ever seen. But we were having a great day just drinking beers, enjoying the sun, and channeling on man sides. But there was a moment after I had just caught a fish, I sat down on and just looked out. Everyone was fired up, laughing and having a good time. It was around 4pm, so that great sunlight was out where everything seems perfect. I was just sitting there and couldnt stop thinking about how I was sitting at a small lake about an hour outside of Bangkok. Out of all of the potential places in the world to be; I was here. And it was perfect. And what made it even better is the fact that I have a women in my life named Brianna who makes everything I do in life a little bit better. Even when my crazy, wide eyed girl isn't there with me, like as in yesterday. She is there in my heart (not in a lame mushy way) and always there to help me appreciate the moment. But I couldn't help to picture sitting out down the cape just at the beach around sunset, laying with B, and laughing at the fact that life is almost too perfect to be alive.


And that brings up another question.

"how deep can a love affair get if you dont know the darkest recesses of your lovers soul?"

This brings up a good point. I feel that not just specific to relationships, but whichever endeavor you are engaging yourself in, it is imperative that you know exactly what you are dealing with. In the case of a relationship, it is essential to lay all your cards on the table early on. Nothing would be worse than after putting your heart and soul into something you learn something out down the line that would get in the way of the relationship, and potentially upset it. But instead, putting everything in the open early on, you can realize what cards people are holding and how to move on with the current situation at hand, and not be shocked by it later on. And love can't reach its full potential if you haven't ventured into the darkest areas. So my philosophy: just let the other person know what the deal is, and there shouldn't be many problems. 

And if you have a boss girlfriend like Bri... you really shouldnt have many issues.

Look forward to many blogs coming the next few months!! Our hearts are in the home stretch of being apart.