A New York state of mind

With Spring Break fast approaching, I'm getting increasingly anxious just thinking about the prospect of going to and physically being in New York City. I've already determined that this trip is turning out to be more of a business trip than an actual vacation, but I don't mind because to a large extent, when I think of NYC, all I can imagine is the very real possibility of having my dream job working at a mag in the middle of the bustling city. And when it comes down to it, that's not really work at all.

The past few weeks have been a bit crazy, balancing work at the Daily Trojan (and the drama of the USG elections) with class work with Bamboo Offshoot's first-ever A&E issue with the job hunt with several side projects with some semblance of a social life with ... life. The funny thing about the situation is that I never feel justified being stressed out, since everything that's keeping me up at night is just a manifestation of my desire to get somewhere in this crazy journalistic world. So I don't stress, though sometimes I think a little stress would be beneficial, healthier even.

I'm not realistic in my quest for my dream job, I'll be the first to admit. But I push forward anyway. There are too many reasons not to do something, but the one reason anyone should ever really take a risk and do it anyway trumps all those other reasons: You do it because you wholeheartedly want to.

If Hollywood and the media have taught us anything, it's that breaking free from a stilted norm or set of circumstances is how people find true happiness - Zach Braff did it in "Garden State." Will Smith did it in "The Pursuit of Happyness." Heck, even James McAvoy did it in the horrendous Matrix-meets-300-meets-Fight Club mash-up "Wanted."

The moral of the story being, in all three instances, that if you don't like your circumstances, change them. Destiny will only wait around on the steps of the Royal Ball for so long before you have to run up and meet her.

Foolish as it might seem to diving headfirst into a new city and a new lifestyle, I'm excited about the prospect of taking charge of my future. I can't for the life of me understand when people complain of boredom - being "bored" is a state of mind, nothing more, nothing less. And it's no one's job but your own to work your way out of it. Therefore, every day is busy not because I have heaps of work chucked at me, but because I knowingly usher in all these tasks and stories and assignments. Willingly.

At the end of the day, I want to be able to say with absolute confidence that I put in as much effort to attain my successes as Destiny put in to ensure that I get to wherever I need to be.

When stress and work start to pile in, and I feel like I can't handle the obligations, responsibilities and problems anymore, nothing's more satisfying than picking up a shovel and finding my own way. It's a NY state of mind.