Most Important Events of the 2000's and More!

The Most Important Events of the 2000’s…

- I fell in love with a stupid smelly lake surrounded by Palm Trees and decided to go to the University of Miami.
- I changed my name/moniker from BJ to Will.
- I drove some guys on my dorm floor to a club, (scaring them half to death, because well it was fun) and through them made some of my closest friends of the decade.
- I switched from Journalism to Motion Pictures.
- My brother had a baby and got married.
- My Grandparents let me live with them for a year. Worked at the Cheesecake Factory.
- My Dad told me he had another family.
- I traveled to Foreign Countries. Italy. Peru. Bolivia. Argentina. Singapore. Thailand. Hong Kong. And Canada.
- Gabe invited me to live on his floor in Los Angeles.
- Corey got me a entry level night job at Herzog.
- I bought the new guy on the night shift from Maine a McChicken. Who said McDonald’s couldn’t change your life in a positive way.
- I sold out and jumped onto those crazy Pirate Movies and watched myself climb up the corporate ladder. (Sounds kind of gross when I put it like that.)
- I decided to fill in for Lindsey on her Maternity Leave.
- I started doing Yoga, because I thought my mind and body weren’t in sync. Found a great teacher.
- I permanently left the Night Shift and decided to take more control of my work career.
- I went to my 10 year high school reunion and realized that I was perfectly happy being single, and happy that I had not forced myself into some situation that didn’t fit what I wanted in life, or did something because I thought I had to.
- I accepted a job overseas and had one of the craziest adventures of my life. Thanks Sandrine.
- I tried to cultivate an attitude of never saying no, no matter how mad I got about it.
- I decided that you really are what you eat, and I felt really shitty about it.
- I went to a psychic who kind of told me some really important things about my life, that I needed to work on.
- My Brother had a second baby.
- I traveled across America, and took my time, for the most part.
- As my brother has told me, I became West Coast.

I had a lot of fun in the 2000’s. A LOT OF FUN. I had a lot of hard times, too. I lost two years of my life/memories to Night Shifts, although I’m still hoping to do a data recovery. I laughed, I cried, I smiled, I gained weight, I lost weight. I had my Wisdom Teeth removed. I ran a lot and I busted my knee. I DID A LOT OF STUFF. I spent a lot of time doing nothing. I made almost nothing. I made a lot of money. I bought a lot of stuff. I got rid of a lot of stuff. I painted walls and I put down my stake and declared this my land. I made a lot of friends and I lost a lot of friends, but I made sure to keep the keepers.

I learned a lot, about myself, about the world.

My problems, my worries, and my hopes are pretty much the same as they were at the start of the decade, but I’ve learned so much, about myself and about the world, that I consider myself on top and ready to tackle the next decade.

If I spent much of my teens, the 1990’s physically growing up, then I spent the 2000’s my twenties psychologically growing up. Learning the hard way, by doing, by feeling, by being.

What can I hope for in the 2010’s?

To keep learning. And I hope this might be the decade where everything, er most of it, well at least a few parts of my life really come together. And if it doesn’t then I guess I have the 2020’s to look forward to.

But I can tell you this, either way, I’m going to keep “Kick’n Ass,” because you know, I have nothing else to do with my life.

Or more poetically:

“Oh mistress of fate, sweep me up into your arms and let us dance the night away.”

QUOTES from the 2000

Some Amazing/Slightly Revealing Quotes from my Journals from 2000-2004.

Well, I am now Will ~ BJ Gong 2001

I hope you never feel this shitty ~ Will Gong 2002

We are our own answers ~ Will Gong 2003

I hate Avid ~ Will Gong 2003

Women are meant to be loved, not understood ~ Oscar Wilde (A Long time ago)

Listen to the Dead ~ Mike Smith 2003

Last night, I sunk to a new low in Compound Misery ~ Will Gong 2003

I almost died on a Rugrat Vitamin ~ Will Gong 2004

Why do we have to make order out of things immeasurable? BLAH!!! But I’m happy to be alive, because I have nothing else to do. ~ Will Gong 2004

A Look Back at 1999

So a little history, at the dawn of this decade er 1999, I was a:
- Community College Student
- Waiter. Lifeguard.
- Living at home in Virginia.

Today I am a:
- Occasional Part time Student.
- Writer/Producer/Editor thing
- Los Angelinos.

Huh. Okay, that seems pretty interesting, but it’s not really painting a very clear picture.

