I think I’m starting to understand the concept of putting down roots. Staying in a place for a while. Staying at a job, a company for a long time. It’s…weird for me.
I never felt a connection to my hometown. And I always dreamt of having what is a rather impractical career.
When I was younger, I bounced around a variety of jobs that I hoped were never gonna turn into my career. So leaving when things got hard or tiring often felt like my best option. I didn’t want to work at those jobs forever so why put up when things weren’t great?
When my wife and I moved closer to Cleveland for her job, it was no big deal for me. The move meant closer proximity to cool things and I could continue to work on being a writer as I went from job to job.
Moving to Madison was harder–because of proximity to family–but it was a shot at working on something I truly love so we took it.
My need to move forward in my career outweighed pretty much every other factor.
And Madison is a great town. It’s my favorite town out of all the places I’ve lived. (London is my favorite town I’ve ever visited.)
Years later, I left that job for another job in the same area. And then that shop closed down. And I had no other opportunities.
This is the time when I launched a new edition of Little Fears and kicked off Operation: Awesome which were my attempts to hone my abilities and get practical, real product out there.
This led to some very welcome freelance gigs but it meant I was in constant pitching, constant working. I did anything and everything not just to scrape together taco money but to work my craft.
I wrote numerous bits and pieces for tabletop games (some of which paid, some of which got published, something that did both, some that did neither) and started doing article writing for AdventureGamers.com.
Once a year, I’d land a whale: a multi-month video game gig that helped us get through the leaner periods.
I was in panic mode this whole time. Every offer was short-term and I needed to find real stable full-time work. So I could catch my breath if nothing else.
I spent many years chasing a full-time opportunity. Any full-time opportunity. None of the work I got lasted all that long so I needed to be constantly looking for the next gig.
2012 is when everything changed. When I got an amazing offer–but had to walk away. When I won second prize at two different studios.
And then I landed the job at Volition.
But now, five years later, I am still always looking over my shoulder for the next thing. When things get too hard, my instinct is to look for another job.
I’ve developed a lot of bad habits–some necessary, some not–and they’re hard to shake.
All of this has prevented me from being comfortable putting down roots.
Why should I when I’m just gonna bounce, right?
But the truth is I’m in my chosen career, doing a job I love on amazingly “me” projects, working with amazing people–many of whom have become good friends. But I’ve never shaken off this perpetual fight or flight sensation.
It’s become something that nags at me. My obsessive tendencies likely exacerbate this.
And I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately, as I’ve spent all this time at home due to my dying leg/recent hip replacement. And I think about my kids and their friendships. And my house and how I’ve just started having movie nights with family and friends. And how Champaign doesn’t have all the amenities on my wishlist but I have access to a lot of great parks and shops and restaurants.
I’ve been here five years. Not just in Champaign but at Volition. This is my longest stint at a job in my life–by some magnitude.
And I wonder if I can set down roots here. If I can put away the paranoia and fear and just relax. Just enjoy life and the area and, yeah, some times will be harder than others but maybe it’s worth pushing through.
I wonder. And I think maybe I can.
It might be time for me to catch my breath.
