baby driver: September 2011

I am at Sarah's apartment in Richmond, currently locked IN (yes, in). It is equally as strange being in this apartment as it was when I visited Katherine and Kelly's apartment in Brooklyn. I have lived with those three girls for the 3 years prior to my exodus. All of the 'things' are the same, they are just arranged differently, and with new things in between the old that have been added by Ashley, Sarah's new roommate, and Geneva, Katherine and Kelly's new roommate.

From my vantage point, from the yellow floral couch, I can see Ferdinand, the giant buffalo taxidermied head, my old LIFE magazine poster with the 1950's 3D glass wearing audience, our old record player stand, and Sarah's aloe plants. I no longer have partial ownership of any of these things, but it is comforting to see that they still exist.

Well, I am 'home' again. Back from New York, back from the pseudo heaven that is camp. I have been feeling separation anxiety from some of the wonderful people I met, the lake and the trees, and the love and energy that I felt every second of every day there. Instead of living in a beautiful, old stone building with a beautiful lake view that I shared with some of the best adult people and children people that I have ever met, I am living in 'the yellow room' at my mother's boyfriend's house. The yellow room's perks include a gigantic television the size of my bed and a computer monitor the size of a normal big screen television. My mother, for some reason, believed that these two items would be enough incentive for me to stay there all the time and be happy with it. It only took me a day and a half to begin to plan my escape. Unfortunately, my dreamy escape plans were ruined by practicalities and realities. I am now in the process of trying to convince myself that I will happily survive here for the next month and a week.

I have decided to make this month and a week purposeful and productive, and have signed up (and paid the ridiculous amount of money) for the GREs. Everyday until then I will spend in my mother's work area in a little room with no windows labeled "Special Needs Room." In this room I will be trying to teach myself the absurd, impossible, unreasonable, and just plain silly concept known as Mathematics. I have always been terrible at it, and I am afraid that after having gone 6 years without taking a math course, I am even more hopeless than ever. I will also hopefully pluck the strings of the little ukelele that Tim had entrusted to me.

Anyway, while I am studying I will also be applying to jobs in various cities, states, countries, continents, etc. I would share my more specific targets, but I am afraid I will get myself all excited like usual and then something will happen that prevents me from going. So my normally big mouth is now small and quiet.

While I am home, I am going to try and update this fairly frequently. I am not sure if anyone even reads it anymore, but just in case there is in fact someone reading this- look more often!

I was terrible about keeping this updated while I was at camp, words will come later, but I have pictures now (isn't it weird to see a post filled with more pictures of people than plants?!)