Boston, here I come! :)

So, I have arrived in Boston, good ol' Bean Town. Well, technically not Boston specifically, but Canton, one of it's many suburbs. But I hope to move to Boston sometime in the near future, but only after I have secured a decent paying job and saved up some money for rent and security and all that fun stuff. But Canton has served me well thus far, I'd say. Granted it's only been a few days since my arrival, but I've visited many times during college and I love the cute and quaint look of small New England towns.

The journey here was long and arduous, but rewarding nonetheless. It still fascinates me that last week I was in Arizona, the land of sun and desert, and somehow my dinky little Kia managed to take me more than 2,500 miles to the other side of the country. It's crazy cool. And it was also a lot of fun to revisit parts of the U.S. that I haven't been in for a while. Even though it was winter and things are dead and/or hibernating for the most part, it was still really pretty. For example, when I was driving through the Appalachian mountains in the western part of North Carolina, there was a foggy haze over the trees and mountains partnered with some light flurries. It was eerie, but really pretty at the same time. Even though there were several other cars driving along with us on the highway, it still felt partly as though mine was the only car on the road. Another thing that struck me was how friendly people in the Mid-West and the South are. I wouldn't say that people in Arizona are unfriendly, but sometimes they're not as eager to strike up conversation with a stranger. But that isn't the case in states like Kentucky and North Carolina - they'll talk to anybody! And in a way that made you feel as though you had known them your entire life; they're just really outgoing and amiable, which was refreshing I thought. But that's not to say that there aren't parts of the country that I really didn't care for, and I'm speaking primarily of Texas. First of all, that state is GIGANTIC!!! Granted I took the longest route through Texas that I possibly could (unintentionally, mind you, but that's a whole different story), but that state goes on and on and on and on and on... It took us at least twelve hours to drive across it. Unbelievable. And they're right when they say Texas thinks it's a whole other country, which is true in both size and mentality. I don't know how many billboards I saw that said, "Texans like it big" and "It's only right if it's done Texas" blah blah blah, and what's funny is they really mean it. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to insult Texas. It has a nostalgia and culture all of it's own, which is nice in a way. But they really are quite different than the rest of the country and I have to say I don't think I've ever been as happy when I saw the "Welcome to Arkansas" sign. But I'm digressing...

So yes, the trip was fun, but after about a week I have to say I was happy to not have to sit a car for ten consecutive hours. And now I'm in Massachusetts and am really looking forward to what's to come. The first few days that I've been here I have pretty much done nothing... well, not nothing... I have been working on learning some chords on my guitar and I would say, and I might be being a bit optimistic here, but I think someone would be able to recognize at least a couple of songs I'm attempting to master. Of course, I'm not a rockstar, but that doesn't usually happen over night, right? And I did some laundry yesterday, watched a bit of jeopardy to sharpen my brain - not exactly productive, but I think I deserve to rest up a bit... :)

Today was the first day I've actually started researching jobs again. While it is overwhelming at times, I'm actually not too worried about it. I think that part of it has a lot to do with all the love and support I've gotten from friends and family. I have to say that I was absolutely blown away all throughout the last week or so before I left Arizona, I don't even know where to begin. It was awesome to hear so many encouraging words and to see so many people take the time to visit and celebrate with me. With such an amazing group of people behind me, I feel as though I could conquer the world! Of course I don't I'd ever really want to conquer the world, it just seems as too much responsibility and unwanted stress... :) But seriously, it's an awesome feeling to know that the people I love have so much faith in me. All I can really say is thank you. With everything that I've been going through lately with family and with the move and life in general, it gave me hope again and caused me to realize that no matter how bad I might perceive things to be, it's not important because I have friends and family that love me no matter what happens. And that is crazy cool. :)