An introduction of sorts. Also, an introdution of length

This would be attempt 5 at an opening sentence. There's very few things I let bug me, let unnerve me. But opening sentences in any form of literary creation of my own making must be perfect. They must catch the reader and enthrall him in the word child that I've conceived. I don't know why this is, why I place so much importance on a single sentence, why I'm so meticulous about it. But I suppose that's me.

I am me. But I am a hybrid of my parents. My name in itself is a literal hybrid of my mother and father. My mother, JB. My spit-fire angel. A learner who has taught herself how to smother the inner fires of her raging passion, feeling, and emotion under a tightly knit blanket of calm, serene rationalism. My father, Art. A moral man, a mortal man. A man who, in word and deed, makes certain that the people he loves know he loves them. Named after my father, but following in the footsteps of my mother's abbreviated name. My name is AJ

I am AJ. But I am also Nik, Tiff, Aimee and Corey. What is the youngest child if not the product of his older siblings, of their failures and triumphs. I learn from their mistakes and I am encompassed in their celebrations. They are my rock, and I am their baby brother. They are the future aunts and uncles to my children. I need them more than they could every know, because I am them. All of them exist inside of me in their own way. In essense, take pieces of them and you get me; they are my essense.

I am more than my parents and my siblings. I am my friends, my enemies, my ex boyfriends, my old beliefs. I am every person I've ever met, everyone I've ever smiled at. I am every city I've lived in, every place I've traveled. I am every street I've walked down, every bus I've ridden. I am a mixture of every fluid moment in my life. Every interaction I have, every step I take, every thought I think continues to shape and forge me into the person that I am. Each second I am someone new, but I will always be AJ; I will always be me. I am merely growing, becoming, absorbing.

I am now, who I am now. I listen to the same song until it makes me sick. I like summer because its nice out, but I love fall because I feel there's a magic energy in the world. I never wear matching socks. I can't eat cereal without reading something. I buy lottery tickets because I think I might actually win. When I'm in the shower, I pretend I'm being interview on a late night talk show. I love jeans, and when I find a new favorite pair I will wear them out, until I find another one that I like even more. I want to write a book of memoirs. I can't sleep without a big jug of water next to the bed. My turn-over rate for sunglasses is about 3 weeks. I cry whenever I see a pride parade. I imagine music videos for songs that I listen to while I work out. I swear I can taste a difference in store-brand and name-brand food. I've finished very few books and videogames. I think religion should be outlawed. My most favorite dreams are the ones where I have superpowers.

I am a collection of these words, these thoughts. This entry and all entries past it will be of me, and therefore, they will be me.