Goin' Back To ... D.C.
Today I filled up my gas tank for the last time in California. I paid $2.87 per gallon. My next fillup will be either in Maryland or Washington, D.C.
Next Friday is my last day at work and that evening, I fly to D.C. Saturday, Ladan and I fly to Iran for vacation. By October 19 we'll be back, I start looking for a place, she flies back to Phoenix, and on November 5, I begin my new job.
Everything has happened pretty quickly in the past few weeks, and it's hard to believe that in ten days I'll be leaving here for good. I've gotten very comfortable here - too comfortable, in fact, bordering on apathetic - and so it's been tough preparing mentally for 'the end'. In recent months I've made some good friends at work, and I'll be sad to see them go. The work environment is just ... different in D.C.; it'll be a much smaller office, very small group, more formal.
Just as happened to me at the end of 2004 when I was preparing to leave Maryland, when I really started to notice and appreciate D.C., I'm loving these last few days. I'm enjoying every minute, the weather, the food, the stores, the people. This past weekend, I took some time to go around and snap photos of some of my favorite spots out here, most of which, sadly, have no equal on the east coast.
What will it be like when I can't spend a Saturday hitting Fry's Electronics, Tower Records (R.I.P.) or Rasputin Music, Lozano's Car Wash, Annapoorna for some chole bhatura, the Sunnyvale park to soak up some sun and read a book, Santana Row to people-watch and read some more?
What will it be like to get up in the morning and be cold? Or drive to work and not have it be sunny?
These things are gonna tough. The biggies are going to be Fry's and the cold. Fry's, because these days I wouldn't even dream of setting foot in a Best Buy or Circuit City, in all their plastic-y slick-marketed trendiness. Fry's has everything you could possibly want, and cheaper than everybody else. Returns are zero hassle, no questions asked, no matter what. Their PC games section, as far as I can tell, is the last remaining healthy bastion in the entire US retail market. I can't even remember the last time I bought a game at Gamestop or Best Buy. Fry's has them earlier, and cheaper. I've been on a minimum once-a-week visit schedule there for two years now. Most of the time it's just to gawk, which is fun enough on its own.
The cold's gonna hurt because after a year of living in the south bay, and the temperature never dropping below 50 degrees, my body has thoroughly adjusted to comfort. Last winter when I went home to Albany for Christmas, it was a bitter reminder of what real cold is like. D.C. doesn't get as cold as Albany, but there's still most definitely a fall and winter, and man it's gonna be weird having to bundle all up to keep the cold and wind out. After moving out of San Francisco last July, I haven't worn anything heavier than a very light jacket even once down here.
Ah well ... sounds like I'm complaining, but I'm also excited to get back to D.C., live in the city, walk and Metro everywhere, start applying to grad schools, get involved with international organizations, etc. I'm sure I'll look happily back on this time and miss it, but I know that D.C. is where it's at for me now, and I can't wait to finally get started down that path. But I'll probably still impulsively check the Fry's ads online first thing in the morning every day.
Next Friday is my last day at work and that evening, I fly to D.C. Saturday, Ladan and I fly to Iran for vacation. By October 19 we'll be back, I start looking for a place, she flies back to Phoenix, and on November 5, I begin my new job.
Everything has happened pretty quickly in the past few weeks, and it's hard to believe that in ten days I'll be leaving here for good. I've gotten very comfortable here - too comfortable, in fact, bordering on apathetic - and so it's been tough preparing mentally for 'the end'. In recent months I've made some good friends at work, and I'll be sad to see them go. The work environment is just ... different in D.C.; it'll be a much smaller office, very small group, more formal.
Just as happened to me at the end of 2004 when I was preparing to leave Maryland, when I really started to notice and appreciate D.C., I'm loving these last few days. I'm enjoying every minute, the weather, the food, the stores, the people. This past weekend, I took some time to go around and snap photos of some of my favorite spots out here, most of which, sadly, have no equal on the east coast.
What will it be like when I can't spend a Saturday hitting Fry's Electronics, Tower Records (R.I.P.) or Rasputin Music, Lozano's Car Wash, Annapoorna for some chole bhatura, the Sunnyvale park to soak up some sun and read a book, Santana Row to people-watch and read some more?
What will it be like to get up in the morning and be cold? Or drive to work and not have it be sunny?
These things are gonna tough. The biggies are going to be Fry's and the cold. Fry's, because these days I wouldn't even dream of setting foot in a Best Buy or Circuit City, in all their plastic-y slick-marketed trendiness. Fry's has everything you could possibly want, and cheaper than everybody else. Returns are zero hassle, no questions asked, no matter what. Their PC games section, as far as I can tell, is the last remaining healthy bastion in the entire US retail market. I can't even remember the last time I bought a game at Gamestop or Best Buy. Fry's has them earlier, and cheaper. I've been on a minimum once-a-week visit schedule there for two years now. Most of the time it's just to gawk, which is fun enough on its own.
The cold's gonna hurt because after a year of living in the south bay, and the temperature never dropping below 50 degrees, my body has thoroughly adjusted to comfort. Last winter when I went home to Albany for Christmas, it was a bitter reminder of what real cold is like. D.C. doesn't get as cold as Albany, but there's still most definitely a fall and winter, and man it's gonna be weird having to bundle all up to keep the cold and wind out. After moving out of San Francisco last July, I haven't worn anything heavier than a very light jacket even once down here.
Ah well ... sounds like I'm complaining, but I'm also excited to get back to D.C., live in the city, walk and Metro everywhere, start applying to grad schools, get involved with international organizations, etc. I'm sure I'll look happily back on this time and miss it, but I know that D.C. is where it's at for me now, and I can't wait to finally get started down that path. But I'll probably still impulsively check the Fry's ads online first thing in the morning every day.
posted by GregP at 8:57 PM
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