All moved in

Turn around right when you enter. That's the messy foyer.


Heading into the apartment, this is your first view. The living room.



The above picture was taken standing in the dining room/computer room, which I now realize I forgot to take pictures of. It's the same size-ish as the living room, and has a table, computer/desk, and this big black metal shelving unit.

Walk through the dining room into the kitchen:






(wall of artwork--Hannah's)


I don't know how big it looks in the pictures, but it's freaking huge.

Bathroom


Laminated (ha!) pictures from a South American fashion magazine




Bedroom, my least favorite room of the house (it doesn't have a welcoming vibe yet)




Oh yeah, I also forgot to take a picture of the backporch, which is soso darling, with lots of plants and sunlight.

Thoroughly satisfying

My birthday. I had tea and granola with fruit for early breakfast, laid around in the morning, then went to the library to get a new library card. The woman who set me up with the card had relatives in Alabama, so we bonded over that. (She spent her childhood summers about half an hour away from where I lived.)

I met Hannah and Katie for a totally delicious second breakfast of bacon lettuce tomato avocado and fried egg sandwiches on croissants, then Katie and I went back to her apartment to be slugs and watch Veronica Mars for a while. Then we went to see Talledega Nights--which is really best viewed as a matinee, or maybe a rental.* In the evening, I went out for a swank dinner with Katie and Chris. Heirloom tomato, fresh mozarella salad, beef tenderloin with roasted farro, spinach, and mushrooms in a cabernet reduction sauce, and, sweet Jesus, espresso creme brulee with fresh raspberries. Then I met Hannah for a drink on the patio of our favorite cafe in my neighborhood, and their dirty martini with a blue-cheese-stuffed olive was divine.

After, I walked home in a daze. I haven't yet sussed out my neighborhood enough to know if I feel safe walking home in the dark at 10:30 p.m., but I want to be. So I did it anyway, and it was fine.

I don't think I feel 30. I don't know what 30 feels like. I suspect that today I'm fine, but tomorrow I'll wake up and freak out.

* I suspect the next time I get really drunk, I'll quote the most hysterical line from it: "Who's retarded now??" Or flip someone off and say, "Yeah. Got it at Target. It was on sale." Ok, I guess you really have to see the movie to appreciate it.

Two new things that make me happy

Happy birthday to me!

Back to school

I went to campus today, to get my student ID and pick up the transit pass. I also went to the student union for the book store, and bought an incredibly expensive used book, thus completing my textbook collection for first semester.

I felt old. I haven't been on a campus in years, and walking past eighteen-year-old new freshmen made me feel like I was from another planet.

I walked past one of the dorm on the way to the union, and I tried to remember how I felt at this time, many years ago, when I was getting ready to start college. It was pretty painful to even think about. I'm glad it's something that I've moved past and won't have to repeat. But it's on my mind because of starting school again.

I'm terrified, yet can't wait to start. I'm scared I'll turn shy again and won't be able to make friends with my classmates, but I'm excited to have new friends, and to delve into something that I'm passionately interested in. I have no idea what to expect.

Goodbye

Goodbye organic burrito lounge
Goodbye swimming pool outside my door
Goodbye lazy Sundays
Goodbye tennis team
Goodbye homophobic, catty co-workers
Goodbye Chik-Fil-A
Goodbye Sonic blended coke floats
Goodbye bead store
Goodbye Publix
Goodbye cheese grits
Goodbye cheese and sausage biscuits
Goodbye "fixin to"
Goodbye 80 degree weather in October
Goodbye spicy white cheese dip
Goodbye employment
Goodbye sucky drivers
Goodbye cheap, big apartment
Goodbye plant-filled balcony
Goodbye driving everywhere
Goodbye star-filled night skies

Hello

Hello hardwood floors
Hello third-floor walkup
Hello biking city streets
Hello family
Hello grad school
Hello tiendas
Hello Opart Thai
Hello tree-filled boulevards
Hello Cafe Lula
Hello Critical Mass
Hello origami store
Hello DSL
Hello best friend
Hello buses and trains
Hello lake
Hello street grid system
Hello punk bar
Hello sushi happy hour
Hello First Fridays
Hello my city