Things have been much crazier than I anticipated! Between moving in and starting our bar exam class, we haven’t had time for much of anything. When I was told that I would need to spend 8-10 hours a day preparing for the bar exam that we’re taking in a couple months, I didn’t really take that figure seriously. Boy, was I wrong. We’re trying to get into a groove with the studying, but it’s very hard after being so excited about school being over.
Aside from studying, the move itself has been quite the task. Our apartment here in Atlanta is a pretty significant downsize from our townhouse in Virginia, and I don’t think I really anticipated the challenges that would come with that. We downsized on purpose because we felt like we had too much space before, but we didn’t realize how much we had grown into that space (aka bought junk to fill up that space). We’ve had to give away/throw away a lot of things to fit comfortably in our new place. Getting furniture into our unit was very interesting (thank goodness for dads and husbands!). I also forgot about the joys of communal living like hearing your upstairs neighbor walk around and using a parking garage for where you live. The process has been a bit frustrating, but I think in the end it will be a positive thing. I can already feel myself itching to buy a house though…not a good thing…
On a more positive note, we love the community we’re living in. It’s one of those multipurpose communities that has restaurants, shops, and apartments all in one center. For the first time in my life, I’m in walking distance of my favorite clothing store, an amazing coffee shop, a great dinner place, a drugstore, and pretty much anything else I would need. When Jason and I want to grab lunch, we just walk downstairs and across the street! Doesn’t get much more convenient than that. Plus the restaurants here are awesome.
And my mom has been nice enough to invite us over for dinner most nights, which is amazing because my new kitchen is far from cooking condition and I just haven’t had the time to do much about it. Last night at my family’s house mom made grilled chicken (mine was Quorn brand meatless), cabbage casserole, fresh rolls, and rice pilaf. Delicious stick-to-your-ribs food! And we even got leftovers to bring home.
The craziness is far from over, as tomorrow my little brother is graduating from high school! I hope I’ll have pictures to show you from the festivities. No iPhones involved, I promise.
Thanks for reading!
Ali
Glad to hear that you are loving your new neighborhood!
As someone who also lives in an apartment (which I purchased), I can completely understand where you are coming from with the noise and dealing with a parking garage. Gah! Kinda sucks, especially because I think someone new moved in close to my unit and has been playing either movies or something else with extremely loud base. In addition, the walking back and forth with shoes on laminate floors – not so fun. I swore when I was looking for a place that I would only take the top floor of wherever it was. Turns out I fell in love with the place I am in (the floor plan is amazing!) and the community – everything is super convenient and it’s a nice, quiet family-oriented community – and the only units left at the time I was looking were 3rd floor or lower. Oh well, live and learn I guess. Will definitely give me something to look forward to in the future. Also, given that I am on my own right now, I kind of rationalize it as it’s nice to know that there are other people around. 😉
Anyway, not sure why I wrote a novel. Look forward to reading about all your new adventures! 🙂