Update

Whew, life is crazy right now!!! As if I've ever had a dull period in my short existance. So, the important things:

I moved into my apartment!! It's so cute, totally cozy, right off the El, has more than enough storage space, beautiful wood floors, and 3 locks on the door. I feel safe, right at home, and very grown up. Granted, it's a total mess still. But I promise that once I get everything in order I'll take tons of pictures and post them for all to see. Or, even better, you could come visit me! I'll let you sleep on the bed, as the couch is very very small.

I got a job!! I now work at a dance store right across the street from the studio. It's a great place with really nice staff. It's a little un-organized, but every day something is better arranged. I seem to have been accepted by my co-workers, and my boss seems pleased enough with how fast I'm learning all the things I need to know. Working retail is a little disconcerting, it's a lot of money changing hands (some mom today bought $300 worth of stuff for her daughter in one go), but the discount is totally helpful and the location is prime. I'm still going to look for something to bolster this, as I'm not working tons of hours or making tons of money, but it's a great start. Who knows, maybe I'll take 2 weeks and learn how to bartend, that'll make me some cash. Or, I could just keep applying to every Starbucks I see.

I guess that's all the important stuff. Classes are going well, I'm still sore after every one. But that's okay. I'm starting to figure out which teachers I like, who's classes I'm already bored of, and even some people's names (I'm so so bad at names). Rehearsals are going fine, as well, come see us dance November 2-6!! Not sure on time or place yet, but I'll keep you posted :)

In other news:
Mike visits next weekend, which is awesome. I went out for my first night of bar-hopping downtown, which was cool and fun. And yes, I was safe and not too crazy and I got home at a pretty reasonable hour considering. I also bought one of those awesome old-lady carts to put my groceries in, because buying food one arm-full at a time was getting ridiculous.

That's probably about it. I'll try to update more often, maybe with some of my thoughts on city living. Or maybe I'll just spend every spare moment watching cable before the company turns it off (the people living here just let it go out the month, so I'm taking full advantage before my life of tv-less-ness begins).

A day or so off

I have a nice break every week between my class on Thursday morning, and my rehearsal on Saturday night. More than a full day of nothing to do (since I don't have a job yet...). So, I spent it doing some classic things that I love:
Nothing. Which equals watching bad television. Since I may not have cable once my living situation is worked out, I fully took advantage of the tons of channels. Do you know how many crime shows there are on in a day? Multiple cities worth of CSI, Law and Order, even Diagnosis Murder. Add in all the junk on TLC and some Star Trek, and I'm set for hours and hours. I like to think of all of this down time as resting my tired, sore, over-extended body. My muscles needed time to recover (and why use my brain while my body is doing nothing?).
Crocheting. I started a blanket for Mike a long, long time ago. I'm pretty sure when I decided to make this blanket for him, we weren't even dating yet. Since I started it, I made about 4 other blankets, but it's finally done. I had planned to get a blanket to Jennica, Kathleen, and Mike by the time we graduated, but that didn't quite work out. Jenn got her's super early, Kath got hers last week, and Mike's is only a little over a year late. But I was very pleased with how all 3 turned out, so it's a good thing overall. I'll have no cold friends, that's for sure. Next on the list: Danielle.
Wandering aimlessly in the city. I went to the Magnificent Mile, but it was pouring buckets on my head. Usually I like to at least go into the expensive stores and look around, picking out things that I would buy if I won the lottery. But I was much too drowned-rat to even go in to most places. It was still fun to walk around, though, and I found this amazing place that only sells soup. 12 different kinds of soup every day. I think when Jennica and I are old, we should open a resaraunt like that. We could give the left-overs to the homeless. Today, I went to the zoo, which was also tons of fun. All the animals were out (when I went last with Kathleen, it was dinner time and they were all in thier hide-outs), cute little kids were everywhere, and it was gorgeous out. I really missed my little nephew Sammy who absolutely loves the zoo, but it was still a good time. And I got a bottle of free Naked Juice from a dancing apple (I should get a job like that).
This little break has made me remember that being here is more than just getting humiliated in dance class after super-hard dance class. I'm here because I love big cities, because I love being independant, and because I love and adventure. Sure, the classes are a big part of why I'm here, and the dancer I'll become because of them is going to be awesome. But the little times just wandering around and living my little life in this big place are really good reasons to be here. The soreness will fade and the career will continue to move forward, and I"ll get a job that will keep me from spending 2 straight days doing nothing, but it's still fun to be here.

Inspiration

A poem by Ryan Haack

Legs
like scissors
slicing, cutting, tearing the
air
bending, flexing, angular

Arms
like an angry sea
flailing, crashing, waving
then
calm, serene, pristine

Feet
flexed, pointed
Toes
curled, straightened
Hands, fingers
plunging into
Empty space
Back
Curved, smooth
bent, wrenched

dance.

New Life

Here I am, in Chicago. And, as expected, everything in my life has changed. Well, maybe not every little thing. I'm still wearing the same clothes, I still have the same friends, still far away from the guy I'm dating. I'm still hungry all the time. But lots of things are different, too.
I'm "living" at Kathleen's for a while. Sleeping on an air mattress, trying to figure out how to get in and out of the building with only 1 set of keys. Her place is really nice, but it's not mine. I'm really looking forward to finding my own apartment. One problem: I don't really know how to do that. I can't even call to order pizza, how do I call up some stranger about an apartment? Maybe I'll use one of those services that helps you do it. But I'd have to call them, too. I'd like this process to not be long, so I've got to get up the nerve to call strangers pretty quick.
The dancing thing is going great so far. Well, it's also really really hard. I feel like I have to prove myself in every class. And since I just guessed at the levels I'd be taking, some of the classes are pretty hard. And even if the class itself is fine, the other students are totally intimidating. It's gonna be great once I get in the groove, but right now I feel like the worst one in every class. This is going to push me really hard, and that's going to be awesome.
Small problem #2: getting a job. Can I really just walk into a temp agency and they will give me a job? I need one quick, so I hope that's possible.
So, life is new and exciting and uncertain. I'm hoping things will settle down soon. But, who can really turn down an adventure?