I’m not sure how long this feeling of “this can’t really be our house” will last, but for now I have to get used to waking up somewhat confused. We can park our cars in the garage (after a marathon of coming in and out, up and down exactly 138 times with boxes and boxes). In our 10 years of marriage; we’ve never had a garage, or a basement for that matter, or more than 2 bedrooms, or … well, you get the picture.
So, how do we like it so far you ask? Not bad, not bad at all. There is a small undercurrent of “hickness” evident when one goes to the Kroger. Mingled with more upscale, refined or cultured (i.e., people in new houses and neighborhoods) are people with mall hair, mullets, bubba-teeth and kids named Cletus and Bobby Joe. Country to be sure. The area is growing rapidly (which I hope doesn’t mean an increase in taxes or traffic) and its not always so easy to get places quickly … Route 22 and 48 are wrought with traffic lights and traffic and everywhere takes about 20 minutes; that bit I\’m not fond of – at all – even remotely (but that is the toss up, country means less accessibility).
Apparently it’s quite normal around these parts to get large scale (i.e., things you can’t buy at Kroger) fireworks and shoot them off in the streets on and around the 4th. So we didn’t really need to go anywhere but our back porch (another first for us, an actual porch) and watch crazy teenage boys light some explosives. We strolled around the new neighborhood (which is much larger than we thought), sweat, relaxed, had some friends over for a cook-out, smoke out. (this turned into a last minute adventure as I discovered our old grill had completely corroded – and had to go buy a new one).
Room by room we’re laying waste the many boxes strewn about and piling them in the “box room” (i.e. dinning room – wow, I have a thing for i.e.; and I’m not even entirely sure what i.e. literally stands for, but I certainly do like to use it; too much it seems). By August we’ll be inviting you all over to drink, eat, talk – perhaps for the last time as you all discover how far away we are and decide that the trip really isn’t worth it, so its more a “hello”, “goodbye” and “let’s figure out the mileage” get together. We look forward to it.