...One year ago today (October 25th) I walked out the door of my condo where I lived for 19 years and was the first home I bought on my own. I said good bye to my family and friends and New Jersey and got on a plane to start my new life on a new coast. My boyfriend was waiting for me in California in his current and my new home. I was about to face head on the expected and unexpected and everything ahead was new to me.
I had never been in a committed enough relationship where I lived with a significant other and besides the first 9 years of my life in New York I had only ever resided in New Jersey surrounded by family and friends. I had only ever worked for someone else and never considered for a moment being self-employed. What I did know though was that I was ready to do all the things I mentioned without hesitation. It was time to make changes that would be very good for me. Although I had the love of my family and friends back in NJ what I didn't have there was the love of a great guy and the respect and appreciation I deserved from a job that I put my heart and sole into for 6 years. Both of those were in California and I was really looking forward to what I knew I deserved.
It wasn't all rainbows and roses though because the first few months were filled with adjustments. I was moving my possessions into an already lived in apartment and combining our things was just short of a nightmare for this self-diagnosed girl with OCD and every time I got in the car to drive somewhere they were on roads I had never been on before to towns I had never been to before. I most certainly got lost a few times. Then there was that new experience of learning how to live with someone. I'll leave it at that. Once I was settled in and familiar with my new city it was time to start my new business which came with its own set of challenges but I got up every day and got to work navigating my way through it. By Summer I had made a lot of progress and was feeling very good about what I had accomplished so far professionally.
Aside from the challenges on the negative side there were a lot of firsts on the positive side. Steve and I finally lived in the same time zone and we did all the things we couldn't do the previous 2 years. Socially we keep very busy from attending sports games, theater, concerts, parties, have friends over for dinner and holidays and so far traveled to San Francisco and San Diego and this weekend our first time on the same plane together to spend the weekend in Phoenix to watch our favorite football team the Philadelphia Eagles play. We are having a lot of fun to say the least and still getting to know each other now that we live together.
In a week I will be going home (back East because CA is really my home now) for the second visit to give a speech at Univ of Penn and squeeze in as much time as I can visiting family and friends. I miss them a lot and I miss NJ too but not in the way that you want to move back but in a nostalgic way. I can't believe it's been a year but when I think of everything I have done it adds up to a years worth and more. Simply put I am happy and excited for what my new future holds...
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