I departed for Toronto on December 22nd. Only a few days earlier, terrible snowstorms had hit much of Western Europe, and European airports (namely Heathrow and Frankfurt) were terribly unprepared. You've seen the pictures: thousands were left stranded in these airports for days on end. Because I was scheduled to fly through Frankfurt, and the sky was scheduled to snow, I anticipated major delays. To prepare for my long wait in that cold, miserable prison of an airport, I downloaded 9 rental movies on itunes. And then didn't watch a single one - by some magical twist of fate I got home without a minute's delay. A great start to my holiday.
The cold in Toronto was an immediate shock to the system - My body has certainly adapted to the Mediterranean climate. Thus for the first few nights at home, I slept with a hat and gloves on.
I made a great new friend over break: Bruno. Bruno is our new chocolate lab, who my parents got in October. He's a pretty cool dude. He's like a giant lap dog - he'll sit right on you and lick your face and paw at you and just loves being around people. A neighbour has taken to calling him "collapsible Bruno" - he stumbles down stairs and his enormous paws slip on glossy floors. Unfortunately, he throws up a lot (because he rips to shreds and eats anything he can find, including my leather boots), and this particularly frustrates my mother, as she is his primary caregiver.
My four months in Greece is the longest I've ever spent out of North America, so I was expecting there to be some kind of reverse culture shock when I returned home. That I might think things like "Wow, the sidewalks are so pedestrian friendly!" and "Everyone's speaking English!" and "Where are all the cats!?" But I didn't. Aside from the dizzy jet lag feeling, I slipped right back into North America as though I'd never left.
For the most part, being home was quite relaxing. Christmas was very low key, which I really appreciated. The most stressful aspect of returning to North America was that it forced me to confront my future - what the hell am I going to do next year? I've come to the conclusion that I'll probably move back home (after seven years living away from home) for a little while. I don't have any idea what I want to do with my life and I think I need to spend some quality time thinking about it, and experimenting with different options. I'd like to paint a lot, write a lot, and put some real energy into singing, which I've never had a chance to focus on. As a wise woman named Allie Wolner once said, though floundering around at home is not pleasant while you're doing it, there's something really valuable about floundering around.
I've been reading Johnathon Franzen's "The Corrections." I'ts f-ing great.
As you may have noticed from my use of past tense, I am now back in Greece. It was wonderfully warm and sunny when I got here, 2 Saturdays ago. Last week was not quite as nice, but at least it's much warmer than at home.
I think these first two months back are going to be tough. The weather right now is decent, but it's certainly not ideal for Greece (no laying on the beach at this time of year). We also don't have any long weekends until March, so it will be two months of weekends doing whatever in Athens. Thus it feels a bit like from now until March is just a period of waiting.
Big news: Lizzie left, for good. She had been having a pretty rough time last semester and talking about not coming back this semester, but I didn't think she would actually follow through with it. She did come back, but I guess after one day here she decided she just couldn't hack it. So she packed up her things and headed home on Monday night.
Luckily, right now, my friend Julia from Brown is visiting for the week. (She really couldn't have come at a better time).
It's pretty strange having this huge apartment all to myself. It is a bit lonely, but there are certainly some pros - I can walk around naked, leave my dirty dishes in the sink, and play music as loud as I want. I'm certainly someone who needs their own space.
While I was away from Greece, I had some time to reflect upon this experience. One thing I thought a lot about was being on my own. Although I am here with nine (now eight) other Americans my age, living in Greece and not speaking the language can be incredibly lonely at times. In November, there was a period where I even felt utterly cut off from the other teaching fellows, and totally alone. However, I suppose any experience the year after college will bring its lonely moments. At Brown, I was surrounded by wonderful people my own age 24/7.
But there's certainly value in being alone, and one does not have to be "lonely" just because they're alone. I'm pretty damn good at keeping myself busy, and am excited at the prospect of turning Lizzie's old room into an art/dance studio. Maybe living in this apartment on my own will be a good thing.
Along with the notion that it's okay to be alone I have accepted that I am not going to find romance in Greece. I went on a few dates with Greek dudes last semester, but nothing really came of it, and I've stopped hoping anything will. They're all way too old for me anyways... yuck.
