New blog

So it's probably obvious that I've been a little lax in updating this blog. Good news, though, for those few readers who might check if I've updated:

I'm blogging again! Check it out here.

Pushing the limit

My dad underwent emergency open-heart surgery on Wednesday. The surgery lasted nearly six hours and waiting was the scariest experience of my life.

He survived, though, and doctors say he's recovering very well. Even though he spends most of his time sleeping, I just want to be by his side in his hospital room as much as I can.

I hope the recovery goes well. I know it will be long and I know it will bring a lot of difficult adjustments, but there's got to be a bright side to this.

Not to be melodramatic, but there's only so much one family can take.

Training for three

A few weeks ago, patience was running dangerously thin in our household. Jamie and I were fed up with hearing Henry bark every night and were growing increasingly annoyed as the list of things that he decided to chew on grew and grew. Henry's behavior seemed to get worse as we became angrier at him. He got fed up of being stuck in the kitchen every night and, after much struggle, managed to jump the gate and re-jump the gate, which was moved three inches higher.

So, we gave in and got rid of the gate. Baby Barfight now sleeps under our bed at night and is much better behaved. While we're gone for the day, he seems to be a good boy, only leaving his under-the-sidetable den to look out the front window as we leave.

In addition, Henry's now attending weekly obedience classes -- I have faith they'll make a huge difference.

It's hard to believe that, just a few weeks ago, Jamie and I were half-contemplating giving up Henry for adoption. He is such an absolute joy in our lives; we're both so grateful for him. Anyway, owning Henry has reminded us the importance of patience and selflessness. It's also taught me to let go and stop being so uptight.

More on that later.

Home

During my freshman year of college (which gladly still feels pretty recent), I started receiving a personalized daily email from The Universe. The emails are usually witty, often inspiring, and sometimes dead-on insightful.

Anyway, when you sign up for the service, you are asked what tangible thing you really want in life. You know, a new car, or an engagement ring ... something to look forward to getting someday. This item is often mentioned in the daily emails as a source of encouragement.

I had a rough time coming up with an item. I knew I wanted a career, to live in a new city, see the world ... but I couldn't really come up with a tangible object that would motivate me on a daily basis.

So, I kind of cheated ... I told The Universe I wanted a house. And, in all honesty, I guess I do want to own a house someday. But what I really wanted more than anything was to feel a sense of "home." From the time I entered college, home became more of an idea than a place, and throughout college I looked forward to the day that I could connect the two -- the idea and the place.

Well, it looks like I need to come up with a new dream item now.

Our Asian-inspired living room

I adore the home that Jamie and I have made. It's more than the idea and the place -- it's ours, and that makes it more meaningful than anything else.

Oh, Henry!

To add to the list of ever-growing changes in our lives, Jamie and I adopted a dog this weekend.

Henry BarFight is just about as sweet as can be. He's a German Shepherd/Chow mix and, at 6 months, is already 30-plus pounds!

Sweetest face ever! I am so in love with this dog.

His previous owner abandoned him, and we became his new parents, thanks to the thoughtful suggestion of some friends. I was worried that his rough start would contribute to some behavioral issues, but he's been pleasantly well behaved. Getting him housetrained is a practice in patience.

In related news, my mind is on the verge of breakdown from all of the huge changes I've experienced lately. Life needs to slow down and I need to get more sleep.

I'm still grateful and happy though -- without a doubt.

Cloud Nine

I officially graduated from Georgia State University on May 12.

Jamie and I moved into our Candler Park apartment on May 19 -- since then, we have painted the study/guest room, living room, kitchen, and bathroom. Only our bedroom remains to be painted. Our little abode is about as cozy as can be, and I couldn't be happier with the neighborhood. Meeting neighbors is happening slowly but surely, and it seems that we already know a few of them.

That same day, my friend Yasirah got married. I had the honor of being one of her bridesmaids, and Jamie caught her garter. It was the first wedding we had attended together, and it gave us plenty of ideas for our ceremony. (Target date: September 2008)

The following day -- May 20th -- my parents held a graduation party. It was a huge success, I think, and Jamie and I received plenty of goodies for all of our hard work at GSU. No matter how stressful things can get with us , it reminded me how much I love my family.

Jessi, my roommate from freshman year and dear friend, had her baby on May 27. Jack was the most perfect little guy I had ever seen. Meeting him just hours after his birth was another first -- and wonderful experience -- for me and James.

And, as of last week, I am an real, full-time, paid employee. With benefits. I really don't think I could love my job more. Yes, I'm saying that even though I have to get up at an insane hour every day. I don't care. I am so, so lucky.

Also, as of yesterday, Jamie's employed, too. He's freelancing, which is a great opportunity while job hunting.

Life almost seems too good, especially compared to how rough things were this time last year.

Whew. Photos of the apartment coming soon.

And ... I'm in limbo.

Well, it's over. College is done. Seventeen years of school have come to an end. I'm not considering graduate school right now, so this is it -- the end.

It's hard to believe. And, to be honest, it hasn't really hit me yet. I'm not going to attend the commencement ceremony this Saturday, so there won't be any official graduation fanfare until the end of the month. Right now, it seems like there's so many more important things to think about.

The thing is, I'm probably not thinking so much about the fact that I've graduated because it's so scary. I don't have a job lined up, and -- right now -- I don't even have a part-time job while I wait to hear from my prospective employers.

