Old Habits Die Hard

It has been a long time since I have posted, so I guess that old habits do die hard. This past month has been hectic and stressful. To be perfectly honest, moving to NYC has been harder than I expected. Our apartment is definitely a fix-er-upper as there are constantly issues with the power blowing out, holes in the wall, the heat at a level where the cats can die and of course the cockroaches. I can handle power outages. I can handle limited space. I can even handle being in a completely new place, but the roaches are something I cannot suffer. I just don't believe that there is room for beings with more than 4 limbs in my apartment.

Everyday is about the same. We have had the last of our whole-corp training, and have moved onto more content and school based training. Being at FDA means that I can be certain of many things, but one thing I cannot be certain of is what I am doing. Dr. Hodge (my principal) seems to run a tight ship, has high expectations and knows what he is doing, but I don't. And neither do my other TfA co-workers. He tells us not to worry, but that is easier said than done for people with personalities like ours.

I have taken a liking to Columbus Circle. The other day, I was there and I was people watching in between the paragraphs of my book. There are so many people there all the time. It is a very interesting place. Clearly, a hub for both tourists and residents, it is one of the few places in NYC that has a super market. Whole Foods has everything you could want. Even some Chinese stuff, but I fear that if I want authentic Chinese foods, I will have to venture the trek all the way to China Town.

Mike's room is finished and looks awesome and Sarah's room is a work in progress but at least it is in progress. Mine on the other hand, is a different story. I just don't know what I want to do with it. It is barren and plain. It doesn't have any personality and I am starting to think that it may never. I think the main problem is that I don't know what I want yet. It is just a huge slab of marble that I have an idea for but am too scared to execute.

I am really starting to warm up to the cats in the apartment. They really stay out of the way, and are friendly. They are like children in the respect that they get into everything. Their latest conquest are rolls of paper (TP, paper towels). They shred and tear at them like they were nothing. Oh, well. If that is the worst of it, then I am confident that we will get along just fine.

I have been feeling a bit lonely in the city. It seems that I do have friends, and they are nice, but they aren't home (not yet, maybe not ever). They mean well, and I try and find home in them by equating them with someone I already know and love, but it is hard to relocate and reinvest. Minnesota is so comfortable. I know MN. I breath MN. I am MN. NYC is different. It is foreign. Or rather, I am foreign. That doesn't make it or me bad, just unacquainted. I need more time, then I am sure I will start feeling like I am fitting in.

So, I will be trying to write in this more, and include all the pictures that I can... In that spirit, here are some pictures from my experience in Philly.