Washington, D.C.

Hello friends! Since I last dropped by these parts, my boyfriend and I moved to Washington, DC! I've started working from home full time, begun the job search for a new gig, and even had my first guest visit for a few days. It's been a very busy month since we left Boston, but here's what I've learned in short:

- When you move, unpack the kitchen first. With a functioning kitchen, you can fix meals and snacks and save tons of money by not having to eat out constantly during the week or so it takes to properly unpack everything else. Learn from our mistake; moving your stuff around all day makes you very hungry, and we spent way too much on sub-par sandwiches and salads from random restaurants in our new 'hood. You'll eat much healthier too.

- While everyone looks for something different when choosing a new abode, there's a lot to be said for location. We opted to pay a bit more to live in a spot that puts us just a few blocks from the metro, multiple grocery stores, the farmers market, a darling tea shoppe, a second hand bookstore, a yoga studio... pretty much everything a girl could need, and I couldn't be happier with our new home. I've removed the stress of having to drive from my life and my legs are feeling happy and strong from all the walking, it's a win-win!

- Job searching can be exhausting and trying for even the most patient among us. Tip for the loved ones of job seekers: please refrain from uttering that dreaded question, "Find a job yet?", even in jest. Stick with, "How is the job search going?", and prevent an awkward moment of genuine frustration and annoyance.

- It turns out making bagels from scratch isn't as tricky as one might think. Check out this tasty little basket of goodness my sister-in-law and I hand crafted.

- If you frequently work from your laptop, like I do, investing in a few additional tools can make your workspace much more comfortable and ergonomic. A laptop stand that raises your laptop up to meet your natural gaze will keep your neck comfortable after hours at your desk. I also highly recommend a wireless keyboard (I went for the Logitech solar powered model and have been very happy with it so far) and a wireless mouse to keep your workspace clutter free.

- Speaking of desks, if you're looking for an inexpensive option, check out the Ikea Vika Amon table top with the Vika Lerberg trestle legs. This set-up only cost me $40 and was very easy to assemble, you just have to put together the trestle legs and the table top balances sturdily on top -making it easy to disassemble and move. I do not, however, suggest getting lost in your new city and making it to Ikea a mere 30 minutes before closing time with no idea what you want... but that's another story.

Apartment 303

Photo via Chinese Garden Scene

Rain drops trip from leaf to leaf on the trees outside my bedroom window. The constant buzz of insects rings in my ear, a harmony to the hum of the air conditioner down the hall. A faint breeze from the doorway kisses my cheek as I quietly wait for the temperature to become sleepable. My limbs rest heavily on the mattress, still warm from the rays of the afternoon sun, smelling slightly of pool water from today's dip.

Tonight I will fall asleep 2,015 miles from apartment 303, and a world away from the academic life I have left behind. Back on the east coast, in the bedroom that was my only piece of the world for 18 years, I have returned to begin the newest chapter of my life; one which involves a full-time job search, the rediscovery of my hometown and the city to the south (where ,with any luck, I will be relocating), and the anticipation that only uncertainty can bring.

It was somewhat sad to see apartment 303 packed up into suitcases and boxes, stacked in lonely piles next to the backdoor stoop, awaiting an alleyway pickup. The unit was my haven for the past year, and the place where so much creativity bloomed. But I have lived enough to know that places and possessions serve only as the context we give to experiences - the tangible assets that help us to quantify and make physical our emotions and experiential memories.

And so it is that I look forward to whatever will come next. While I may have said goodbye to the physical apartment 303 in Denver, it is with my whole heart that I embrace the less tangible essence of what apartment 303 stands for. Apartment 303 is about learning continuously, exploring indefinitely, and finding peace and true satisfaction in the simple things - exactly what this blog is all about.

The Writing's on the Door

Photo found here

Since I live in a graduate housing apartment on the DU campus, my building has a community adviser (also known as a CA; the slightly more grown up version of a dormitory RA). Since the apartment is all one-bedroom units inhabited by graduate students there is rarely, if ever, anything rowdy going on that needs dealing with. As a result, our CA's main purpose is to make different name plates (door decs in CA/RA-speak) for each resident's door each quarter.

Well this morning as I left home, turning to lock the door, something new caught my eye. There, below the hand-holding, banana-eating monkey cutouts that proudly proclaim "Paige" lives here in fading forest green magic marker, stood a freshly adhered picture of a snowy mountain peak rising atop a lush Colorado valley. My initial reaction was to go knock on "David" (or so claim's his own name plate) the CA's door and let him know that I appreciated his craftsmanship but that I indeed would be moving out on Saturday. As I began to stroll the hallway, however, I realized that the black type hovering just above the mountain's peak didn't resemble the characters of Paige Doster after all. Nope this plate was not made for me, but for "Nicole" someoneorother. There it is. The writing's on the door, and it's almost time to go.