The Beginning

On the road and away from home, up the street in a near-by neighborhood, near or far; you never know where you might meet a new friend.

My father served in the USAF for 28 years and took us to multiple states, countries, bases, and schools during his time. As a child, it becomes a delicate balance of a cool new adventure, adjusting to a new environment (yet again), and conquering your fears of both. As an adult, it becomes a cool story of the things you've seen, the places you've been and the next adventure you will take part in. It becomes natural to adapt to a new environments without hesitation and to have the confidence to speak freely to people you've never met before. It becomes a part of your life and who you are.

When I first went to college I roomed with 4 random roommates. To my surprise, not a single one of them had ever left the state and they were still hanging with the same clicks they have been hanging with for years. I was baffled by this, and knew at that moment that my military experiences not only helped define who I am today but it helped fill me with the need for exploration, the confidence around people I don't know, and the willingness to meet new friends.

Over the past couple years, I've really settled into who I am and being comfortable with that. I always knew I was a random person, I always knew I was loud, I always knew that I'd prefer to talk to someone rather than sit on a plane, run a race, eat dinner or do whatever by myself and I always knew just how to break the ice to do just that. So I often find myself breaking the ice with a nearby individual and quickly befriending them. 

I thank this bravery and comfort to speaking with strangers to my time as a military brat and traveling all over the world. Living on military bases and being surround by such transient people, you gain the mentality that the next person that sits down next to you could be your new best friend. I took this concept beyond high school and often find myself talking to the most interesting people. Actually, I tend to talk to everyone, no really I always have the best stories about some new person I met. I hear it from my mom all the time, that I shouldn't talk to strangers, but I always reply that "they are now my friends." I know she thinks I'm crazy but turns out he world is filled with so many interesting people that could easily be "My New Best Friend."

I have met people that inspire my soul, encourage my success, and challenge my ideas. And I really wanted to take this to the next step after meeting a guy who inspired me to "give life the middle finger."  So here is my blog - a blog to share the stories of my new wonderful friends.