Moving to Spookytown for reals
Today I signed a lease for a teeny tiny wee little apartmentlet in Spookytown proper -- I'll be moving in about a month. While HippyDippyville has its charms, I am currently 1.6 miles from the nearest metro and the nearest commercial strip I can walk to is a strip mall with a Safeway and a Starbucks (the Maye Queen can attest to this). My new place, by contrast, is in walking distance to lots of cafes and restaurants and places to shop and eat and listen to jazz etc. etc. And it's 6 blocks to the metro and once on said metro just 6 stops to "work." (It's the endless and unbelievable bureaucracy motivating the quotes there this week.)
On the other hand, not only am I trading in some space (I'm going to have to put some furniture out on yearlong loan and am doing other "lightening the load" tasks, like finally getting rid of my 80s cassette collection -- anybody want the complete Smiths on cassette?), I'm also trading in my voting rights. That's right, just 30 days left to sign all the petitions and call all the congresspeople I can, because as of September 15 I am going to be entirely without federal representation. I thought it was a joke when I first moved here and saw Spookytown license plates, which read "Taxation Without Representation," but I soon realized that people were deadly serious. I'm so used to being filled with bourgeois entitlement that this oppressive state is going to take some getting used to, I think.
To celebrate not having to endlessly apartment hunt for the rest of the month, and in honor of young Stovie's birthday (it's today - happy birthday!), I cashed in a frequent flier ticket and am heading to SF tomorrow. Best of all, from Sunday to Friday I will be at a zen and yoga retreat, learning meditative techniques (that will hopefully help me through the stress of the fall, which is going to be my final job search season) (as in either I get a job that I want or I leave the field) and soaking in hot springs and hiking in the mountains a few hours inland from Big Sur. How happy am I? (Answer: pretty damn happy.) This retreat has if not no, then almost no electricity, and is apparently lit by kerosene lamps. My point? Yes, not only should I have excellent star viewing and practice for astronomy class, but also I will not be writing any postings for the next 10 days or so. Just so you don't think I've fallen off a cliff (which apparently I might, actually, since the 14-mile dirt road to the retreat is said to be super-treacherous and filled with sheer drop-offs -- wish me luck!).
On the other hand, not only am I trading in some space (I'm going to have to put some furniture out on yearlong loan and am doing other "lightening the load" tasks, like finally getting rid of my 80s cassette collection -- anybody want the complete Smiths on cassette?), I'm also trading in my voting rights. That's right, just 30 days left to sign all the petitions and call all the congresspeople I can, because as of September 15 I am going to be entirely without federal representation. I thought it was a joke when I first moved here and saw Spookytown license plates, which read "Taxation Without Representation," but I soon realized that people were deadly serious. I'm so used to being filled with bourgeois entitlement that this oppressive state is going to take some getting used to, I think.
To celebrate not having to endlessly apartment hunt for the rest of the month, and in honor of young Stovie's birthday (it's today - happy birthday!), I cashed in a frequent flier ticket and am heading to SF tomorrow. Best of all, from Sunday to Friday I will be at a zen and yoga retreat, learning meditative techniques (that will hopefully help me through the stress of the fall, which is going to be my final job search season) (as in either I get a job that I want or I leave the field) and soaking in hot springs and hiking in the mountains a few hours inland from Big Sur. How happy am I? (Answer: pretty damn happy.) This retreat has if not no, then almost no electricity, and is apparently lit by kerosene lamps. My point? Yes, not only should I have excellent star viewing and practice for astronomy class, but also I will not be writing any postings for the next 10 days or so. Just so you don't think I've fallen off a cliff (which apparently I might, actually, since the 14-mile dirt road to the retreat is said to be super-treacherous and filled with sheer drop-offs -- wish me luck!).
posted by Pangea at 6:34 PM
1 Comments:
I know you were eager to get out of HippyDippyville, but the political side of me (as opposed to the good friend side of me) wishes you had waited till tomorrow. My former home state surprisingly seems to need your help. Of course, I'm making assumptions, which I prolly shouldn't do.
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