Just Like Christmas

You know that feeling when you wake up on Christmas morning and you know you will have gifts but you have no idea what they will be or what the day has in store?  Well, yesterday I had Christmas in August! Seventeen months ago I packed my entire apartment into a storage unit and sent it away leaving only the things I would be taking to New Zealand. Yesterday, the container was delivered and moved into my new apartment in Chicago.

I've never had professional movers before so it was a nice treat to just watch (or at least attempt to, as it turns out I'm not very good at just observing without helping) as my things were marched out of the storage unit.  I found myself getting more and more excited as boxes and belongings popped into view.  My tent! My golf clubs! My rollerblades! My ice skates!! I actually started to feel bad for the two movers because they couldn't keep me off the truck. I kept going up to try to "help" by pulling out all the odd shaped items that wouldn't stack neatly on their piles.  Or at least that's what I told myself, in reality I just wanted to see what might be next in this box of goodness.

By noon everything had been unloaded and it was time to open boxes and put things away. What many people dread during a move, was just more Christmas to me. One of the things I have missed most over the last 9 months (that's how long it's been since I've had a place to call home), is cooking for myself regularly. I wouldn't consider myself to be a cook, until I had to go without a kitchen for extended periods.  I tackled the kitchen first (cleaning before things could be put away) and then I moved to the bedroom, bathroom and storage.  I was an unpacking machine.  Dishes, clothes, photos, it all brought back a familiar feeling and memories.  There was always an odd one too... (where did that lei come from and why did I decide I needed it??). 

I even left my unpacking mania momentarily to meet the neighbors and see if anyone had a wireless signal I could temporarily borrow.  I was thrilled to find that directly across the hall is a couple that is my age and awesome!! I think I'm going to like it here (for awhile anyway). 

This morning I woke in my own bed.  Tonight I made dinner with my own pots and pans, cutting food with my own knives. I left dishes out after I ate. I filled the refrigerator with my own food. I still have a lot to do, in fact my list is about a mile long, but it's a start. Now I just need to find my own job.

Things to be thankful for:
- Great neighbors
- Another new beginning
- Future opportunities