Not sure how it happened but it feels like yesterday when I was getting ready to say goodbye to 2011 and now I am sitting here, just few hours away from welcoming 2013. Last year already seemed like I did so much, traveled quite a few places, got reunited with longtime friends, etc. which seemed like it will be hard to top. Well, this year was no different in more ways than one.
My last year’s resolution was to turn my main focus in 2012 in getting ready for relocating to East Coast in 2013. So, I knew that this year I will tone my traveling way down, as well as attending any conferences unless they’d fit yearly allowance from my employer. I wanted to make sure that I’ve had enough savings in case I would need to finance the big move myself.
Who would have known like this last year that sooner rather than later my longtime dream to move to Boston will finally happen, and it did. My employer was in need a front-end developer in our Boston office, so there came my opportunity to making this all happen. The move and everything around it wasn’t easy but it was worth every frustration or stress I had to endure through it all.
The moment it was said and done that after 12 years in Portland, I will be finally realizing my relocation, I started to get ready saying my goodbyes and revisiting my favorite places in Pacific Northwest, and there is quite a few of them. Each and one of those trips, whether it was to Oregon Coast, anywhere along Columbia Gorge or Seattle, were quite emotional the moment I realized that it will be a while before I will be able to revisit. All of a sudden all the memories I’ve made over the years started to rush in, so holding tears back on more than one occasion was definitely a struggle.
In the midst of it all, in April I was lucky to attend amazing Breaking Development Conference in Orlando. A month later, I’ve made a quick trip to Massachusetts to look for a new place to live which I found in record time thanks to my wonderful MA friends. Then I just had few weeks left to pack up, get everything in order, have a little farewell party, as well as help coordinating SMACSS workshop that was held in our Portland office.
The move across country was a nightmare for many reason but my MA friends came through for me yet again and made it more bearable and less painful thanks to there hospitality and graciousness. I’ll most likely will never repay them my gratitude for everything that so many of them have done for me, and how quickly they’ve made me part of their lives as if I’ve lived there all my life.
Less than a month after I moved to Boston, I went back to Portland for a week to help with CSS Summit, which was for second time broadcasted from our office in Portland. Upon my return to Massachusetts, I finally started to settling in and becoming familiar with my new home State, meeting my new neighbors and making new friends. Life on East Coast and people very much differ from what I’ve been used to past 12 years but wasn’t all that foreign to me being the European I am.
During the first few months, I made few little trips around MA or surrounding States. As I started to get used to new area and my new life that I’ve looking forward to for so long, the time came again to pack my bags and get ready for my 3-month long trip to Europe. After 14 years, I got to be home with my family for my birthday. Few weeks later, I took a short trip to Belfast to attend Build where I got reunited with many friends and got to meet new ones.
Thanksgiving Day marked the first day of my 5 week vacation that I’ve been saving up for over a year. This time around, I chose to travel only within Slovakia. I got enjoy my hometown during Christmas holidays, spend time with family and childhood friends, as well as visit Zbrojnica, a wonderful restaurant ran by my friend Jozef Pročko or whimsical little village Čičmany.
It’s seems to be a usual thing that whenever one is having a great time, the time passes by faster than one would like. So, here I am, two hours away from welcoming 2013, and just a month away from returning to US. My vacation has ended and I am back to working. I have still New Adventures to attend in January in Nottingham, which will take place just a week before going back to my US home and having to say goodbye to my family and friends.
Just like last year, there are no regrets but gratefulness for this past year. All the experiences, adventures, wonderful friends and family. Not to mention, five of my friends got engaged, so I have few weddings to look forward to. 2012 was great but I am ready for 2013 and continue my life where I left off. Looking forward to see what next year has in store for me. So, Happy New Year to all of you and hope to see some you in 2013.