One Month in.
One month. Hard to believe I moved to St. Louis on the 1st of July and tomorrow marks the 1st of August. Where did the month go? I thought it would be beneficial to take a moment and reflect on my last 30 days in St. Louis and see how I'm doing with this whole transition thing (Nancy Schlossberg would be proud!)
1. It's not nearly as hot as I expected it to be. Perhaps we've had a mild summer. But this heat is nothing compared to the heat down south. Sure, there are hot days. But not I-can't-breathe-I'm-gonna-pass-out heat that I'm used to. I've worn jeans out at night here on multiple occasions and that just wouldn't happen in New Orleans, Memphis, or Athens. People would look at me like I'm a nut case.
2. I'm in love with the Central West End area. I've blogged about the area before but it reminds me of downtown Athens: shops and boutiques, coffee shops, restaurants with outdoor seating, and a thriving community of runners, dog walkers, friends, and friendly faces. The area also appears to be a giant safe space for gays and lesbians to be affectionate with their partners in public. No one seems to bat an eye. And from what I've heard, the LGBT community feels comfortable calling this area their home. From the gorgeous homes to the condos and apartment buildings, this is an area I hope to spend a lot of time in during my tenure in St. Louis. And perhaps if I ever find myself moving off campus, I'll look here first. The photograph below is from a coffee shop in the area, Coffee Cartel. It boasts a rainbow flag outside, is open 24 hours a day, and has some of the best iced coffee I've had to date. Ever.
3. Though I'm still feeling like a fish out of water at times, I'm beginning to settle into my new position. I no longer feel like I'm drowning. More like now treading water. But I have a feeling after a few more weeks, I'll have an ever better grasp on things. My first week on call is rapidly approaching as I shadow a colleague during Welcome Week. I pass the phone off the morning of my birthday. I'm looking forward to seeing how the week unfolds and how I do before I'm on call solo the first week in October. Then again the weekend before Thanksgiving. And that's it for the semester.
4. The absence of the knot/pit in my stomach. When I moved to Memphis, graduated, and moved to Athens, I had this pit/knot in my stomach that would last quite a few days. It was my body's way of saying, I'M NOT OK WITH THIS NEW CHAPTER IN YOUR LIFE! But the knot never came to visit me when I moved to St. Louis. I'm not sure if that's because I haven't had much down time or because I'm finally getting better at transitions but either way, I'm grateful.
5. Friends/Networks. Sadly, I have not had much time to venture out and explore the city and meet new people. I'm working on getting to know my coworkers better at present and with something every weekend in the office, there hasn't been much time to check out new sites. But I'm making it a priority to network and meet more people once things calm down at the end of August. My goal is to have at least 5 non work friends by the start of the new year. And no, I'm not counting my college roommate and his girlfriend who live in town because they're old friends. These 5 friends must be NEW faces. And if one of them happens to be a romantic interest, all the better!
Well, that's enough reflection for now. Looking forward to August! The celebration of many birthdays (Grandpa's, Mom's, Mine, Best Friend's), the return of students and the start of a new academic year!
Cheers.
1. It's not nearly as hot as I expected it to be. Perhaps we've had a mild summer. But this heat is nothing compared to the heat down south. Sure, there are hot days. But not I-can't-breathe-I'm-gonna-pass-out heat that I'm used to. I've worn jeans out at night here on multiple occasions and that just wouldn't happen in New Orleans, Memphis, or Athens. People would look at me like I'm a nut case.
2. I'm in love with the Central West End area. I've blogged about the area before but it reminds me of downtown Athens: shops and boutiques, coffee shops, restaurants with outdoor seating, and a thriving community of runners, dog walkers, friends, and friendly faces. The area also appears to be a giant safe space for gays and lesbians to be affectionate with their partners in public. No one seems to bat an eye. And from what I've heard, the LGBT community feels comfortable calling this area their home. From the gorgeous homes to the condos and apartment buildings, this is an area I hope to spend a lot of time in during my tenure in St. Louis. And perhaps if I ever find myself moving off campus, I'll look here first. The photograph below is from a coffee shop in the area, Coffee Cartel. It boasts a rainbow flag outside, is open 24 hours a day, and has some of the best iced coffee I've had to date. Ever.
3. Though I'm still feeling like a fish out of water at times, I'm beginning to settle into my new position. I no longer feel like I'm drowning. More like now treading water. But I have a feeling after a few more weeks, I'll have an ever better grasp on things. My first week on call is rapidly approaching as I shadow a colleague during Welcome Week. I pass the phone off the morning of my birthday. I'm looking forward to seeing how the week unfolds and how I do before I'm on call solo the first week in October. Then again the weekend before Thanksgiving. And that's it for the semester.
4. The absence of the knot/pit in my stomach. When I moved to Memphis, graduated, and moved to Athens, I had this pit/knot in my stomach that would last quite a few days. It was my body's way of saying, I'M NOT OK WITH THIS NEW CHAPTER IN YOUR LIFE! But the knot never came to visit me when I moved to St. Louis. I'm not sure if that's because I haven't had much down time or because I'm finally getting better at transitions but either way, I'm grateful.
5. Friends/Networks. Sadly, I have not had much time to venture out and explore the city and meet new people. I'm working on getting to know my coworkers better at present and with something every weekend in the office, there hasn't been much time to check out new sites. But I'm making it a priority to network and meet more people once things calm down at the end of August. My goal is to have at least 5 non work friends by the start of the new year. And no, I'm not counting my college roommate and his girlfriend who live in town because they're old friends. These 5 friends must be NEW faces. And if one of them happens to be a romantic interest, all the better!
Well, that's enough reflection for now. Looking forward to August! The celebration of many birthdays (Grandpa's, Mom's, Mine, Best Friend's), the return of students and the start of a new academic year!
Cheers.
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p.s. We are driving through in a few days and have identified the Lou as a fantastic stopover point so we can play with you if you're not busy! I'll call you :)