OUT WITH THE OLD...

Twenty-Six,

We've had some good times, haven't we? I'll be sad to see you go as I tag in Twenty-Seven tommorrow. Still, you laid some fantastic groundwork for the next year to build on.

Who could forget the single most amazing night of the year, when 'Death Rides the Nine' played at The Light House?
It was an incredible night and a culmination of two years of working and waiting and I was proud to have been able to see it on the big screen. I may not ever get another chance like that so I shall always keep it close to my heart; my Mom dressed up like she was going to a glitzy premiere, My Dad smiling gleefully when he saw people lining up outside and complaining because they couldn't see it, The Q and A where, despite nervously saying 'basically' 23 times in five minutes, I felt that I held my own against older, wiser film types.

Being in that amazing venue was both exhilarating and cathartic. thanks to everyone who attended; friends or strangers. It was, as The Hold Steady sing about, a 'massive night'.
Twenty-Six was also the age that I really started to settle into own skin and come into my own. I started to finally realise that it's not so bad to be unlike everyone else and do things a little differently. Sometimes, the right people like/love you for it.
There were certainly a fair share of nay-sayers and snoop cockers but if we listened to people like that we would never get anything done, would we?

There were good times in the usual places, great times in unusual ones and more bands and musical events than I could shake a stick at.

It's been my 'Garden State' year for sure; a lot of searching, learning and ultimately finding. I won't bleat on, lest I jinx things. I always worry that the good things in my life won't last but, hey, you all know me well enough to know that it's a common trait. I'm learning to make the most of things while they're going on.

Twenty-Seven, please hold onto the dearest things; friends, new and old, the writing stuff and, of course, the provider of L-O-V-E and swish bracelets.

Thanks a lot, Twenty-Six

Over to you, Twenty-Seven. Wow me.

Love and Lasers,

Chris