As I sprawl on the sofa in one of my many
Comfort Colors sorority t-shirts I have somehow acquired over the years despite
having never being a part of any Pan-Hellenic organization, I find myself A)
Uncomfortably full from dinner, and B) Thankful for new things, namely: This
home, employment, friends.
The apartment, lovingly dubbed "The
Wardrobe," quickly became home and is slowly but surely becoming
attractive enough to not be ashamed of. (Problem #1: SOMEHOW we
ended up with all gold-toned furniture in the living room... because we're
fancy.) In addition to the new apartment is the new job. I am teaching
high school art through January, and as a result I will definitely be paying my
rent and bills. VICTORY. Also, I still intend to paint my own work and apply to
grad schools. I'm including this information so I have it in writing and
therefore have added incentive to actually do these things.
So many people have beef with post-grad life, and
while I'm truly enjoying myself over here I'd be lying if I said this phase
hasn't come with a couple adjustments. All of a sudden I am responsible for
forging my path and finding my own work, not just to pass the time, but to pay
for the necessities of life (but shout-out to the government for letting me
ride my parents' medically-insured coattails until I'm 26). Then, there are the issues of re-establishing a routine, gaining momentum, making new friends, going new places.
I’ve been fortunate enough to become good friends with
some beautiful people in the city, and even more fortunate to go on adventures
with said friends. A couple weekends back we made it up to North Carolina for a trip in the mountains, which turned out to be utterly revitalizing and a necessary time of resetting. There is no substitute for hiking through the
woods, sleeping outside, eating camp food, and embracing the incapability of
taking a shower. And despite an accidental 8-ish mile detour (because who really
needs marked trails, right National Forest Service?) in which we quite
literally had to swing from branches and rock-slide/rappel down a small
waterfall to return to an *almost*
trail, everything was perfect. Trees boasted their fiery October shroud and
smoky clouds rolled across the sky. A long day, capped off by a Ramen dinner, a fireside evening with campsite neighbors, a satisfyingly cold nights sleep
and drizzly morning. All this followed by a drive back to Greenville for a hot coffee and bagel
sandwich breakfast: bliss.
{The Art Loeb trail}
There are days that I’d rather sleep in, watch the Today
show, make pancakes, and forsake all things work-related. Sometimes I miss the kind of days I spent here. I often daydream about what city I should look for jobs in next. Los Angeles? Portland? Boston?
Somewhere in the middle of the Mojave Desert?
I’m not quite ready to be settled somewhere for
the long haul, but I’m content with step 1, thankful for the new things.
{Last weekend: Prints by GC ArtTank students at Deeproots Festival}
