One of the things that get lost when you make a big move is routine. I have no routine yet. Probably because it’s only the beginning of week three (!!!) being here and I’m still living in an Airbnb and I don’t know basics like where to buy groceries yet. (Amazon doesn’t deliver groceries in Pittsburgh, which is a bummer.) And because I know all of this will change in two weeks when I do move to the new house. There’s no sense in getting an established pattern here.
There’s some routines I really need to figure out soon though. My dog and I will eventually need haircuts. I’m going to need a doctor, a dentist, a grocery store, etc. All those things you get used to just having in your life when you’re settled.
And then there’s also the rhythm of being a professor, which is so different than a 9-5 type of job. You’ve got these intense moments (class) and then there’s all the preparation and grading and talking to students and behind-the-scenes work that is 3x-10x the time you’re teaching. You can do the second part on campus, in a coffee shop, at home, or wherever. But some of it is at night because students submit things then and you want to talk about them the next day.
I made a visit to the Squirrel Hill Cafe aka The Cage/The Squirrel Cage, which was one of my grad school hangouts. It’s still as grimy and dive-y as ever. Never change. Although I don’t miss the cigarette smoke.
And then there’s community. I left behind friends, neighbors, my work network, my church, and just the random people I kind of knew, like the girl who took my order at the sandwich shop. Not to mention dating—that’s for the paid subscribers. (Kidding.) All that needs to be rebooted. But I need to be patient with myself. I’m rebuilding. It takes time. I need to be kind to myself if it takes a while. I’ve only been here two weeks and I haven’t had a breakdown yet. That should be a win enough.
Your reminding me of a time in my life where I left everything behind (a life in Seattle as a newspaper artist) to teach art at Washington University in St. Louis. My life changed in so many ways. It was hard at the time but in retrospect well worth it
Small victories.