No worries! I'm back! Jeannine and I have been settling in to our new digs on the North Side (Edgewater, for those of you interested and learned of Chicago neighborhoods) and trying not to spend any money, as neither of us have any jobs, yet. We both have leads, me a promising "your CV is a strong one, I hope to set up an interview soon" and Jeannine actually has an interview in August. But as of right now, we have enough to skim through next month, and that's it. But I am confident we will not perish. Some things that have happened in the city that make me happy:
1. I really love public transit. I know I'm seen as eccentric at best, deranged and socially mislead at worst for that comment, but it's true. I'm a big fan of sitting on the red line, listening to some Buddhist podcast, and looking at all the shops and sights along the way. I'm also a big fan of riding the express bus down Lake Shore Drive early Sunday morning: not many people are out and the lake is beautiful and it makes me feel good.
2. We were at a coffee shop a week ago and a pretty lady walked by the window and smiled at me.
3. Our apartment is big enough and affordable and has a courtyard. The windowsills are big enough for our cats to lounge on.
4. Our friends here have been really great: helping us move in in record time, inviting us for dinner and being willing to come here to hang out because we don't have any money to blow on entertainment. Thanks guys, it means a lot to us.
I'm not going to spend too much time going on about my trouble getting adjusted here: it centers around a new environment, no job, no routine. I am a creature of habit and change is hard for me, but I think I'm doing the best I can. Come fall, when I have a job and the leaves are changing and there's that great bite in the air I will be happy and not nearly as anxious as I am now. It's hard not to have the warm bosom of academia to nestle into after 6 years of its reassuring poverty. But once I get a teaching job, I'll be back!
Oh, and if you've made it this far, I have a poem in the new issue of Alba. Go check it out.
Over and out.
3 comments:
This Alba poem is in your chapbook with a different title. It's a really nice book, at that. You've got a real knack for double meanings, like the last line of "A Space to Exhaust" or the first of "Geophagy." I'm glad I have these in print. "Exhaust" and "Marie" are my faves.
Good to hear you've already got job leads. Keep us posted. Hope you continue to feel more settled.
I like the Edgewater area -- my dad and step-mom liver there for a number of years.
Best of luck on the job-hunting and the routine-seeking.
Glad to hear that you all made it to Chi safe and sound, and that you're enjoying the public transit! The El is way better than the PVTA, hands down.
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