Next Stage

[RJ O'Connell]

of life begins Friday, 7 PM Central time. I will officially graduate high school, then make the decision of where to go to university (I will stay relatively close to Florence, no more than 150 miles away). Before that happens, I'll also have to get a paying job for the first time in my life. It's surreal to think about - for many years, I've been preparing for this moment, and now the time has come.

I'll be saying my farewells to people who have been a part of my life from anywhere in between a year to over a decade. Some I will miss, some I couldn't be happier to never see again. (There's Facebook and MySpace so we can stay in touch, though.)

I'll still be here for the foreseeable future, talking about a silly video game that has sort of become a lifestyle - well, maybe just a hobby - for me. And I'll enjoy doing it.

Wish me luck. :D

-RJ

[Avenger2197]

Congrats on the graduation, man. Good Luck with college, too.:g

[infoxicated]

By the time I was leaving school, I already sort of knew that I'd be starting an apprenticeship to become an electrical engineer. Admittedly, I left school in June or July and didn't get confirmation of that until early August, so there was a month or so of "what am I going to do if I don't get accepted for the apprenticeship?"

I don't remember thinking of it as that big a deal, though - just a transition from one learning environment to another. Which is pretty much the pattern of life, anyway - three months ago I was **** hot at what I did and the master of my own universe. Now I'm an idiot who makes mistakes on a daily basis because I'm back at the foot of the learning curve again with my new job.

Best of luck with your decisions to come, RJ. :+