I hope that one day I can look back at my life and identify several inflection points where things changed. Events like moving to Denver, meeting Dana and getting married, and losing our first dog Larry come to mind. I hope I’m fortunate enough to have many more such events before my time here is up.

Exiting college, I found myself struggling. Despite securing a job as an IT consultant in the healthcare sector, the detrimental habits I developed during my college years persisted. Monday – Friday I was a functional, working, adult. On the weekends (and some weeknights if I’m honest) I was a complete mess. I knew I had to remove myself from the situation and was afraid of what might happen to me if I did not.

Denver: A New Beginning

Fortuitously, I had clients in both Denver and San Francisco at the time. Given its more central location, selling my move to Denver at work wasn’t difficult. I found an apartment for rent off of Craigslist, packed up my car, and moved out to Denver.

As chance would have it, a new colleague of mine told me he was also moving to Denver around the same time. I got to Denver sometime around my birthday; possibly on my birthday and promptly hit up my co-worker. He was at a bar down the street from my new apartment (Goosetown Tavern) meeting with a couple of his friends.

The ensuing years became some of the most cherished of my life. I had run away from these habits but what I found was something special. We expanded our friend group through a local kickball league and the group of us were all young professionals in a new city. Nearly every weekend was spent at horseshoe lounge; smoking cigarets, drinking beers, and “solving the world’s problems.” I learned to snowboard, camp, hike and to be on my own. Most importantly though, on that first night out at goosetown I met one of my colleagues friends. She was wearing a Tupac tank top and a leather jacket. It was Dana and I fell immediately.

Together, we bought a house and rented out the rooms. One of our friends moved in with us and the other room was occupied by some …characters. We refinished the bathroom in addition to doing a few other DIY projects. In addition to learning a lot I learned that I’m not a craftsmen.

As Dana and I envisioned our future, we both sensed that Denver wasn’t truly home for us. I knew I wanted to be near family so Philadelphia became a natural choice. We sold the house in Denver packed up our car and drove home where my dad was gracious enough to let us live with him for the better part of year.

Philadelphia: Finding Home

Dana, through a lot of hard work with our realtor, was able to find us the perfect little row home in South Philadelphia. We moved in right around the time that Eagles won the Super Bowl. It was also around this time that our wonderful French bulldog Larry Hoover entered our lives. The next few years were great. Unlike in Denver, where we had roommates, the house in Philadelphia was our home. We got married in 2018 and spent our weekends frequenting the bars and restaurants in Passyunk Square. Bing Bing Din Sum, Catina Los Caballitos, Mr. Martino’s Trattoria, and Stateside were our stomping grounds. Funny story, one such weekend Dana and I were out and about getting some food before going to see a show. While putting our name in at Bing Bing I noticed Jason Segal on his way out. I finish putting my name in and walk out and Dana is standing there wide eyed having a conversation with Jason. Jason had stopped to say hi to Larry.

Chicago: The Windy City Adventure

In the Summer of 2019 Dana and I had made the decision to temporarily relocate to Chicago. I worked as a consultant at the time and was traveling back and forth between Chicago and Philadelphia for the better part of a year. Through a little bit of consultant math I was able to show how it would be cheaper for my client to lease us a condo instead of flying me back and forth.

We relocated to a cozy 720-square-foot condo in Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood. It was well beyond what we could afford on our own but was still a heck of a lot cheaper than flying me back and forth. I felt fortunate and was looking forward to exploring Chicago with Dana. We packed up our car and moved to Chicago in December 2019.

Despite the city’s freezing temperatures, we eagerly anticipated exploring Chicago’s diverse culinary scene. Places like Ramen-San, Il Porcellino , and Roisters were some of our favorite. Then January happened.

The Pandemic

I THINK January was when shit really started to get real with Covid. The world shutdown and my client, like many other businesses, moved to a remote work operating model. I felt fortunate to still have work.

The working situation was anything but ideal though. Dana and I were now cooped up in a the condo working literally on top of one another. For a few weeks I was able to use the communal space at the condo but eventually even that was shut down.

Thinking back to that time period is terrifying. Not because of what I went through personally (I should be clear that I was very fortunate to work in tech and to have remained healthy for the length of the pandemic) but because of what we collectively went through. Everything shut down. People were out of work. Hospitals were over run. Morgues were over run.

I knew that our current living situation wasn’t tenable. Working in tech and more specifically in Information Security I was able to go to the job market and find a few opportunities. One such opportunity was in Austin, TX. At the time, I had little clue how my experience as a consultant would translate to industry but I was lucky and landed the job as a Technical Program Manager (TPM).

Austin: Letting Life Guide Us

Not only was I lucky to find a role that fit my skill set but the company was also going to move Dana, Larry, and I out to Austin, TX. From Denver (where we met), to Philadelphia, to Chicago and now to Austin; words can’t describe how fortunate I feel that I have a true partner in Dana. We packed up and moved to Austin that Summer.

We unfortunately lost Larry that fall when a back issue that happened in Chicago put our little guy in a tailspin that he unfortunately never recovered from. Looking back on it the whole experience it was traumatic. Every pet owner knows how much their pet means to them and Larry meant that to us. He had been with us on all of our adventures and while I was traveling for work during the week Larry was there to keep Dana company. The unfortunate reality is that French Bulldogs are known to have health issues. I wish Dana and I had known more about the breed going in but were young, naive, and ignorant to the unfortunate realities of breeding frenchies. We gave Larry the best life we could.

We spent the next 4 years living in Austin, TX. We made great friends along the way, got to hang out with old friends, and ate life changing brisket at Snows BBQ. We also got a new buddy to join us on our adventures; enter Mr. Walter White (Heisenberg when he acts up). A crazy, Fun-Sized, Australian Shepherd. Austin was truly as weird as it claims and I loved our time there.

Charleston: Seeking Permanence

Although we were having fun in Austin we weren’t ready to commit to Austin. The housing market was a commitment and we wanted to get out of an apartment and into a house sooner rather than later. After several late-night discussions, Dana and I established our criteria for the next move: warm weather, proximity to the beach, a location on the East Coast, and within driving distance of our parents. After going back and forth between Wilmington, NC and Charleston, SC we ultimately landed on Charleston. The size of the city along with the proximity to the beach are ultimately what sold me. Only time will tell if it will be our forever home but for now, it feels right.

Conclusion

Every life unfolds like a unique story, composed of distinct chapters. These shared moments from my post-college years represent just a few of mine. Along this journey, I’ve navigated through valleys of sadness and fear, faced moments tinged with regret, but I’ve also ascended peaks of profound beauty, thrilling excitement, and deep fulfillment. Each chapter, with its own texture and hue, has contributed to the rich tapestry of my life. Now, I turn the page to you: What chapters have defined your story?