Anyways. Now that Lizzie is gone there is TONS of space in my apartment. So please plan your visit to Athens!
Hronia Polla (Happy New Year, but really means "many years!"),
CC
The cold in Toronto was an immediate shock to the system - My body has certainly adapted to the Mediterranean climate. Thus for the first few nights at home, I slept with a hat and gloves on.
I made a great new friend over break: Bruno. Bruno is our new chocolate lab, who my parents got in October. He's a pretty cool dude. He's like a giant lap dog - he'll sit right on you and lick your face and paw at you and just loves being around people. A neighbour has taken to calling him "collapsible Bruno" - he stumbles down stairs and his enormous paws slip on glossy floors. Unfortunately, he throws up a lot (because he rips to shreds and eats anything he can find, including my leather boots), and this particularly frustrates my mother, as she is his primary caregiver.
 |
| And he's not even a stray! |
My four months in Greece is the longest I've ever spent out of North America, so I was expecting there to be some kind of reverse culture shock when I returned home. That I might think things like "Wow, the sidewalks are so pedestrian friendly!" and "Everyone's speaking English!" and "Where are all the cats!?" But I didn't. Aside from the dizzy jet lag feeling, I slipped right back into North America as though I'd never left.
For the most part, being home was quite relaxing. Christmas was very low key, which I really appreciated. The most stressful aspect of returning to North America was that it forced me to confront my future - what the hell am I going to do next year? I've come to the conclusion that I'll probably move back home (after seven years living away from home) for a little while. I don't have any idea what I want to do with my life and I think I need to spend some quality time thinking about it, and experimenting with different options. I'd like to paint a lot, write a lot, and put some real energy into singing, which I've never had a chance to focus on. As a wise woman named Allie Wolner once said, though floundering around at home is not pleasant while you're doing it, there's something really valuable about floundering around.
I've been reading Johnathon Franzen's "The Corrections." I'ts f-ing great.
As you may have noticed from my use of past tense, I am now back in Greece. It was wonderfully warm and sunny when I got here, 2 Saturdays ago. Last week was not quite as nice, but at least it's much warmer than at home.
I think these first two months back are going to be tough. The weather right now is decent, but it's certainly not ideal for Greece (no laying on the beach at this time of year). We also don't have any long weekends until March, so it will be two months of weekends doing whatever in Athens. Thus it feels a bit like from now until March is just a period of waiting.
Big news: Lizzie left, for good. She had been having a pretty rough time last semester and talking about not coming back this semester, but I didn't think she would actually follow through with it. She did come back, but I guess after one day here she decided she just couldn't hack it. So she packed up her things and headed home on Monday night.
Luckily, right now, my friend Julia from Brown is visiting for the week. (She really couldn't have come at a better time).
It's pretty strange having this huge apartment all to myself. It is a bit lonely, but there are certainly some pros - I can walk around naked, leave my dirty dishes in the sink, and play music as loud as I want. I'm certainly someone who needs their own space.
While I was away from Greece, I had some time to reflect upon this experience. One thing I thought a lot about was being on my own. Although I am here with nine (now eight) other Americans my age, living in Greece and not speaking the language can be incredibly lonely at times. In November, there was a period where I even felt utterly cut off from the other teaching fellows, and totally alone. However, I suppose any experience the year after college will bring its lonely moments. At Brown, I was surrounded by wonderful people my own age 24/7.
But there's certainly value in being alone, and one does not have to be "lonely" just because they're alone. I'm pretty damn good at keeping myself busy, and am excited at the prospect of turning Lizzie's old room into an art/dance studio. Maybe living in this apartment on my own will be a good thing.
Along with the notion that it's okay to be alone I have accepted that I am not going to find romance in Greece. I went on a few dates with Greek dudes last semester, but nothing really came of it, and I've stopped hoping anything will. They're all way too old for me anyways... yuck.
Anyways. Now that Lizzie is gone there is TONS of space in my apartment. So please plan your visit to Athens!
Hronia Polla (Happy New Year, but really means "many years!"),
CC
