It has been a while since I have written an entry. So long, in fact, that blogspot has actually changed their format! But that will be perfect. A new format to document a new adventure.
Before I go into detail about my next big step, I want to share some of my summer highlights. When I arrived home from Thailand at the end of April, I spent the majority of my summer in Grand Junction. I was not looking forward to living with my parents in the small town I grew up in. Furthermore, it was the strangest thing to come home to a town I felt I knew so well and find that in six years, almost everything has change and almost everyone has left.
I was determined to not let the unfamiliarity of my hometown get me down. I filled my summer with hikes, road trips, dancing, and yoga.
I started my summer with a trip to Salt Lake City to visit some friends. That weekend there was a bachelorette party for a college friend of mine. The rest of the time I spent shopping, bbqing, and bar hopping. It was a wonderful reunion. Having spent over a year away from everyone, it was as if nothing had changed.
After the weekend was over, I took one of my friends, Jodi, who was looking to move to Colorado, back to Grand Junction. We spent a few days hiking the monument and attempting to experience the bar scene. We found that a Tuesday night in Grand Junction is not the best time to plan an evening out on the town. Regardless, we had a a great time.
Later that week we drove to Fort Collins to celebrate with my high school friend, Katie, for her graduation from OT school. We stopped in Denver on the way to check out Jodi's potential school and apartment shop. After celebrating in Fort Collins and running into some other old friends, I said goodbye to Jodi and Katie and met up with my sister, Stephanie, for her 21st birthday. We went to New Belgium Brewing company to enjoy a sampler and later that night we went out to a few bars in Greeley. I was also happy to have met up with Wendy, another friend from high school, and to make the acquaintance of my sister's boyfriend, Justin.
Stephanie and I drove back to Grand Junction after the weekend was over to have a birthday dinner with our parents. When she left, it was time for me to get to work. I took two part time summer jobs making coffee in the mornings, and was lucky enough to land the role of Victoria in the Broadway at the Avalon production of CATS.
With 50 hours of work and 20-25 hours of rehearsals a week my summer was busier than any I have experienced in years. While work was not one of the highlights of my summer, CATS by far was the biggest. I got to work with my high school dance teacher, I met some amazing people through the production and most importantly, I was dancing again. It was so much fun to be back on stage for the little bit that I was. Hopefully it will not be my last performance, but if it happens to be, I sure went out with a bang! We were almost sold out every night with an average of 700 tickets sold all three nights. Oh, and we made the news.
Another highlight of the summer was my friend Angie's wedding. Having met Angie when I was three years old makes her my oldest friend. I was so excited when she asked me to be in her wedding! At the end of June Katie, Erica - another high school friend - and I all made our way by car down to LA for the big day. We spent the night in Vegas for free, thanks to Erica's frequent visits, and had a wonderful time re-bonding on and off of the road. The wedding was beautiful and the company was unbeatable.
My final hurrah of the summer was one last trip to Salt Lake City. This trip consisted of bar hopping, tubing down the river, and relaxing in my friends' sauna. It was another unforgettable trip to Salt Lake City that made me wonder why I ever left. Wonderful friends, beautiful mountains, and a developing night scene in a city full of opportunities is surely enough to satisfy my need for adventure.
But then I remember, I am moving to Japan. Yes, in six days and three hours I will be on a plane headed to Nagoya, Japan. I will be teaching at Kids International School in a suburb of Nagoya called Nagakute-cho. I have been told that I will be teaching the three year old class, but have learned from other experiences that I cannot expect anything for certain until it happens. I have been sent a link to my apartment complex and have noted that I will be living in a 100 sq ft apartment that is 15-20 minutes from the school. I don't know if this is by foot, car, speed train, or bicycle. These questions and so many more are making me equal parts excited and nervous for yet another big adventure in life.
Coming home to such a great summer has made me question and confirm my current mobile lifestyle. I am so lucky to have such wonderful people in my life and I am even luckier to be able to leave for so long and come back to them with open arms. I will miss everyone and I promise I will keep in touch!
Here goes nothing!
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| Nagoya's Skyline |
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