The Move to Jersey- accepting change

Uh... scratch that last post.

Since my last post two weeks ago, Jason and I have driven even farther away from Utah, fallen asleep at the wheel, kinda-sorta lost a job, moved into one apartment, unpacked half-way, packed back up, moved again and unpacked one last time. Yes it was as tiring as it sounds.

Two weeks ago I was making a list of things I wanted to see in Charlotte while I lived there. That was short lived, however, because in the space of 24 hours we decided our time in Charlotte was over. Due to licensing issues in the paranoid state of North Carolina, Jason was only allowed to sell in South Carolina with a small group of Pinnacle guys. They were spending a fortune on gas to drive the 3 hours to and from Columbia, SC to sell each day, with little success to show for it. Jason had been speaking with our manager for quite some time about changing offices, and last week he finally gave us the go-ahead.

We both knew this needed to happen, but it was difficult nonetheless. All our friends are in Charlotte, and we were just getting to know the area and the ward. We had just gotten a second office manager so work for me was ten times more enjoyable, and I really liked bringing in a second income. I was upset at first, hurt that everything I'd worked for would end since Jason couldn't sell. I didn't want to leave our nice apartments, my job, or our friends. But as I continued to think about it, I remembered a promise I made a few months ago; a promise to follow the power of the priesthood in my home. I know I'm getting intimate here, but it was a turning point for both our summer and my attitude. I know very well that sometimes little sacrifices can lead to great blessings.

With all this moving I've been thinking a lot about change, and the type of attitude it takes to fully accept change into your life. It'll be difficult to pack up and move every summer, accepting the unknown that each city brings. It's difficult to leave what you know, and what you're familiar with for the greater good of your family. We want financial stability before we have kids, and that takes work and discipline from us now.

My baby sister graduated today. It's weird that her and I are learning the same the same lesson, although I've been graduated three years now. We're both at that point where you look at your life and say what now- her after high school and me after marriage. I guess that's when you have a choice. You can run from new things and shy away from what's rare, or you can embrace it, enjoy it.

So here we are in New Jersey. The journey was an interesting one. We left way too late, sixish due to bad service at Avis. Never renting there again. Our friend Mckay had more stuff out here than I did, and since he was coming with us to NJ, we needed two cars to fit all our belongings. So for the next 10 hours I bounced between the two, keeping the guys awake with chitter chatter and replays of Dane Cook. We drove smoothly the whole night and only when the sun came up did we start to have problems. Jason couldn't keep himself awake another minute, so I took the wheel.

With the sun pink along the horizon and cars starting to appear on the freeway again you think we'd be just fine. But when a semi appeared suddenly in front of me at 80 mph, I jerked the wheel in time to swerve around him. Luckily no one was in my blind spot, and luckily I had snapped out of my daze in time because seriously I had no idea he was in front of me. That was when I realized we had to pull over.

We stopped at a quaint town in Pennsylvania to sleep in the cars to a few minutes, and I ran around the block with Ollie to wake me up. Jason pointed out that I had gospel music playing on the radio, and the AC up to 80 degrees. SO not good a good thing when you're trying to stay awake. I swear I do know that, but just as I was completely unaware of that semi, I was completely unaware of everything else too. I suggested mcgriddles for further waking up, so we headed off the ten minutes to Mickeydees.

Right as we were winding through town, Jason suddenly yells in disbelief, "MCKAY!" I snap to attention, and whip around in my seat as Jason slams on his brakes in the middle of the road. Behind us, Mckay is driving the TL straight toward a brick building on the left side of the road! I was terrified. Jason sprinted out of the car and toward the TL right as Mckay stopped the car and got out himself. He had fallen asleep at the wheel, drifted across the street, onto the sidewalk, through two street poles and somehow woken up just in time to steer out of the way of the building. He had lost both side mirrors and dented the side paneling, but he was very much awake as he inspected the damage.

All three of us were in complete shock/awe that Mckay had steered clear of everything so beautifully while he slept! Mckay was just waiting for a hanging, but Jason was so relieved that our car hadn't been totaled, that two missing mirrors sounded awesome. Somehow I started giggling, then Jason started, and finally Mckay joined in. We were all standing there in the middle of the road in some random town in Pennsylvania laughing at our smashed-up car. Of course everything is funny at 5 am.

