Wow, it's been almost two weeks since my last post. Truthfully though, little excitement has been surging through my life lately. I've seemed to find a comfortable, and sometimes hum-drum routine that occupies the vast majority of the hours of my day and allows little room for well, anything off the beaten track. I don't know if I like this. Not to say that my life has always been a constant flow of convivial entertainment, but somehow I feel like I've adopted a cookie-cutter lifestyle recently. Every day is almost broken down by the hour and is all too predictable and has transformed into this streak of habitual. I typically get up around 6 or 6:30, head out to work by 7:30, run through my barrage of meetings (don't get me wrong, work is absolutely stimulating and amazing thus far), get back by 5:30 or 6, work out, read, have dinner, and I'm usually so exhausted by that time that I instantly fall asleep.
I hadn't pictured my summer going quite this way. Already, I have missed out on certain key events I had planned on attending for the summer, and it seems that a few more may have to take place without my presence (Rickesh, if I don't make it Thursday, I will forever be kicking myself). This has led me to some possibly presumptuous thoughts. Currently, I look at my friends around me and most of them are entering a job. A few weeks ago, I went out for some drinks with some old friends and I found myself constantly at the tail end of jokes because of my imprisonment for the next four years (a.k.a. grad school) while they would reap the benefits of their freedom and paychecks and truly experience life. Initially, I was mildly beleaguered at the thought of how limited my life would be, but I reassured myself that this was indeed the path I had chosen and it was the right one. Ultimately, I will end up with a solid future. I'm not having second thoughts by any means, but for a brief second, I contemplated what it would be like to get out of school at 26, and then be ushered to a job that would require 80 hours of my week. Is that what life is for someone heading down this trail? God, I hope not. With that said, I've made some minor amendments to how I'm going to handle my academic affairs my first year. I think I'll take my first summer and simply travel, or do something (anything) that wasn't 100% academically affiliated. Since I'll save a year by doing this dual degree anyways, I might as well save the summer before pursuing an internship at some firm I'll end up whoring myself to. Perhaps a traineeship looms in the future? Time will tell.
For now, I'm going to try and make the most of the summer. Granted, the opportunities for fun a bit limited here in Fayetteville, but I will try and make time for other things. Now all of these may not seem like fun, but nonetheless they are my goals. Before the end of the summer, the following will be accomplished:
- Take trips out to New York City, D.C. and Michigan to visit friends - Purchase another saxophone (since my old one from high school is in a bit of a dilapidated state - Purchase a ticket to a location tbd to meet up with Mix and company for New Year's 2006. I'm thinking Sinai or Athens - Golf lessons - Invest half of my earnings in ETFs - Read constitutional law and strategic management texts (these are killer classes, so I want to get some of the reading out of the way) - Start biking long distances again - Read "Selling With Integrity" (recommended by Dave N.) - Take more photographs
I said my goodbyes to the people and places I've known for 20 years of my life. The last week was spent enjoying the beauty and nature of the state and soaking in the great nightlife with close friends. The move from Minneapolis was swift and successful. This is minus the fact that the moving company lost my garment bag with 9 of my favorite shirts. I'm expecting full compensation. Thus far, work has been quite taxing, but rewarding. Hours are long but learning the intricacies of a large hospital system and then beginning my education will put me a few steps ahead of the game. The weather here is depressing. For me, depressing entails 95 degree weather with extreme humidity and a 105 heat index. Unbearable. Try wearing a suit every day. I guess that is what Trent felt like in Egypt and what Mix is going through now. I also am taking a class now to exercise the brain a bit. The class is a joke compared to Michigan; there are three over-the-weekend homework assignments that comprise our entire grade. Needless to say, I'm not sweating the work. Aside from that, I have an interview to be a tae kwon do instructor at a local health club. Other endeavors: pick up the golf game, try my luck at the piano and see how much French I remember from college. Summer seems to be going swimmingly.
Fayetteville shows many differences from the familiarity of Minneapolis. The environment resonates a strong southern culture that strikes me at times. People here seem to hold their traditions and history very closely to their hearts. It's even more evident down in South Carolina, where confederate flags still wave in the air. The odd thing is that I am easily identified as a newcomer. More than twice I've been asked where I'm from and where my "accent" originated. The entire south also seems to run at a different pace than the hustle and bustle of the Twin Cities or the East coast. People here seem lackadaisical at times, even slothful. I was in the post office the other day, and there was one teller for about ten people in line. However, the teller worked at his leisurely pace and no one seemed to mind (with the exception of me).
Aside from the cultural differneces, the city (and I use that word loosely) leaves a lot to be desired for me. There is minimal at best for nightlife and my only company thus far outside family has been the two female (things could be worse...) classmates who have been kind enough to show me around. A beach trip is in the future. This weekend, I'll be basking in the sunlight of Myrtle Beach, enjoying a good book and lying by the beach. Myrtle beach in the summer is a lovely destination, and I strongly urge those who visited during spring break to venture out to these parts again and truly soak in the life here. Next week, there is a conference for Veterans Administration Hospital system in Atlantic Beach, about two hours from here. A beach trip on the company tab....work could be worse as well. I apologize for the dearth of posts, but I will make it a point to keep up-to-date.
My short absence from the nomadlife community has been due to the fact that we (my family) are leaving the midwest in one week. The new destination is Fayetteville, North Carolina. It just doesn't sound right when it rolls off my tongue. Granted, I won't be there much anyway and it does seem like the right move for my parents who are planning on relocating and retiring in that area anyways, but I feel that it will always lack the true feeling of home. And I suppose I will always tell those who ask where I'm from that I hail from Minneapolis (you tell people Minnetonka, and they start making moccasin jokes). The new neighborhood in North Carolina seemed nice enough and it is a temporary residence for me. I will have two months to rock my golf game. Nonetheless, I would have like to spend my last true summer in the midwest. People are nicer, the air is cleaner, and everything that is familiar and natural exists here.
With that said, I'm trying to get my goodbyes in. This week is a busy one, with moving, family friends' get-togethers, entourages of people visiting prior to our departure, and trying to soak in the best of Minnesota. Ipod: Coldplay ~ X and Y