So I'm left to wait. And wait. It's killing me. Jamie and I are both in a bizarre sort of limbo right now -- in between places (packing up at 705 Blake, but unable to move to Candler Park until 19th) and jobs. There's not much to hold onto right now, except each other. (I know that's terribly cheesy, but it's pretty true.)

Eh, I'm not feeling very eloquent right now. I'll make this post better later.

Finally.

Ah, the phrase "final exams" is especially significant this year. Of course, I can't even bring myself to start on my first paper -- I just have two papers and two exams to get through. When I've got so much on my mind -- does school really matter when you already have a dozen or so job applications out there?!? -- it's rather difficult to force myself to sit down and write a paper for a class I really could care less about.

My birthday was Friday and, while the day itself was less than perfect, the ensuing celebration this weekend was absolutely fantastic. My friends and family surprised me with wonderful, thoughtful gifts and the birthday outings -- which I usually dread -- were full of laughter and smiles. I'm still beaming from the love-fest.

All's quiet on the job front at the moment. I'm just waiting, waiting to hear back from any of the jobs I've applied for. My phone keeps ringing from unknown numbers today, but none of the callers are who I want them to be.

I have a feeling the next few days/weeks are going to be gloriously bittersweet. I'm not sure if I'm ready for the days of 705 Blake to be over. I may have complained about the house itself, but we really are the best group of roommates I've ever met. Sigh.

How did it fall through the cracks?

This was a worthwhile question posed to me in regards to my once-lofty plans to spend a year living, working, and traveling in New Zealand. The person who asked the question -- my biggest travel inspiration, whom I've referenced many times here in my travel-related posts -- certainly has reason to be confused.

How did New Zealand fall through the cracks? It's an excellent question, and one worth exploring:

Jamie and I had full intentions to spend a year in New Zealand -- we obtained visas, bought one-way tickets, and were saving every penny we could. But, as time wore on, the job and housing hunt became more and more difficult. It's hard to find, much less secure, a job or apartment when you're literally on the other side of the world.

Eventually, I realized that I do indeed have a good chance at getting a decent job where I'm interning. While it's not where I ultimately want to wind up, it's definitely a good start, especially considering how few entry-level journalism jobs are available in Atlanta. So, the more and more I thought about it, the more it made sense to stay here -- where Jamie and I could get jobs in our respective fields and live in a pretty nice place -- than move sight-unseen to New Zealand -- where we'd be likely to work in the food service or something along those lines and struggle with money the whole time. The point of going to New Zealand was to experience as much as possible, and that's (sadly) kind of tough to do when you're strapped for cash.

I must add that Jamie has been as supportive and accommodating as possible. It's absolutely amazing.

Since making the decision to stay in Atlanta for a while (and it never was an ultimate decision -- it just kind of happened), I have debated over and over in my head as to whether it was the right one. My heart always breaks when a friend asks about New Zealand and I have to update them on our practical and somewhat boring (at least in comparison) plans.

My biggest worry is that we're already letting our careers get in the way. Will we ever spend that year in New Zealand? Will we get stuck in Atlanta? Will we become too busy with work and obsessed with furthering our careers?

I certainly hope not. And I know that the fact that I have such concerns is a good sign. I'm also grateful that I have had such wonderful travel experiences so far. I do still get the traveling bug, even if I know how to suppress it ...

And, of course, we still have our one-way tickets. Once we get new jobs, Jamie and I will figure out how much time we can take off (three weeks? a month?) and buy return tickets.

We are still going to New Zealand. It hasn't really fallen through the cracks at all. And that gives me hope.

Hopes and Fears

As with any tragedy, the Virginia Tech shootings have me thinking about how quickly and dramatically life can change or even end. I have been completely focused on the immediate future as of late – searching for a new place to live and applying to job after job – and I can’t help but think of the students who lost their lives and will never experience those things.

Life is beautiful in its fragility. I feel more grateful for my life than ever, and the past few days have prompted me to look back at all I have experienced and been blessed with thus far. I know it’s morbid, but I can confidently say that, if my life ended today, I would die happy. That’s something that I would want people to know, and I can only pray that loved ones believe the same is true for those who lost their lives on Monday.

In other news, I’m severely struggling with senoritis. Thinking about major things like a new job and place to live, moving in with my fiancé and making plans for the future … it’s seemingly impossible to worry about multiple choice tests or attendance points. I’m so ready to be done with it all.

I may miss those minor worries, though, once I officially meet the “real world” face to face.

Moving Fast

Everything seems to be moving fast these days. With less than a week's notice, Jamie and I have begun our search for a place to live. The original plan was to live at 705 Blake for the summer, but thanks to multiple situations, we'll be moving in to our first place together by the end of the month.

Although the serch is stressful, I'm beyond excited about finding a place. So far, it seems like Jamie and I have similar tastes in housing and we've been pretty smart about planning everything out ahead of time. Considering how stressful and haphazard this could be, I think our current situation is a good sign for things to come.

Although I never officially addressed it on this blog, Jamie and I are engaged. He proposed nearly five months ago. I couldn't be happier. Or prouder. Marriage won't happen until sometime in 2008. We're taking everything one step at a time.

In other news, it probably makes sense to include non-travel related posts now. Otherwise, I'd never update.

Sorry, I know it's dark, but I love this picture.

It's official

Jamie and I bought one-way tickets to New Zealand yesterday. As of right now, the plan is to spend a year there September 2007 - September 2008, working and getting to know the country and surrounding areas as much as we can.

More details to come.