As our time in NC winds to a close, I wanted to thank the Tar Heel State for being our lovely host for the past two years.  The time we've spent here will never be forgotten and was influential in putting us on the path we are headed.  I'd like to share some final thoughts about our time here below.

First off, I'd like to personally thank the everyone involved at the NC State Fair.  Not only did we attend the fair itself for the last two years, but we also enjoyed various other activities that took place at the fairgrounds such as the Greek Festival, 4th of July, Got to Be NC Festival, coin shows, boat shows, and of course the flea market.  Conveniently located near our apartment, there were (mostly free) events almost every weekend and if we found ourselves in need of something to do we'd first look at the fairgrounds schedule.

As much as traffic is mostly bad on I-40 and I-440, it was nice to finally live in an area where the interstate was accessible.  Back in Kentucky, 3/4 of the city basically had to drive 20 min or more to even get to the on ramp of the closest interstate.  Even out of Cary where we live there were 3 interstate exits within 15 min of each other.  I know this is kind of a silly thing to write about, but it was one of the first things I noticed when I started living here.

No reflection post of mine is complete without mention of food.  The Raleigh/Cary area provided a multitude of restaurants, some I had only seen in far away bigger cities.  My first trip to Ruth's Chris Steak House was in Cary.  We got to enjoy the mostly Canadian based Jack Astor's.  Other restaurants like California Pizza Kitchen and the Cheesecake Factory were so far away back in Kentucky it wasn't worth the drive, but both were basically right down the street here.  I was able to regroup with long lost sandwich shop Jersey Mike's which was based in downtown Lexington when I was in college but closed relatively quick.

Finally and most importantly, we got married in North Carolina.  Sure it wasn't a big wedding with all the fanfare and such but we were married on our dream date of 10/10/10.  Our wedding for $80 at the Wake County Public Safety Center was perfect for us.  It's really about the couple, not the circumstances.  I love my wife Karen and everything about her and couldn't ask for anything more.  It's also going to put a lot less stress on the wedding celebration we're putting on this fall for family and friends to commemorate our first year of marriage.

Our time in NC served as a platform for the future.  As we start our Florida journey in just 2 weeks' time, I couldn't have asked to be in a better position.  I'm slowly learning that life is nothing but a bunch of beginnings, and this could be our biggest one yet.

We'll miss you North Carolina, you really do hold a piece of our heart.

As I was drifting into the dream world last night, I started thinking about dreams.  Not the crazy stuff you see when you're sleeping, but those goals, items, places that you dream about completing, having, or going to.  I remember growing up with very few dreams.  I didn't really know what I wanted to do or where I wanted to go, but I knew that I had potential in me to go far.  It took meeting my wife to really understand what it was like to chase dreams.

It's interesting how the universe works.  Without going into debate material, it almost seems like when you get on the right track, everything going forward is smooth sailing.  Of course smooth is a relative term, it's not all unicorns and rainbows, there's challenges along the way that you have to deal with.  But the challenges are meant to prepare you for the future, and as you approach and defeat more challenges, the better off you'll end up.

There's a distinct difference between wild dreams and realistic dreams.  People can dream about being a big movie star, singer, pro baseball player, but the chances of actually being able to chase and be successful are slim.  I'm not saying that you shouldn't have these kinds of dreams, however it's going to be riddled with many more challenges than a more realistic dream.  I feel that realistic dreams are actually a series of smaller goals to achieve.

I've always worked backwards for goals, starting with the ending and working to fill in the gaps in order to reach the beginning.  It's always provided a precise pathway to achieving the end result.  Once it's outlined it's easier to come up with alternatives should anything go awry.

When I first met Karen, a change began to happen in me.  I saw a clearer future than I had ever seen before.  I got the confidence in my ability to act upon dreams.  I rose from my financial apocalypse and was able to focus on where we actually wanted to be.  It started moving into an apartment in Lexington then planning the interstate move to North Carolina.  I never thought I'd actually leave Lexington, it was never a possibility.  But I was able to realize there's more to the world.  My dream all along was to have a life of my own, one that I built, not one that was provided.  And as the time passes I've realized how I want my life to be constructed.  I'll keep chasing dreams, each one marking a new floor on the tower that I'm building.  Be it a new locale, a new business, or new carpet, I'll be able to say that this was my dream, one that I dreamed.