We bought Mckay breakfast that morning. And when the giggles finally subsided, I said, "Jason if we would have just said a prayer before we left..." But Mckay interrupted me. "I said a prayer before we left." I looked at Mckay and wondered all the things that could have happened that morning. How grateful we are to be blessed with broken mirrors.

So when we finally made it to Rutherford, we moved into some piece of junk apartments to wait out our time until Tuesday, when the leasing office for our better apartments would open up. At that point I was scared. We were in straight hood, and I hadn't even seen a Walmart, let alone anything good. Everything was those no-name restaurants/stores/gas stations you've never heard of; the kind of places I just don't trust. But I held my tongue, praying our next place would be better. It felt much like a month ago when we were first moving in to Charlotte. First to roach motel, and then on to Steelcroft.

Sunday was a relief. Mckay's brother Daniel lives in New York, and since Times Square is literally 20 minutes away, we hopped in the car to join his family for lunch. His dad was in town on business, so we met at Dinosaur BBQ in Harlem. Despite the fruity name, Daniel was right. Dinosaur BBQ was the best barbecue I've ever had. The creole deviled eggs were to die for, as well as the wings, sweet mash, spicy mac and cheese and fall off the bone ribs. I'm watering at the mouth just thinking about it. Mmmmm! Ima need some grub soon!

Daniel told us they were filming Spiderman 4 under this bridge the other day. Isn't it a pretty one??

After lunch we went to Daniel and Megan's apartment for homemade oreo ice cream. It was perfectly opposite of what I expected to do in Manhattan- buzzing around the city from one museum/department store/skyscraper to the next is tiring, and shoot we have a whole summer to do that! So spending a lazy Sunday playing cards on the top floor of a lofty New York apartment was perfect. The weather was foggy and cool so when we finally got off the couch, we kept indoors by visiting Grand Central Station. 

Since then I've bided my time with back-to-back episodes of the OC, and long walks with Ollie. Last night we finally got into our new and hopefully final, apartments. They remind me a lot of a hotel, what with elevators and a plush bench in the lobby, large mirrors and a plaza with umbrellas and fountains. I'm thrilled about the wifi that I can pick up for free, and with the train right by us, trips to New York should be pretty easy. I'm lonely, talking to a dog all day gets old, but I'm reminding myself that this summer isn't about entertainment. Entertainment is left for Sundays when Jason gets a day off, and believe me when I say our Sundays are booked from now until August. Because now that my things to do in Charlotte post is pretty much obliviated, I have a long list of things to see in NYC!

Saturday night we went to Times Square for pizza.

Today I found a Walmart, and I'm pretty proud of myself for getting there. The drivers out here are nuts, and with two missing mirrors, I'm lucky I made it alive. What with my first impressions of Jersey I was suprised to find a nice one. I hate Walmart 8 months out of the year, but when you're living someplace foreign, you grasp on to anything familiar. But it was, nice, I mean, with a great view of the Empire State Building in fact

So as I'm gliding the aisles, I'm still thinking about change. You know, wondering what the heck I'm doing in New Jersey with all these crazy... different colored people... ahem. ;) Wondering how I'm gonna brave an entire summer with little or no friends. But I started to get on top of it. You know, accept it. I thought about my neighbor, back in Utah, who couldn't even remember if they had a stove in their apartment when him and his wife first got married. A stove??! So whether or not my apartment has a pool really won't matter in ten years. It won't even matter in five. In fact, before I know it this summer will be over and I'll be saying, "Wow, I was really there four months? I didn't do everything I wanted to!"

Anyway, so I made this little pact to myself. That I'm not going to fear change. In fact, I even went as far as to buy completely new groceries. I mean doesn't it seem like your grocery list is always the same? That you generally stick to the same exact foods, brands, amounts, etc. So I changed it up a bit. Well, I changed it up a lot. Everything I bought today was new. I picked up new things, stuff I've always bypassed on my way to the old and familiar. I picked up new gum, new cheese, new bagels, new veggies. I even got a good range of change, including meals of Mexican, American, seafood, Italian, and Thai.

Yeah I'm probably crazy, but shoot I got nothin better to do! ;)