Before life was about the count

What's up world? Time for a new post. I haven't much time because I have to go to my ROTC commitments here shortly but I felt like blogging so here we are.

I was just reading through some old documents I have saved on my computer. Starting in the Summer of 2008, I've saved many many documents that can take me back to what my life was like back then. These docs range from saved conversations with Alex Krauss, high school homework assignments, little essays and narratives I wrote for myself and saved, lists, and letters to myself. This blog essentially replaced the whole save a ton of documents for future enjoyment industry. So basically this blog, despite not being published on the web, extends all the way out to Summer of 2008. And that's what I was reading.

I was reading a nice little document about the analysis of girls from the perspective of a 15 year old boy. It was a quite interesting read, and my 15 year old self can get a pretty spot-on, deep analysis of social dynamics. I was impressed. But DAMN did it take me back to those days.

Summer of 2008 were great times for Decker Loyd. They were carefree and joyous. Nights would be spent on AIM and Facebook chatting with Alex Krauss and hitting up prospectable females. Flight Sim was also a major part of my work day, logging thousands of hours int he midnight hours.

The daylight hours were spent similarly, going to volleyball games, cookouts, pool parties, and the like. No alcohol, sex, money, or status were yet introduced to the equation. It was essentially the culmination of my child-hood; it was before the debauchery of the real world grabbed the reins of my life and changed everything.

It was a time when I could fly to a great city like San Francisco and resist the temptation of blowing up Facebook with the excitement of my travels. It was when a fun Saturday night consisted of chatting with your best friends for hours rather than stressing over if you're important enough to sleep in a bed at a party. It was the last time in my life I could go to the movies with a girl and blush when I put my arm around her.

Life wasn't about the count. Life wasn't about the most expensive, the busiest, or the best. Life wasn't about the money, the grades, or the rank. Life wasn't about the wings, the left seat vs right seat, or the Bravo clearance. Life wasn't about any of that yet. Life was about the pictures, the laughs, the home videos, and the memories.

Then I turned 16 and everything changes and it's about being seen and being heard. And I still wasn't in the real world. Then I turned 18 and everything changes again and I don't give a fuck about being seen or heard. Now it's about the money and the success.

Life change pretty rapidly. If my humble and laughable 15 year old self knew what he was about to dive head-first into I doubt he'd do anything differently. I couldn't be happier with how I ended my childhood in that one summer before I was rudely welcomed into the real world by [removed]. But now I'm here, and I'm ready for it. I'm just lucky to have the memories from before everything changed.

I like change. Until next time...