My Year in Review (2009)

This is my third one of these "Year in Review" articles that I've written and reading them later has reminded me of so much that I've decided to keep it going. As cliche as it is to say, it really does seem like just yesterday that I brought in the New Year with a very small group @ Mosaic in Baltimore. Not going into a whole lot of detail, last New Year's kiss was randomly awesome and really set the tone for this past year's success.

This year began with me very happy in the position that I am in with Lockheed as an IT Analyst. Certifications that I didn't have to pay for, a good amount of responsibility on projects I lead, a good stable paycheck, and a work environment that facilitated no real stress. Closing in on my 24th birthday I realized something, though. It was about to be 20 years since a 4-year-old Joe Burlas first announced to his Mother, in the car in Lawton, Oklahoma, that he wanted to become a Pilot one day. Well, that realization bothered me so much that on my Birthday I took a flight that has changed my life, knowing full well that my life had changed as I slipped into the skies over Baltimore. Ever since then I've been more than obsessed and I've worked out a career path that can lead me to being a Fighter Pilot. We'll see if I see this through, family and all in mind.

This year has also done something amazing for me, and that's to say that it has brought me back the life I left when I joined the Army and went away to sand. It has brought me back my amazing group of friends, my supportive family, and a passion for life that's kinda been flickering in the wind. It makes me laugh to think how jaded you can really become when life beats you up a little. However I'll say that through some very important people in my life I've seen a lot through. This next year is mine, though, and my resolutions this next year include killing off all my debt, changing the way I think about women, becoming a Pilot, and increasing the amount of time I spend with the people I love.

Last year, while successful, was one where I spent days alone at a time outside of work. It was a progressive choice I suppose, but it had me forget how important it is to laugh and do things other than drink with friends. This year will be different and I am happy to say I plan on finishing the next year with hope of a very bright future still alive as ever. I've always felt that it's really hard to take the time out of any day to sit down and reflect on ones life. Looking at the last two years alone however, I feel like it's becoming important for me to do in measuring my life's growth.

Tonight I am going to end this year with my annual Cigar, one I smoke every year to remember my Soldiers who have died, my friends who have stuck with me, and my family who remind be constantly that I am loved. It's my celebration of the human spirit, one of which only few get to enjoy with me.

Stay safe everyone. Happy 2010.

"It's just the realization of things that need to change in order to fufill the promises made by and to a stupid boy who didn't know much about the world. I owe that to my sons future dreams." - Joe Burlas, Inspire the Uninspired, July 6, 2009