A month later, and I'm still trying to make it feel like home. Living here no longer freaks me out but I also don't think I'll be here long enough for me to feel completely at ease. I do feel better, though, accepting that I'm just here temporarily. I'm not forcing a "home feeling" on it but it still has its purpose. Sometimes it helps to pretend that I'm spending the night at my grandmother's home in Mexico. Insects are just a part of life there. So are mini lizards that make kissing noises. Spiders aren't as cute, though.
I still kill at least one bug a day. Usually a wasp.
I work from the apartment 2 days out of the week. It's really sweet and saves me a considerable amount of gas. The new VISTA will be getting here in June instead of July. My supervisor failed to tell me this. Now I have to find something for him to do.
I started the South Beach Diet on Saturday. I was on it in my junior year of high school. Looking back, it doesn't seem healthy for me to have been on a diet at 17. It was successful, and I must say, the South Beach Diet in particular is very healthy. I didn't have self-image issues or anything but weight is always a bit of an issue among Hispanic families. In my family, it was mostly the women, my grandmother especially, that was completely uninhibited about criticizing weight issues. Her biggest concern was that I wouldn't find someone to marry. As a teenager. I guess I did it for her. It's going well. I can't tell you about any progress, if any. I don't have a scale. I didn't weigh myself before I started and my jeans feel a little bit loose but I've also worn them all once already. I don't mind the diet and I only get cravings a few times. Mostly, when I pass the Wonder Bread/Hostess outlet store. That's pretty brutal.
Most of my belongings are still in black garbage bags on the living room floor. I don't have enough room for my clothes. I currently have one failed clothing rack and a laundry basket that I'm living out of. To be honest, I don't see myself ever completely unpacking. By the time I'm done, it'll be time to move again.
The Farmer's Market on the Mississippi begins tomorrow. Nick has an early game so we might have time to go together. I can't remember the last time we did anything together.
I took Atti for her first walk today. I got her a bright pink harness and leash so that she'll stand out better. Our 45 minutes walk turned into 2 hours. Most of that was spent dragging her along. Literally, dragging her. She wanted to sit and soak it all in. I guess I should've just let her do that. Soon, she was so pissed she got loose from her harness and slipped under and into a nearby truck. I layed in the grass for about 25 minutes trying to coax her out. She hated me a lot a that point, though, so she really had no plans to leave the complicated and shady underbelly of a pickup. I knocked on an elderly couple's door and the husband layed under the truck. Atti didn't like him intruding on his own truck so she moved to another spot where I was able to reach and grab her. She is dirty and disgusting right now. Our shower sucks and I know what a nightmare it's going to be to bathe her.
I got a solo. Not just an unnecessarily high note either. The Galesburg Community Chorus is doing several selections from various operas and operettas for our concert "A Night at the Opera" on May 22nd. We have hired soloists one of whom will be taking the latter (and cooler) part of my solo because our director "needed to get them back on stage for the finale", regardless of the fact that the woman playing the antagonist would now be singing the protagonist's part. The song is in English. Everyone will notice. So....I'm not quite as thrilled about the solo anymore.
I honestly didn't think I'd be get so bored while writing about my life. Perhaps pictures would help. I'll take some tomorrow. I'd like to blame my bland tone of this post on the fact that I watched The Royal Tenenbaums for an hour before starting this post. It's still playing in the background.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Moving Day
Nick and I (and Atti) are moving to Burlington, IA. It's about 35 minutes from Monmouth. Baseball season for the Bees starts on Thursday so from then on, Nick will be working days and evenings nearly every single day, through September. Living in Burlington will be easier on him. My AmeriCorps job here in Monmouth will end at the end of July, so I'll be commuting to work until then.
Not only will Nick be closer to work, but I'll get to see him more than I would had I decided to stay in Monmouth. Also, Monmouth has a way of warding off inspiration, sucking the energy out of me and overall making me feel less alive. Many of its businesses have closed in the last couple of years. I'm sure it was a happenin' place in its day but there's just nothing here now. Burlington has a farmer's market, a riverwalk, Artisan festivals, a pretty big library, your average mall and superstores, not to mention it's a city that will take more than a 10-minute car ride to explore.