Interests in 1999.

- Movies & Music & Books.
- Frappachinos.
- Weight Lifting.
- Girls

And here is a list of my favorite things from that time period. (Another choice journal entry.)

A List of Favorites from 2000.

Spinning Fast on things in parks; The Rock Cliffs in Nahant, MA; Skiing; Waking up in a tent covered in Snow
Being on stage, Sailboat Wars; The Ocean; Driving to new places; Finishing Stories
Fight Club; The Matrix; The First 3 Star Wars
The Prydain Tales; Clive Barker Books; Persuasion – Jane Austin; The Count of Monte Carlo
Surviving Car Accidents
Discovering the Beatles; R&B, Pink Floyd, Aerosmith, Dr. Dre, Tim McGraw, Oasis, (What did I disown Shania at some point?)
Making 200 in a day at Glory Days
Les Miserables; Singing
Playing in Freshman Football Games; A Killer hot streak shooting the Basketball
Young Life Summer Camps; Camping; Hot tubs; Sneaking out at night
Being Pulled over is Fantastic
Starbucks!
The Pool.
Women.

All right, that helps fill in a little bit, but you may want some historical context. So, let Me Take You Back. Way Back.
Back into time.

In 2000 there was no, Kanye, no White Stripes, no Kelly Clarkson. There was really no Coldplay. Think about that, a world without Coldplay, and for a second when you think, hey maybe that’s not bad, remember, it was a world of the Backstreet Boys, of Creed, of Limp Bizkit. LIMP BIZKIT!!! I mean, hell, I still had hope Oasis might make a good record again. Oh, and I was obsessed with Shania Twain.

In 1999, I was making fun of Harry Potter! Making fun of Harry POTTER.
In 1999, I was bench pressing 160, and feeling really good about it. Most of my meals consisted of restaurant food, fast food, and frappuchinos.
In 1999, I was chasing after a lot of girls, especially the unavailable type of girl.

I was working at Glory Days Grill, deciding what college to go to, and doing a good bit of underage drinking. I was going to Northern Virginia Community College, and my GPA was stellar, so I could pretty much have my pick of schools, at least the ones I wanted to apply to.

At the same time, I was really uncertain of where my life was going; I knew I had to go, but I didn’t really want to. I didn't really have any life ambition, other than to probably hook up. My Dad was going to foreclose on the house and my Mom was going to get the boot. I had no idea what my brother was gonna do, but he was annoying. But on the other hand, I was a big fish in a small pond at the restaurant. I had a great group of coworkers and we had a great time. How was anything going to compare with that? And at the same time, I didn't want to get stuck. I wanted more, I just wasn't sure what more.
It was a crazy time for sure.

So what happened between then and now? Well, I’m glad you asked.

The Most Important Events of the 2000’s…

The B.J. Gong Journal 2000

An Journal Essay from Jan. 2000. I have no idea what this was for.

“Over the last year and a half at Northern Virginia Community College, I’ve seen a few things. I’ve seen a man watch his life and dreams fall away in the wasteland of a mall booth. I’ve watched underage athletes drink themselves into being fat men by 21. I have seen women destroy lives by getting pregnant and vice versa, just to give their lives meaning. And I have seen men, women, and children lives who are so stuck in self imposed misery that they have become soulless vessels.”

“ What I’ve learned from all that I’ve seen is that there are no guarantees. No faith, belief, religion or institution will guarantee happiness. It’s all how you live it. But what separates most of the successful people I seem to know is a college education.”

Hmm… I feel like this is missing a conclusion. What did I think, oh well, I guess I’ll have to go get a college education now. Okay. Weird.

Well, let me respond to myself here.
“Over the last ten years, I have seen people’s lives destroyed, but I have also seen people’s lives reborn. I don’t think you need a college education to be successful, I think you can do whatever you want as long as you’re willing to fight for it. So Fight.”

The End of Decade: The Blog Returns for now

END OF THE DECADE: 2000-2009

So I’ve been told (Hutson) that the decade does not really end until 2011 begins, well, you know, when a new number rolls in I can’t help but get nostalgic, especially since, I pretty much enter a new number at the same time. So, alas, My 20’s, we have a little under 5 months left together.

So to commemorate this, I’ve decided to get back onto the the blog and write up a few on some of the things that have been going through my (now) old head. Because, really, what better time to look back on who I was and see who I am.