The night wasn't going well. It was St. Patrick's Day 2017 in New York City and after an ill-advised trip to Times Square, my friends and me were back at my apartment in Murray Hill. It was 2AM. Two hours until closing time. We decided to hit a dive bar around the corner. I knew it would be nothing special.
I wanted to make the night interesting, so I grabbed my MAGA hat and wore it out in NYC for the first time. That decision changed the course of my life. Insults were hurled my way by several drunk strangers, but I didn't flinch. A couple of guys quietly showed their respect for my courage. A girl approached me and started dancing with me, clearly liking the vibe I was giving off. But she was only a 6, so I extricated myself after ten minutes.
Five minutes later, I caught a 7.5 staring at me with the Bambi eyes. She had been watching me for a while and was mesmerized. I was in the midst of a three month dry spell. Thirty minutes after meeting her, my dry spell was over.
At this point in time, I was roughly three years out of college and two years into my career. My first job was as an accountant for a bank. My second job, and my job as of March 2017, was as a financial analyst at a marketing company. I felt like the life was being sucked out of me. My corporate life largely consisted of asking for permission, making excuses, and apologizing. The work at both jobs was very mundane, rarely stimulating. I was an easily replaceable cog and was treated as such. Liberal coworkers in neighboring cubicles gleefully traded stories of victimhood to pass the days. I mostly avoided socializing around the office to lower the chances of being outed as a Trump supporter. When asked about my political views, I talked about trying not to worry about things outside of my control.
It was Sunday night. Two days after that St. Patrick's day. A day in which I felt an energy and enthusiasm for life for the first time in a long time. No way I was going to work that week, but I stopped short of quitting on the spot. I told my boss I had the flu and took the week off to unplug and start to consider my options. Over the next month and a half, I hatched the plan to quit my job and go to Southeast Asia. I gave my notice in May and was a free man by June. After a nice jobless summer in New York, I was off to Bangkok in early September.
As I type this now from my airbnb in Saigon, it's been 13 months since I first set foot in Southeast Asia. Nine of those months have been spent in SEA, with December 2017 through March 2018 being spent living with my parents in New York. It's been a hell of a ride. Amazing experiences. Exposure to different ideas and cultures. Sex with more girls in the last year than in the first 25 years of my life. And the adoption of a no excuses, no apologies mentality.
I'm set financially for a while due to the decent salary I made in New York, combined with the saving and budgeting skills that I've employed over the years. I'm exploring various opportunities and learning new skills. It would be ideal if I could create a long term location independent lifestyle, but I haven't ruled out a return to a US city. If I work for another corporation, I need to be someone with a valuable skillset. Hard to replace. That's the only way to command respect, and have a reasonable amount of autonomy.
I've made major strides in my development as a man over the last year and a half. But, it's a never ending process, and there are always areas for improvement. I'm trying to be the best I can be. And trying to make that best better over time.
I wanted to make the night interesting, so I grabbed my MAGA hat and wore it out in NYC for the first time. That decision changed the course of my life. Insults were hurled my way by several drunk strangers, but I didn't flinch. A couple of guys quietly showed their respect for my courage. A girl approached me and started dancing with me, clearly liking the vibe I was giving off. But she was only a 6, so I extricated myself after ten minutes.
Five minutes later, I caught a 7.5 staring at me with the Bambi eyes. She had been watching me for a while and was mesmerized. I was in the midst of a three month dry spell. Thirty minutes after meeting her, my dry spell was over.
At this point in time, I was roughly three years out of college and two years into my career. My first job was as an accountant for a bank. My second job, and my job as of March 2017, was as a financial analyst at a marketing company. I felt like the life was being sucked out of me. My corporate life largely consisted of asking for permission, making excuses, and apologizing. The work at both jobs was very mundane, rarely stimulating. I was an easily replaceable cog and was treated as such. Liberal coworkers in neighboring cubicles gleefully traded stories of victimhood to pass the days. I mostly avoided socializing around the office to lower the chances of being outed as a Trump supporter. When asked about my political views, I talked about trying not to worry about things outside of my control.
It was Sunday night. Two days after that St. Patrick's day. A day in which I felt an energy and enthusiasm for life for the first time in a long time. No way I was going to work that week, but I stopped short of quitting on the spot. I told my boss I had the flu and took the week off to unplug and start to consider my options. Over the next month and a half, I hatched the plan to quit my job and go to Southeast Asia. I gave my notice in May and was a free man by June. After a nice jobless summer in New York, I was off to Bangkok in early September.
As I type this now from my airbnb in Saigon, it's been 13 months since I first set foot in Southeast Asia. Nine of those months have been spent in SEA, with December 2017 through March 2018 being spent living with my parents in New York. It's been a hell of a ride. Amazing experiences. Exposure to different ideas and cultures. Sex with more girls in the last year than in the first 25 years of my life. And the adoption of a no excuses, no apologies mentality.
I'm set financially for a while due to the decent salary I made in New York, combined with the saving and budgeting skills that I've employed over the years. I'm exploring various opportunities and learning new skills. It would be ideal if I could create a long term location independent lifestyle, but I haven't ruled out a return to a US city. If I work for another corporation, I need to be someone with a valuable skillset. Hard to replace. That's the only way to command respect, and have a reasonable amount of autonomy.
I've made major strides in my development as a man over the last year and a half. But, it's a never ending process, and there are always areas for improvement. I'm trying to be the best I can be. And trying to make that best better over time.