Dear Me,

Congratulations! You finished another year on this planet and are about to embark on another one. You survived. You did not kill anyone for chewing too loudly on the train. You did not punch anyone in the face for not taking off their fucking backpack on the train. And you still have all your body parts.

I am proud of you. You have done so much this year. Can we take a moment to look back on it? You got a new job – thank fucking God. You left behind a toxic work environment where you were constantly exhausted, stressed, and anxious to the point of breakdown to a place where people appreciate you every day. You lost three pounds according to the Official Doctor’s Scale. You moved from Queens to Manhattan with an easier and shorter commute. And you have made many new friends.

However, this is only the beginning. Because you are now on the path to doing everything you want to do.

Year 26 holds a lot of awesome things: You are going to a 2 day writing conference at the New School. You will be published. You are going to do a 20 minute reading at the end of December. You will finish both of your novels. You are going to go to the gym regularly. You will do lots of, as of right now, unknown, fun things.

So, happy birthday Me. Keep kicking ass.

All the best,

Michelle