5,259,600 Minutes

I'm still settling into the fact that it's 2010; a year that seemed more than ages away really not so long ago. The door has closed on the millennium decade and a new one has begun- new opportunities, new experiences, new growth, new paths.

So what did the first decade of the 2000's hold in store for me? Well, I'll try to sift back through the years in my mind and highlight the monumental changes that I was fortunate enough to experience over the course of the past 10 years.
A friend of mine has been documenting what each decade has afforded her for the past 30 years and she says it's really fun to look back on her lists and see where Life's milestones arose and where the paths branched out and a new direction was taken.
So let's give this a try...

2000-2010
14-24 years old

2000 - Loved & had my heart broken for the first time
2001 - Went on a tattoo-crazed spree & got the 3 I have
2001 - Met Wyclef Jean!
2001 - Got my license
2002 - Got our dog Bailey <3
2002 - Contacted & met my biological father for the first time
2002 - Travelled throughout the States with a good friends parents to go and pick him up in Georgia after basic training for the US Army (Nashville, Kentucky, Georgia etc...)
2003 - Graduated (escaped!) highschool
2003 - Went to visit same dear friend in Barstow, California & visited Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Hollywood & the many seaside towns of coastal California. Later that friendship was tarnished by a web of lies (sad loss)
2003 - Enrolled (and withdrew) from Carleton University (but discovered my passion for ASL!)
2004 - Got our 2nd dog Leila <3
2004 - Enrolled at Algonquin College & began my studies in ASL & Deaf Culture
2004 - Mom & Dad got divorced, moved into a new house with Mom
2005 - Got my first car!
2005 - Travelled to Cancun with Megan for Spring Break
2005 -Travelled to BC to visit Terry with Megan
2005 - Travelled to Athens, the Greek Islands and Kusadasi, Turkey with my Mom (20th Birthday)
2006 - Completed Algonquin's ADSP program & began working at The Ottawa Deaf Centre
2006 - Started dating Jesse, the man of my dreams <3
2006 - Got Cleo from a barn on our first "official" date
2006 - Had my first car accident (dude ran into me, I was stopped!), car got totaled and consequently, bought Meg's brother's Honda off of him and learned how to drive standard!
2006 - Travelled to BC with Jesse
2006 - Grandma passed away, Rest in Peace <3
2007 - Mom adopted Shadow, the family's first cat
2007 - Applied for, was accepted & entered the ASL-English Interpreter Training Program at George Brown College
2007 - Travelled to BC solo
2007 - Moved to Toronto, started school & made (almost) all new friends!
2007 - Travelled to NYC with Melissa, Dave & Trevor
2008 - Mom adopted Jazz(y)
2008 - Moved into a shafty basement apt with Jesse!
2008 - Got my nape pierced (only to take it out 6 months later)
2008 - Travelled to Alberta with Jesse
2008 - Travelled to BC solo
2009 - Sold my car!
2009 - Moved into a highrise (non-flooding) apt with Jesse!
2009 - Adopted Quilson, our hedgey
2009 - Adopted Spartacus, our 2nd cat
2009 - Travelled to Germany, Belgium & the Netherlands with Jesse
2010 - Travelled to Los Angeles & surrounding area with Jesse

There's obviously much more that happened over the course of 10 years, but these are the highlights that stand out in my memory (and that are worth mentioning). There were an uncountable number of firsts, beyond multiple cottage trips, memories in Meg's killer-caravan & super-charged Bonneville, night's out, the inescapable drama of highschool, proud moments and not so proud moments, great friendships made and great friendships lost but overall, a fantastic decade.

Here's to the next 10 years and whatever it holds in store as I embark on my new life as a professional, young adult in Love and trying to make my mark.