ALUMNI VOICES Leap, and your life will appear Taking risks can open up a sea of opportunity • BY AMY MCCULLOUGH (BA ’02)


When I was an undergrad at Loyola, people often asked me what I planned on doing with a creative writing degree. Only half-jokingly, I said, “Probably wait tables.” And, honestly, I did a lot of that. I worked a desk job for


a year and waited tables for about two before figuring out that I might be able to mold my love and knowledge of music and knack for writing into a career as a music journalist. Shortly thereafter, I landed an internship (of the unpaid variety) at Willamette Week, a Pulitzer Prize–win- ning alternative newsweekly based in Portland, Oregon. After a few months as a bartender/intern (followed by a


few more as a bartender/freelancer), Willamette Week hired me on. Not only did I end up a full-time music writer, I was


eventually in charge of the entire music section. I got what I wanted. I turned a degree I admittedly felt cynical about into a dream job. Then I ditched it all to go sailing. That’s right: in 2008, I quit my illustrious music editor


job, sold all my belongings, and moved onto a 27-foot sail- boat with my boyfriend, now partner of 10 years, Jimmie. Oh, and there’s this important detail: neither of us knew how to sail. So why on earth would I do such a thing? The short an-


swer is love. I was head-over-heels for my main man, Jim- mie, and we jointly decided that “regular” life—jobs, rent, bills, responsibilities—were eating up too much of our time—time we could be spending together. Togetherness


42 LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO


PHOTOS COURTESY OF AMY McCULLOUGH


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