I've mentioned it several times, but coming up with topics for 100 straight blogs turned out to be a lot harder than I thought it'd be.
Last night I went to a BBQ at my folks' place, and my Dad and I were talking about comedy. He mentioned how lucky I am to have a girlfriend that supports me the way mine does. So this morning as I was sitting here going through the important internet stuff; emails, wrestling news, etc, I got thinking about that comment, and how accurate it is. So that's what I'm going to blab about today. My girlfriend, Shaley. (And yeah, I know I've talked about her in here before. Nobody reads ALL of these things. This post is for her, anyway).
We've been together for about 12 years now. Over that time, we've definitely had our ups and downs, but one thing that's been consistent through our entire run is that we've always supported each other. Both Shaley and I have been through several job (and occasionally entire career) changes, and each time, whichever of us has moved on to a new opportunity has had to start over from the bottom. Which traditionally means less money and more stress. We've never let it come between us, though. I can't think of a single instance where one of us has told the other not to try something. I have friends that I've seen first hand pass up a chance to give something new a shot because their partner wouldn't let them, and I just can't figure out how that's considered a healthy relationship.
In particular, I've made some changes. When Shay and I met, I was a warehouse supervisor. We worked at the same company, and I left a few months after we started dating (partially because I needed a change in scenery, and partially because the company didn't agree with our relationship). In the 11 years since I left that job, I've worked in another warehouse, transitioned into sales, quit that to work in the sports memorabilia industry, went back to warehousing, then back to sports memorabilia, and ended where I am now; stand up comedy. In that time, we climbed out of debt, bought and sold our first house, and started travelling. Shay, meanwhile, has been at the same job for a long time, and she's very successful. She absolutely would have had a leg to stand on if she had asked me to suck it up and stay at a job, particularly while we were dealing with banks and mortgages. But she never has.
Every time I wanted to try something different, I was met with the same response; "I just want you to be happy. You should go for it." I'd bring up money, and she'd shrug and say "we'll figure it out". That kind of unwavering support has meant more to me than anything in this world. I am happy, and knowing that I have someone by my side supporting me at all times just motivates me to work harder and get better. I feel a sense of obligation to her (that she's never asked me to have, BTW).
Shaley is my best friend. I'd be completely lost without her. I hope everyone eventually meets someone that they feel that way about. I can complain, whine, try material, laugh, and relax with Shaley. Like I said, we have ups and downs, but the downs never seem to last very long, because we both know how many ups there've been, and we want to get back there ASAP. I can't wait to get home from shows and see her (and my dog). It's a cliche, but I really feel like one of the luckiest people on the planet. For a short, lazy-eyed, video game nerd, I did pretty good.
Love ya, babe.
Thanks for reading.
Adam
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