Watching the sunset over the rolling Carolina mountains and shooting stars at night, discovering small town coffee shops, hanging out with a new group of people, and sampling the home brews, have kept me busy in the past few days. I am enjoying Asheville immensely.

Our house is coming together surprisingly well-- one dusty corner at a time. We eat dinners as a 'house family' and I'm learning how to cook dirty grits, dirty eggs (dirty meaning all the grease from fried sausages-- which is probably only new to me) biscuits, spicy shrimp.

There is something phenomenal about transitions and changes. Adjustment slips by, the unfamiliar somehow becomes comfortable. I wake up in comfortably in my new room. I've discovered a side of myself that takes great pleasure in waking slowly and eating breakfast at noon. Av and I sat out on the roof and watched the stars last night. We saw a beautiful, long shooting star. In the past six months the closest thing to stars that I've seen have been on the ceiling of Grand Central Station. We watched the sky for so long that I felt as if I could see the constellations shifting overhead. It's amazing to think that this kind of quiet coexists with the noise of New York.

I also have some exciting news: I got a job working on the editorial staff for a local newspaper. It's an awesome newspaper called the Mountain Xpress and I'll be working on the Arts and Entertainment section. I interviewed on Tuesday, had an orientation meeting on Wednesday, and begin on Monday. I am overwhelmed with happiness. My mom always told me that when you make the right decision things will come to you. I thought of that after I was offered the editorial position and as I waited for Av on the UNCA quad. I know I made the right decision. And I feel as if this job found me because I'm meant to be here. Not only can I live with the love of my life, but I can be in an exciting work environment in a field I'm interested in.


I begin Monday and plan to stargaze every night until the heart of winter.