The apartment is.....quirky. It's the 3rd floor of an old Victorian house that used to be the maid's quarters. A good amount of room, 1 bedroom living/dining room, kitchen, bathroom. Some of its major features include a fake fireplace, cool windows, fire escape, and my favorite, a tiny little deck for two that has a view of the Mississippi and sunsets.
The apartment......needs some work. When we first saw the apartment I saw only potential. I was excited to clean and fix it up. I saw us sitting on the deck with beers, hosting a dinner party for my birthday, watching TV at night....
Last week I decided to do whatever cleaning I could without electricity, since it wasn't on yet. I got there and all of a sudden, things didn't look as easy as they did the first time. The only thing I could do at that point is dust a little. Every time I tried to, I ran into a dead bug. Nothing as serious as an infestation but the apartment had been vacant for a month. I don't do well with insects. I had to kill a wasp with carpet cleaner. My allergies were killing me, I had body aches and a sore throat. The carpet was in worse shape than I had originally thought. Today I'll be vacuuming and more importantly, giving it a good Stanley Steamer cleaning.
Needless to say, I got discouraged. I asked myself what we had gotten ourselves into. I need to vacuum, shampoo, scrub, mop and disinfect every inch of this space before we move any big stuff in.
Whether moving ends up being a good idea or not isn't clear yet. While I am still excited to tackle this job, I have a reasonable amount of fear and anxiety as well. It's possible that my expectations for this apartment are too high and that I'll only end up disappointing myself. It's going to be a little while before I'll feel comfortable in this new place. Until then, I'll hate the fact that I'll feel displaced.
On the up side, at least I have a project, something more for me to do. As per Mary E's request, I'll be sure to post some pre-move in pictures. I feel a before and after is in order soon.
Not only will Nick be closer to work, but I'll get to see him more than I would had I decided to stay in Monmouth. Also, Monmouth has a way of warding off inspiration, sucking the energy out of me and overall making me feel less alive. Many of its businesses have closed in the last couple of years. I'm sure it was a happenin' place in its day but there's just nothing here now. Burlington has a farmer's market, a riverwalk, Artisan festivals, a pretty big library, your average mall and superstores, not to mention it's a city that will take more than a 10-minute car ride to explore.
The apartment is.....quirky. It's the 3rd floor of an old Victorian house that used to be the maid's quarters. A good amount of room, 1 bedroom living/dining room, kitchen, bathroom. Some of its major features include a fake fireplace, cool windows, fire escape, and my favorite, a tiny little deck for two that has a view of the Mississippi and sunsets.
The apartment......needs some work. When we first saw the apartment I saw only potential. I was excited to clean and fix it up. I saw us sitting on the deck with beers, hosting a dinner party for my birthday, watching TV at night....
Last week I decided to do whatever cleaning I could without electricity, since it wasn't on yet. I got there and all of a sudden, things didn't look as easy as they did the first time. The only thing I could do at that point is dust a little. Every time I tried to, I ran into a dead bug. Nothing as serious as an infestation but the apartment had been vacant for a month. I don't do well with insects. I had to kill a wasp with carpet cleaner. My allergies were killing me, I had body aches and a sore throat. The carpet was in worse shape than I had originally thought. Today I'll be vacuuming and more importantly, giving it a good Stanley Steamer cleaning.
Needless to say, I got discouraged. I asked myself what we had gotten ourselves into. I need to vacuum, shampoo, scrub, mop and disinfect every inch of this space before we move any big stuff in.
Whether moving ends up being a good idea or not isn't clear yet. While I am still excited to tackle this job, I have a reasonable amount of fear and anxiety as well. It's possible that my expectations for this apartment are too high and that I'll only end up disappointing myself. It's going to be a little while before I'll feel comfortable in this new place. Until then, I'll hate the fact that I'll feel displaced.
On the up side, at least I have a project, something more for me to do. As per Mary E's request, I'll be sure to post some pre-move in pictures. I feel a before and after is in order soon.
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