Can't believe it's been three months since I last wrote. That kind of blows my mind. It's been hard to find free time; or quiet time where my thoughts are cohesive and wishing to spill forth.
Let me do my best to sum up that journey from leaving Florida until now... Easter Day, 2013. It was certainly weird driving a large u-haul, but I managed it well, the only damage was the power meter on the outside of our new home. The trip didn't start when we hoped it would, and it wasn't done in a straight shot. I had the unbearable quiet of a truck with only AM/FM and Hannah / Ethan had the cacophony of two cats in carriers. As we reached North Florida, we realized we had a serious issue. No cash to pay our deposit with, and no more Bank Of America once we reached Mississippi. Honestly, it would have never occured to me that there wouldn't be a Bank Of America in Louisiana, but alas - there wasn't. We couldn't get money orders anywhere, so this problem coupled with fatigue and shrinking daylight forced for a night into a hotel. Hannah discovered a very useful tip, La Quinta accepts pets - so if you are ever in dire straights and have to evacuate with pets, keep this in mind.
The following morning we got under way fairly early and headed to our new home. It was a relatively short drive compared to our Florida exodus, and we arrived in Mid City around 1 as I recall. As soon as we exited the interstate, my mind was set on fire with the imagery around me. As much research as we had done on Google Earth, etc., it did not prepare my eyes for what surrounded me. I was following Hannah and Ethan as we exited at Metairie Cemetery, and were soon passing too many cemeteries to count, I was stunned when we turned into our new neighborhood, passing a massive and old Catholic church, and made our way along wrecked and narrow streets lined with shotguns and decay. We pulled upon our new house and it looked exactly as we expected. Overcast and cold, and after a day of rain, our front porch area was a mud pit. Hannah, Ethan and I unloaded the truck in record time, which I was immeasurably thankful for. Our first night was pizza from Lazzaro's and we managed to get some order to the chaos.
Day Two, our main objectives were groceries and returning the truck. We did the latter without incident and again, it was a striking array of eye candy. The rental place was across the street from this massive fortress like structure that was so imposing that it literally choked away the sun. We then relied on Suri to navigate us to groceries, and she took us everywhere from The Quarter to the CBD to Uptown... we somehow managed to find one on our own in Lakeview. A lovely and pricey local grocery store that was a block away from a need that we didn't know we had - Starbucks!
Those first few weeks were a struggle of frayed nerves and frustration versus the excitement of being here and all we had to explore. We did The Quarter, we did the cemeteries... but soon enough, I had to report to work, and Ethan had school. Unfortunately - we also still had boxes that we had no conceivable idea what to do with. Honestly, that's still a work in progress, but almost everything has a temporary home at least.
We've been treated almost without fail to a daily construction site complete with sounds since we moved in. The landlord's intent is to move in upstairs at some point, and he is awesome at letting us know he's here. Seriously - every day. Hannah found work quickly, and it's been a wonderful experience for her. She's appreciated and respected, and it's been rewarding. It's removed the stress of money issues from our plates, and it provides excitement about what we can accomplish. Work for me has been a mixed bag. I love my staff, but I've exchanged one type of stress, that of my job in Orlando, with a new set of stresses. One is having to talk to clients, that's completely new to me. And I am usually dealing with rather upset clients. The other challenge is not really knowing my job now. All of that structure and knowledge got me here, but now the description of what I do every day is completely new and foreign.
There's been some serious hurdles for Hannah and I on a personal level that only time can hope to mend. For the most part, our relationship is growing stronger and our understanding of one another is broadening. We took a huge leap moving in with one another with so little background or time under our belt, but I would say we've managed it quite well. We are a family. It feels like family. We share openly, and Ethan and I have grown close. It still has the new car smell, but we've figured out what all the buttons do. It's rewarding on a daily level, and I look forward to getting home every day. Hannah is an amazing cook, and Ethan is an incredible thinker. I'm blessed to be accepted by both of them and only have excitement when I think about our yeat ahead.
Moving here; moving to Mid City; taking the promotion... all of it are pieces that fit so nicely together. It really does feel like a reset, like anything is possible. And I know I have a wonderful support structure at my side, and it gives me the courage to accept anything that comes my way.
